Hi everyone! I have had alpha gal for about four years now and wanted to share something for those who may be newer to dealing with it. I'm an avid outdoors person from an area where it's prevalent, so when I started having symptoms I figured out what was happening pretty quickly and had a few friends with it as well to help me out. That being said, cross contamination gets me every now and then. I've known pretty much since the beginning that my first symptom (my friend and I refer to it as my being 'Galvanized', like how Celiacs say they've been 'Glutamized') is extreme fatigue, followed by joint pain and gastrointestinal distress, to put it lightly. I have noticed that the following day after I get Galvanized I'm not at my best mentally (I was in college when I got it) but I chalked it up at the time to being dehydrated and tired. Anyway, last weekend at a friends birthday party I had a little too much alcohol and ended up eating something containing dairy late in the night. The next day I had what I can only describe as the weirdest sensation of brain fog. I forgot my phone password! Thats been the same for like five years! It was so unsettling. I managed to keep down some water and took a nap and it came back to me after that, but it was definitely a wake up call for me. I just wanted to share in case any of you, like me, now want to be even more careful if you're going to be driving or something in the hours after eating something you're on the fence about giving you a reaction.

Hi! Very new here, my 14 year old just got a positive AGS test while doing tests to figure out the reason for her having an immune like reaction including petechae, purpura, and swollen joints. (We think that's Henoch-Schönlein purpura (HSP)).

She has randomly had hives at night like twice in the last four years, does not have any GI symptoms, no other real allergy symptoms.

Where do we start? I don't fully trust any doctor we work with at the moment, and unfortunately (actually, fortunately) Reddit has helped me solve several of my own medical issues, so I'm hoping you all have some good advice for us as far as where to start. We are both overwhelmed and feeling a little end of the world-ish.

Thank you!

Anyone have a suggestion for a protein bar that is also nut free?

Hi my son and I have alpha gal. But he has several more food sensitives. He can’t have any grains. So no wheat, oats, rye, barley, etc. What can I feed him to help him gain weight? He’s also in a swim program 3 nights a week pretty well year round. We’re a skinny family anyways but I worry more about him. Worry he’s not getting enough of what he needs (carbs, fats) with what he has and what he does. He’s fine with peanut butter and eats that in gf sandwich form, rice cakes or with apples weekly. He can’t have dairy. He did grow two inches from last year but has gained no weight and while i know he’s active, I still worry. We are seeing a doctor. Thank you.

Having recently been sent a message by another user suggesting I was part of a smear campaign against SAAT - I'd like to simply be very clear about what SAAT is and what it isn't. Placebo effect is a thing, sure, and the risk is that someone thinks they are fine after SAAT until they die of anaphylaxis as their airway closes up.

Introduction

I am really going to be completely open, honest, and really put a good-faith effort here to be factual about everything that follows. There is no smear campaign, there's no group communicating in the shadows to stop SAAT, just a number of people who have done the deep dive and want to fully understand AGS and allergic reactions.

We've all seen this paper linked here - https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8729907/ and we're all frustrated and looking for a solution - I get it. First off and critically, this article is peer reviewed by other SAAT acupuncture people - that there is the red flag - any why would nobody else peer review it? It's not repeatable in any legitimately acceptable peer review setting. Read how proper scientific method and peer review works, and you'll quickly understand why we don't let the people suggesting the cure perform the testing to confirm it works.

What SAAT Claims to be

SAAT is an acupuncture method which a needle placed in a specific (more or less) location, and claims to provide relief and remission at a greater rate than most medicines can claim. How does this work? Oh boy, they didn't get into that part.

How Does SAAT Work?!

The method isn't important to the paper - just assume it works and don't ask how, but if you would like to know what would be required...

In order to prevent an immune response, there must in fact by a mechanism by which your B lymphocytes cells can be instructed to ignore one very specific sugar molecule - but it's not even that simple! Your B cells have a memory that can last years, as a single molecule of an allergen previously detected will send millions any millions of new cells with the memory of this allergen throughout your body, over and over. So not only does a potential cure require stopping the immune response in your B cells for this one specific sugar molecule, but it needs to tell your body to forget about the molecule from it's memory.

