SHTF ~ storing food/ food allergies

[Katrina-Sisu]

I have been thinking about this.

I have lactose intolerance so I'd have a problem with powdered milk unless I could find some lactose-free kind.

My Dad has gout and can't eat peas, oatmeal, or beans due to that.

Mom is a diabetic and she can't eat rice since it spikes her blood levels. Canned meat would be a good idea for Mom since she needs protein as a diabetic.

What would you do if you have food allergies and want to lay in a good food supply incase SHTF?

Sounds stupid but in an extreme survival situation, I wonder if our bodies could adapt to eating foods we couldn't tolerate when the going wasn't tough.

Katrina

[WileyCoyote]

I would guess, Kat, that it would depend on your allergic reaction.
I had a friend who was allergic to wheat - if he ate anything with wheat or wheat flour in it, he would get hives, swell up, start having labored breathing, and have to get a shot of epinephrine... nope, he can't live on wheat. On the other hand, my VSO has an allergy to alcohol. That never stopped him - his skin just turns bright red! Weird.

If your allergies cause you to repetitively or suddenly vomit or eliminate, you could become dehydrated very quickly. I don't think that, in most situations, it is wise to court any allergy, especially in an uncontrolled,i.e., survival, environment, to see if you can actually survive its effects. However, every time I hear about a gout patient, the foods from which they are restricted radically changes - everything from seafood and steak to sugar to salt, and all in between.

I would grow and can, or go to farmer's markets and buy and can, any and all foods that are NOT on my allergy lists. I think that I would also research substitutions for things that I was allergic to - honey or molasses instead of sugar, maybe?

A lot of times it is the actual processing of foods that causes the problems; my Dad was a diabetic but the doc said he could have honey or molasses because they were processed differently in the body. Unfortunately he hated the taste of either!

I was told that I was allergic to eggs (I LOVE EGGS!) and was cut to only one a week. Later after experimentation, it turned out that the allergy wasn't to eggs - but to the lowfat chocolate milk I always drank with them! Yet I can drink regular milk (not lowfat) with no problem! Go figure.

[Katrina-Sisu]

Thanks for the ideas Wiley! :)

Kat

[RobertRogers]

This is an interesting point. I am sure all the additives and processing of our foods does not help! But if you stored some of the canned foods you can eat, then you would be able to get buy. Meats, fish, veggies, vitamins, etc.

[Elijah_Sue]

Have you thought of or tried TVP's (Texured Vegetable Protein ) they are made from soy and the flavored one taste ok..If you're super hungry they taste great. The unflavored taste like kitty litter( not that I've ever tasted kitty litter, it's just were my mind went when I tasted it) The unopened storage shelflife is 10 to 20 years.

I had scrambled eggs with ham TVP this morning..just cause I like the ham .

[Shamrock1121]

I have been thinking about this.

I have lactose intolerance so I'd have a problem with powdered milk unless I could find some lactose-free kind.

My Dad has gout and can't eat peas, oatmeal, or beans due to that.

Mom is a diabetic and she can't eat rice since it spikes her blood levels. Canned meat would be a good idea for Mom since she needs protein as a diabetic.

What would you do if you have food allergies and want to lay in a good food supply incase SHTF?

Sounds stupid but in an extreme survival situation, I wonder if our bodies could adapt to eating foods we couldn't tolerate when the going wasn't tough.

Katrina

For starters, make a list of foods they can/must have and have those in storage. *We all need a balanced diet, so be sure to include all the food groups in your storage plans.

Here are a couple dried "milk" options for you. *Our son and granddaughter are lactose intolerant, and they both can use Morning Moo's Whey-Based Milk Substitute - www.moosmilk.com (low-lactose), and 1st and Best Whey Milk - http://www.wheymilkusa.com/why_first_best.html (no-lactose). *Morning Moo's has a much better flavor. *Hubby prefers a "nightcap" of 1st and Best Whey Milk - 1/2 chocolate and 1/2 white, so I have both kinds (white and chocolate) in storage - more than a years supply - as well as both brands.

You can also make "milk" from rice and nuts *(Not Milk...NUT MILKS! - by Candia Lea Cole). *I think I've posted how to make rice milk here someplace, you might want to do a search for it. *You'd need a blender. *I have a Vortex Hand-Crank Blender I got through emergency Essentials - www.beprepared.com. *I have a large amount of almonds and pecans vacuum-sealed in jars in storage. *

For gout, I'd be sure to stock a lot of canned cherries (whole cherries, not cherry pie filling), a natural remedy for gout. *

If you are not familiar with using the gluten in wheat as a protein source, you might want to do a little more research on that. *There are a lot of recipes for "fake" meat and meat substitutes from gluten. *Considering how many hundreds of pounds of wheat I have in storage, we'd probably use at least some gluten as a protein source. *You can make gluten at home with whole wheat flour - I'd suggest you mill your own. *

12 cups of whole wheat flour makes 4 cups raw gluten
4 cups raw gluten bakes into 9 cups ground gluten
9 cups ground gluten pieces is = 3 lbs. hamburger
(Source: *The Amazing Wheat Book - by LeArta Moulton.

Others foods important to a diabetic to lower the glycemic impact of foods are fat (dried butter powder would be a good source to have in storage), cinnamon, and vinegar, which slow the up-take of the foods consumed. *Try Basmati rice for a diabetic, in moderation only, consumed with a protein food and/or fat to slow down the up-take into the blood system. *It's lower on the GI than other varieties.

