Last month I shared with you my journey to discover I was allergic to barley. I also explained what it looks like to be married to a beer loving ex-bartender (See Barley-free means no beer right?)

            When I shared about my allergy to my family, my grandmother told me her father is allergic to barley-Wow!  I didn’t know allergies went that far back genetically.

See the barley-allergy was probably always there, but latent until I was exposed to a large amount. On my trip to the Philippines in ’07 (see Part One) we drank something called Milo every morning instead of coffee. One of the main ingredients=barely. And while I was on prednisone and starting the new job (see The Conclusion) I was eating Cliff Bars every morning; their main grain=barley.

My first step towards living barley-free was reading labels at the store for “barley”. I have grown up reading labels and asking questions because of my tree-nut allergy (that is a different story). But in addition to this, I also had to look  for “malt” or “malt flavoring”. This obviously includes malt based items like: beer, whoppers candy, malt shakes, or malt vinegar. But malt flavoring is common also in: soups,  protein/candy bars, cookies, brownies, and most cereals. Unlike my allergy to tree-nuts, I soon also learned my reaction to barley does not occur immediately. Three days after eating barley I will get a rash and/or itchy skin.

That is when I realized this allergy would change my diet for life.  I began to eat gluten-free at all restaurants. And I now often fix gluten-free meals at home (as you know from some of my recipe posts).  So this means when I go out to eat I cannot have: hamburger/hot dog buns, pizza, sandwiches, croutons, or any other form of bread, (most) cookies, dough-nuts, anything breaded or fried, flour tortillas or pita bread, pies, or sauces or soups thicken with flour.

For all of my at-home baking I use Gold Medal Organic all-purpose flour or their whole wheat flour. As I left the grocery store that day with Luke I thought back to every Christmas season in which I felt sick to my stomach and got a headache. I now realize it wasn’t because I ate too many pieces of coffee cake or had too much sugar (although I probably did sometimes) but more so because of what I ate.

What is  difficult about a barley-allergy is it not common.  I can have wheat and many other grains but it is a gamble to determine whether flour is safe or not.  If I am lucky ,when I read labels at the grocery store, the ingredients will say what the flour is enriched with. If it is enriched with chemicals and vitamins I’m fine, but often it is enriched with barley or it is not specifically labeled.

Still I have also found some wonderful exceptions.  Most pasta places use pure semolina, and cake flour doesn’t contain barley. So I was blessed at my wedding to be able to eat the same cake as everyone else.

In the end, barley-free living has helped my skin cleared up. I’m not irritated, frustrated, distracted, or itchy (most of the time) and I can wear tank tops without a care. Healing from this has required time, prayer, sacrifice, and support from family and friends. You know who you are and thank you.