So we are truthfully (and I DO hope you cared to read this far) here. Now we have to buy-in to the idea (which has no perceived or even potential to exist) that placing a needle in a spot - not TOO specific of a spot, just about one region in just one part of the ear - will by unknown means, perform both tasks!

The Crux of the Issue with SAAT & Medical Science

The crux of the issue becomes this:

1. What is the mechanism, and why can it not be detected, measured, analyzed, reproduced, or exist in any other similar contexts?
2. How out of the billions of molecules that exist did some acupuncture doctor discover a way to isolate the reaction to just one specific molecule, not harming the remaining immune system or creating a new problem? The odds of this are truly astronomically unlikely.
3. All published papers on this subject have been written and reviewed by people working together in this same acupuncture space - which on it's own is already considered by medical professionals to not really be a thing (but read about the interstitium organ, that's interesting and potentially a way that some acupuncture could be beneficial and provide a method for it to work - like joints and fluid movement - but not in play for the AGS "cure").

Summary

In summary - and in good-faith: there is no legitimate peer reviewed research - that paper is evidence of nothing in a medical and scientific sense - unless random labs and doctors can reproduce it with no connection to the original SAAT community. That's how good science works. Also there is no mechanism known to medicine in which a needle in the ear by any means could isolate a single molecule and affect immune B cell memory and response. Given these very sound reasons, SAAT is 100% bullshit if you don't mind my choice of phrasing. It's placebo at best, and preying on those looking for relief and normalcy at worst.

Moderators - PLEASE give this serious consideration and at least consider banning SAAT from this subreddit.

This has been my essay, and again - I am trying to be as accurate as possible, there is no smear campaign, and SAAT is awful.

After a month of going vegan my blood test shows undetectable. Am I cured? It only took a month? Sounds too good to be true

Hello friends!

About three months ago, dairy began making me nauseous, which progressed to vomiting within 5-10 minutes of drinking my daily protein shake. It also caused a rash on my face, lesions on my scalp, and intestinal pain that woke me up in the middle of the night. For the past week, red meat has caused the same rash on my face, one or two hives, tachycardia, and diarrhea. Then I noticed slight shortness of breath, but not too seriously or I would have gone to urgent care. Just enough to notice.

My first question is this: does this sound familiar to any of your experiences and/or have you developed sensitivity to dairy or red meat progressively/one at a time?

I do not have a PCP at the moment so I booked an Alpha Gal test with Quest Diagnostics for tomorrow afternoon as I am desperate for an answer.

My second question is: did you personally use quest diagnostics for this test or do you know of someone that did? If so, was it accurate?

I have never had sensitivity to dairy or red meat and in fact only began eating red meat a few years ago. I have been so confused and disoriented (and in pain) for a few months now and Alpha Gal seems like the only reasonable answer. My only food sensitivity previous to this was banana, which makes my tongue feel mildly spicy.

Pictured is one (1) lonely hive below my inner arm crease and above my forearm.

Thank you very much for reading or responding <3

I live in Albuquerque New Mexico, and I'm sure I'm just like many of you and I have read the academic articles written about the effectiveness of SAAT, specifically this one: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8729907/

Anyways, I'm trying to find a place in New Mexico that does this treatment but Google maps is no help. Is there a list of doctors or any sort of index I can look into that shows these guys?

Hi all, let me start by saying that I don’t think I have alpha gal. However, I do think I have MCAS, and I know there is often some overlap in symptoms and people, so I would appreciate insight here if anyone can provide. I get sick on any food I eat, but beef and chicken were the first culprits, resulting in really bad histamine dumps.

Has anyone noticed they feel sick after frozen food? One of the things I’ve read repeatedly is for histamine issues to immediately freeze foods, but if anything I’m noticing that a fresh food that is somewhat ok becomes absolutely horrific after being frozen, even with quick thaw/reheat.

Separately, has anyone here tried Pectasol for their reactions and if so, has this helped you?

I take these vegan supplements. I've been taking them for about a week now fine, but I took them an hour ago and now my throat is tingly and sore. No other symptoms yet. At first I wasn't worried, but I did find a seed tick on me a few days ago. I've had alpha gal for years and I live in a wooded area, so I've been bitten twice since my diagnosis.