Chana dal (immature garbanzo beans) is an excellent choice for diabetics since it is extremely low on the glycemic index of foods (available from Bob's Red Mill - www.bobsredmill.com). *These would keep very well in storage. *For recipe ideas: *http://www.mendosa.com/chanadal.html#Recipes

Whey protein powder might be another good storage food for a diabetic. *Whey has the highest Biological Value (BV) of foods, eggs second, and meat next, with beans much lower on the list. *The BV is the amount of protein available from the food. *You'd be surprised how many foods you can add whey protein powder to to increase the BV.

There is a large variety of freeze-dried meats/cheese/fruits/vegetables/butter powder/dried whole eggs/peanut butter powder, etc., available that would be good to have in storage.

Hope that gives you a few new ideas.

-Karen *

Modified to add: Agave nectar is a low-glycemic, natural, honey-like sweetener that is appropriate for use by most diabetics (doesn't raise blood sugar like other sweeteners). It doesn't crystalize in storage, like honey does. It can be used if foods and baking just like honey or sugar would. It aids in fermentation when making bread, and it also helps homemade breads stay moist longer. It just happens to be our sweetener of choice, and I keep at least 1-year supply on hand.

[kawalekm]

Hi Katrina
You hit upon a critical point. In a crisis situation, the last thing you need is upsetting your diet with foods you are not used to or allergic to. Wheat is a good example. Many people who don't show any reaction to white flour react adversely to eating less processed wheat products, such as cooked wheat berries. I could make several suggestions based on your family's individaul problems.

Since you are lactose intolerant, I'd suggest that you learn to make yogart. The Lactobaccillus bacteria used to make yogart naturally digest the lactose that is in milk. Yogart can be substitured for milk and cream in many recipes, I even add it to breakfast cereal instead of milk. You can use store bought yogart as a starter culture. Warn some milk to about 40C and put a teaspoon (5ml) of yogart in. Keep it warm for about 4-6 hours till the consistancy an acidity are to your liking. Then refrigerate and add flavors.

Gout is a metabolic disease resulting from the body not metabolizing amino acids, the building blocks of proteins, so a diet relatively low in protein is best for gout patients. I usually associate problems with protein rich food sources like red meat and shrimp. Is your dad's gout more effected by legumes than meat? If not, what I'd recommend for them is a more soy based diet, with things like tofu instead of beef. You could also benifit from drinking soy milk, because it doesn't have lactose. Carla Emery's book "Encylcopedia of Country Living" has recipes for tofu and soy milk. The suggestions about wheat gluten in the messages above would also be good for both of them.
Take care,
Michael

[Shamrock1121]

Since you are lactose intolerant, I'd suggest that you learn to make yogart. *The Lactobaccillus bacteria used to make yogart naturally digest the lactose that is in milk. *Yogart can be substitured for milk and cream in many recipes, I even add it to breakfast cereal instead of milk. *You can use store bought yogart as a starter culture. *Warn some milk to about 40C and put a teaspoon (5ml) of yogart in. *Keep it warm for about 4-6 hours till the consistancy an acidity are to your liking. *Then refrigerate and add flavors.

Michael

Michael,

A far superior choice to yogurt is kefir - especially in SHTF conditions.

1. You can culture kefir at room temperature - no temperature concerns like there is with yogurt, including the need to pasteurize the milk source. "Milk" plus kefir grains at room temperature. That's it! It takes 12-24 hours to ferment, depending on the ambient temperature.

2. Kefir cultures (kefir grains) almost never die - you do not need to continually find a culturing source for them like you do yogurt. If you continue to culture yogurt with leftover yogurt, it eventually will get weak and die (within a short period of time).

Think of kefir grains as "immortal", while yogurt cultures are merely like "humans," they have a birth, a childhood and youth stage, an adult stage, and sinking-towards-death stage. In a worst-case (SHTF), you probably wouldn't be able to continually find a new source for yogurt cultures. Kefir grains continue to grow. You divide them when they get about the size of a quarter and have more to use or share.

3. Kefir grains work well in soy milk, as well.

4. Kefir converts most of the lactose in ordinary milk into far more easily digested components. The remaining lactose content is so low, lactose-intolerant can enjoy "dairy" products again.

5. Kefir can be used as a substitute for buttermilk. If you ferment it until the whey separates from the curd, you can drain the curd like you do for yogurt cheese. Depending on how long you drain the kefir curd, you will end up with a curd similar to plain yogurt, or as thick as sour cream, cream cheese, and even cottage cheese. I use kefir for these products all the time.

Note: The higher the fat content in dairy products the less lactose there is in it. Most people who are lactose-intolerant produce some lactase and usually have a certain level of dairy they can tolerate without complete intestinal distress. So choose high fat butter or cream for use over low-fat dairy products.

5. Kefir is far healthier than yogurt. Kefir contains "right-turning" lactic acid, while yogurt contains "left-turning". For the human body, only the right-turning lactic acid is natural and physiologically correct. Left-turning lactic acid is a foreign substance for the human organism. It does not contain the necessary enzymes for proper utilization. (source: "KEFIR Rediscovered!" by Klaus Kaufmann)

For more information: Dom's Kefir Insite:
http://users.sa.chariot.net.au/~dna/kefirpage.html

Avoid powdered kefir mixes - they have little in common with real kefir grains.

-Karen

[Katrina-Sisu]

Whoa, you all have fantastic ideas and tips! I appreciate them very much! Thanks!

Kat