Allergic to malt

So I think I have a slight allergy to raw malts. I'm kind of relating it to another weird allergy of mine, because the reaction seems the same: raw carrots and broccoli.

I was just transfering my big bags of munich, pilsner and MO to smaller, zip lock bags. Lots of grain dust was going into the air while I was doing this. I started sneezing a lot and now my face feels kind of itchy and red. Also, whenever I take a grain and bite into it to try it my mouth gets a burning, irritated feeling like when I eat certain raw vegetables. Well, who'd have know? It's not a big deal, because I don't react to beer at all. Whatever it is gets cooked out like when I cook broccoli. Interesting, none the less.

Maybe just use a dust mask when you move and crush the grains. That sucks at any rate

Haven't noticed a problem with grains, but have with various raw vegetables. Cook them & I'm fine. Bananas: green ok, over-ripe ok, but at a very specific point in the ripening process, they make my throat blister. Ditto, melons.

Never had a steak do that. I listen to my body.

david_42 said:

Haven't noticed a problem with grains, but have with various raw vegetables. Cook them & I'm fine. Bananas: green ok, over-ripe ok, but at a very specific point in the ripening process, they make my throat blister. Ditto, melons.

Never had a steak do that. I listen to my body.

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Yea, I have the banana one as well. If I juts lightly steam/fry with some oil broccoli or carrots then I'm fine. It's just straight up raw that gets me.

I have a real mild allergy to raw bell peppers. THANK GOD no allergy to malt!

the_bird said:

I have a real mild allergy to raw bell peppers. THANK GOD no allergy to malt!

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I think it's something that's cooked off immediately. I can taste the malt after it's been in the mash for a few and have no problem.

david_42 said:

Haven't noticed a problem with grains, but have with various raw vegetables. Cook them & I'm fine. Bananas: green ok, over-ripe ok, but at a very specific point in the ripening process, they make my throat blister. Ditto, melons.

Never had a steak do that. I listen to my body.

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A coworker of mine's husband is allergic to steak. The horror...

luckily only cats and other similar rodents cause me allergies.

I've got a nice big list. Raw vegetables as stated, cats, horses (big time), pine nuts, anchovies (can kill me), hayseed, pollen, grass, gerbels, rabbits and now raw malt! That's all that I know of. I need to take the damn allergy test.

Knowing what your allergic to, is a good thing. I have had chronic hives for the past three months, which got to the point where anti-histamines were no longer effective.

I just saw the allergist/immunologist this week and had the allergy test. The good news is that I tested negative to all of the common allergens.

The bad news is that they sent me to the hospital to have a biopsy so that they can test for auto-immune diseases.

I was kind of hoping that the allergy test would show a severe allergy to cats, so that I could finally get rid of SWMBO's precious.

I have a raw fruit allergy that is a real PITA, but I found a way around it.

I take anti-histamine at least 15 min before I eat and it minimizes the reaction.

I love fruit, so discovering this has been a real bonus for me.

Could it possibly be some of the bacteria/spores/wild beasties that are present on the grain. You know, the stuff you want to keep away from your fermenter and do not want in the air when you pitch your yeast?

Do you experience the reaction during/after mashing? Hope you can figure it out.

Bananas: green ok, over-ripe ok, but at a very specific point in the ripening process, they make my throat blister. Ditto, melons.


Me too! I'll eat watermelon anyway. Cantaloupe or honeydew melons aren't worth it though. That's weird David. Bananas that are green or ripe don't bother me either, but at a certain stage of ripeness my throat itches and swells.

knights of Gambrinus said:

Could it possibly be some of the bacteria/spores/wild beasties that are present on the grain. You know, the stuff you want to keep away from your fermenter and do not want in the air when you pitch your yeast?

Do you experience the reaction during/after mashing? Hope you can figure it out.

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That could be it, but it's really not a big problem. I just don't chew on the grains anymore to taste them.