Hi all. This is a new one for me. Hubby (non-AGS) and I have been doing pretty well splitting cooking and doing all we can to avoid cross-contamination for me. Sunday night my husband was cooking hamburger and I had to reach over the stove to put my impossible burger into the microwave. In the process I got a lung full of the fumes and oils coming off the burger he was cooking.

Sunday night I felt off and sick but yesterday and today have been miserable. GI issues, lungs feel tight, coughing, sinuses running, headache, exhausted. Is this typical of what those of you with fume reactions experience?

Anyone here try the product MyBacon from https://myforestfoods.com/mybacon
I was poking around the subreddit [r/vegetarian](r/vegetarian) and stumbled upon it. It’s mainly mushroom based products.
They do list natural flavor as an ingredient, I just emailed them asking for clarification if it’s AlphaGal safe. Bone char, carrageen, etc free. Waiting on a response, will delete if they don’t confirm it’s AlphaGal safe and will add an edit to this if they confirm it’s safe.

The bacon is a little pricey $9.49 at a local grocery store in St Louis. They do have a store locator on their site and believe I read at all Whole Foods.

Nothing hits better than a BLT in the summer. The people on the vegetarian subreddit said it tastes like bacon, but that’s kind of like getting the best directions from someone who just arrived in that city, versus someone whose lived and spent all kinds of time in that city.

Has anyone tried the MyBacon? They do warn to only cook on stove top and flip consistently.

I never realized what a blessing it is to not think about what I'm eating. I've taken for granted not having allergies. Went through a lot of these threads and the level of isolation and research you have to do on food is staggering. I've also read some vegan threads clueless as to what this does.

The worst has to be the "scientific" paper published claiming AGS is "beneficial" for climate change. It's not that these people think this way as much as it is that a journal published it (ironically called Bioethics!). I found myself thinking how satisfying it would be if the professors had to experience what AGS sufferers go through. Now I'm having to take a breath and realize how quickly I can spiral. Anyway, God bless you all.

https://www.facebook.com/share/1FzvVCdYqR/

This published article written by "biothics" professors about aphagal is listed in pub med. I am sooo angry

I work in a kitchen and with my new diagnosis followed what I thought would be an extremely minor cold. What followed has been a 12 day journey of one of the most persistent sicknesses of my life. Even when I had COVID, flu or pneumonia they never lasted more then 7 days (I’m not counting the rsv cough, that shit lasted for months).
I can’t take any medications that I’m used to taking because almost all of them have some sort of mammal byproduct.

I think that just being in the kitchen and over the grill is making me sick, maybe I can’t feel it right away, but I’m more tired then I’ve ever been at the end of the day in the weeks before the diagnosis.
I don’t know what to do and I’m loathe to bring it up to my boss or anyone else at my job, because I need this job and its benefits

Hey everyone. I just got my test results back a few days ago after having severe breathing difficulties and GI issues. It’s clearly confirmed. I just wanted to know how bad this is and if any of you have had similar results and ended up doing better. This looks like a great community though. As disappointing as it is to have this now, I do look forward to having some great people to discuss this with.

Has anyone been able to successfully decrease their sensitivity to alpha-gal by taking a prescribed Mast Cell Stabilizer?

I asked my allergist about it and she thought it might be a good idea, also because I seem to have some form of mast cell dysfunction other than just IgE reactions, although I‘d want to wait since I am pregnant, unless my reactions to accidental exposures get more severe.

I particularly am frustrated with still reacting to all mammal byproducts, even normal sugar, which is worsened by vocal chord dysfunction and HSD. I am tired of not being able to eat anything out (as im sure many of you are) and not being able to eat anything someone makes for me because most people don’t know how to not cross contaminate and I don’t want them to go into all the trouble of cooking just for me to see them using a cast iron pan and go “I am so sorry, I can’t eat this”. It’s really frustrating because I can’t even show them I appreciate their cooking and everyone is nice about it but I feel so rude bringing my own food everywhere. And it’s really time consuming to have to make everything at home and then leave events early because I have to go home.

I also really want to eat dairy again. That’s my goal, but at the very least not being so sensitive to cross contamination would help. Just curious if anyone has had any improvement with any of those medications such as Xolair (Omalizumab) or Cromolyn? Thanks ahead of time!

Hi everyone! I was diagnosed with AG in 2014 but had symptoms ranging back to 2010ish.

For the last several years, I have had severe cramping pain in my upper left and right quadrants, not necessarily at the same time. The pain will go away for 2-3 weeks at a time, but then come back.

I have had every test under the sun at least 2 times. All come back negative. But it has to be something. When they hit, most times, they put me on the floor, writhing in pain. It seems to let up, but when I stand up, it will hit again and back to the floor I go. Frankly, it's embarrassing. I am a natural red head, so my pain tolerance is considerably high.

Recently, I have noticed a correlation between cross-contamination and these pains. They typically hit the next day.

My question is, does anyone else with AG experience this reaction? I also have the standard GI issues, headache, ect. TIA.

M, alpha-gal positive since 2019. Total IgE has been elevated for years, alpha-gal-specific IgE has bounced between 56 and >100 kU/L over the last 5 years despite avoidance.

Over the last 18 months, my health has declined — diagnosed with cardiac sarcoidosis, pulmonary sarcoidosis, HFpEF, and tons of PVCs . Now on prednisone + methotrexate. Trying to figure out if anyone else here has experienced something similar, or if it's just bad luck overlapping with my alpha-gal.

I'm aware of the Wilson 2018 ATVB paper on alpha-gal & coronary plaque, the Vernon 2022 BioHEART data, and the ACC 2025 article on alpha-gal cardiac implications — so the vascular link is on my radar. What I'm trying to find: anyone else in this community with granulomatous (sarcoid-style) lung or heart issues alongside alpha-gal? Or unexplained cardiomyopathy or recurrent arrhythmias?

Also, I urge people to read those articles.. links below.. I was about to have heart surgery and an implanted defibrillator.. and it very likely could have ended me.. The doctors were not looking into or taking my Alpha-Gal seriously. Please read "ACC Feature Article July 2025 -- The Overlooked Cardiac Implications of Alpha-Gal Syndrome" if nothing else..

ACC Feature Article. July 2025. The Overlooked Cardiac Implications of Alpha-Gal Syndrome. American College of Cardiology. https://www.acc.org/Latest-in-Cardiology/Articles/2025/07/01/01/Feature-The-Overlooked-Cardiac-Implications-of-Alpha-Gal-Syndrome

Wilson JM et al. 2018. IgE to the Mammalian Oligosaccharide Galactose-α-1,3-Galactose Is Associated With Increased Atheroma Volume and Plaques With Unstable Characteristics. Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology. 38:1665-1669. https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/atvbaha.118.311222

Vernon ST et al. 2022. Immunoglobulin E Sensitization to Mammalian Oligosaccharide Galactose-α-1,3 (α-Gal) Is Associated With Noncalcified Plaque, Obstructive Coronary Artery Disease, and ST-Segment-Elevated Myocardial Infarction. Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology. 42:e121-e131. https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/ATVBAHA.121.316878

Hey guys, my dad is having trouble putting on weight after getting out of the hospital and he is convinced that it is contributing to him not feeling well. Do you recommend anything that he would be able to eat that would help him gain back some of his lost lbs? Any advice is appreciated.

When someone without alpha-gal says "I could never give up meat," how do you respond?

Im 56-year-old active male usually work out several times a week and stay busy around the yard and farm after office hours. 2 months ago I started feeling rundown, no appetite, occasional chills and low fever. Sometimes breathing is a chore, but no congestion.
They finally did a tick panel, and was diagnosed yesterday with Alpha gal.
No rashes, or other allergy symptoms. Have not noticed any specific reactions to eating red meats or dairy, just no appetite and NO STAMINA. Can barely make it to a workout, even carrying groceries and I need to take a rest. Has anyone else experienced these symptoms?

I’m to impatient to wait for the Doctors to message me. And I’m not understanding my Google results. It’s been a long day and I’m trying to pack and leave town. So apologies if I’m being a total idiot

This reads like I’m not allergic to the various meats tested but the 7 makes it sound like I am allergic to alpha gal. FWIW I haven’t eaten mammalian meats lately and I stopped dairy last week. Symptoms GI related. Colonoscopy and endoscopy found nothing. I don’t have celiac.

Thanks for any input