Allergic to Red Meat

[Land-Wanderer]

A few years ago I was bitten by a tick and contracted Alpha-Gal. I can not eat any Red Meat (any mammal protein) or else I have an allergic reaction. Once I start having the hives, I take an Antihistamine (Benadryl) and the allergic reaction calms down and goes away. I have to be careful with food that has been prepared in lard, beef broth or animal fat. I'm ok to eat animals that fly or swim. My question is how much of a concern is this on the Camino France?

 

[VNwalking]

I had to look this up--thanks @Land-Wanderer for the education.
Pork's big in Northern Spain--and even 'vegetarian' food (including soups and salads) may have meat that 'doesn't count' as meat for locals (broth and pancetta, for example). So take care. It might be wise to learn a few phrases in Spanish--or to write them out--so you can communicate to servers at bars and restaurants what your concerns are.
The good news is that you can easily cook your own dinner in many albergues. And packed lunch from food bought at the local tienda is easy all along the way.

 

[Kanga]

@Land-Wanderer you have my sympathy - we are having an increasing problem here in Sydney with tick bites and subsequent meat allergy. It really is nasty. I agree that you do need a laminated card with an accurate Spanish phrase explaining the severity of your reaction - and maybe possibly why.

 

[trecile]

@Land-Wanderer you have my sympathy - we are having an increasing problem here in Sydney with tick bites and subsequent meat allergy. It really is nasty. I agree that you do need a laminated card with an accurate Spanish phrase explaining the severity of your reaction - and maybe possibly why.

Wow. I've never heard of this. Is it more prevalent in certain areas?

 

[Kanga]

This post from @Tincatinker is not quite appropriate (it's for vegetarians, rather than someone with just a meat allergy) but it always makes me laugh, and some phrases would be useful

You may find the following phrases helpful:

Soy vegetariano.
Yo no como carne o pescado .
Jamon no es un vegetal.
Pollo no es un vegetal.
Percebes no son verduras.
Sólo una ensalada para mí.
Atun no es una planta de ensalada.
Voy a tener el plato de judias.
Chorizo no son judías .
Una botella de brandy por favor.

 

[Kanga]

@trecile I don't know, but the OP is from Virginia in the USA, and we have a growing problem here in Sydney, Australia, particularly in beachside bushy suburbs, where ticks and native mammals coexist.

 

[Land-Wanderer]

I have had the symptoms for at least 5 years but diagnose just last year. It is very prevalent in my area and somewhat prevalent in the mid-atlantic states of the US.

 

[VNwalking]

Had to dig...but here is what I used (as a vegetarian):
"Soy vegetariana y no como carne: ni pancetta, ni pescado."
(Thanks to @SYates for that...)

 

[Land-Wanderer]

My concern is mostly around communal meals. I want to participate. I'm not a cook but I have a year to get ready.
I like the idea of having a laminated card; on one side I would put info about the allergy in Spanish and on the other, I will describe my eating requirement in Spanish.
I'm a big salad person but I understand they are not popular at bars. So I will order fish or chicken.

 

[Mike Trebert]

A few years ago I was bitten by a tick and contracted Alpha-Gal. I can not eat any Red Meat (any mammal protein) or else I have an allergic reaction. Once I start having the hives, I take an Antihistamine (Benadryl) and the allergic reaction calms down and goes away. I have to be careful with food that has been prepared in lard, beef broth or animal fat. I'm ok to eat animals that fly or swim. My question is how much of a concern is this on the Camino France?

Wow! I didn't know about this allergy. My son has a very violent allergy to insect stings so I know a bit about the kind of thing you're living with.

I've been a vegetarian for over 40 years, so pretty committed. I walked the full Camino Frances a few months ago. It was difficult managing my diet. Spanish people LOVE meat. A few times I ate soups realising that globs of fat were floating in front of me. There were bacon bits in a bowl of lentil soup one time - I ate around them as best I could. So not unreasonable to avoid soups, in my opinion, because you just won't be sure. Which is a shame because Galician soups are outstanding!

The very first potato omelette I ate, I asked "Sin jamon?" The guy behind the bar looked at me as though I was a lunatic and just said "patata!" There were bits of bacon in that frittata, but that turned out to be unusual. I must have eaten about a thousand potato omelettes while on The Camino. A cheap and very common source of protein, but what will it be fried in?

At any time, I often have to look the other way when eating barbecue, veg or marinated tofu is often fried/grilled right beside carnivores' delight. If you're sensitive to this kind of thing, you'll have to be extremely careful, of course.

Kanga's suggestion to prepare a laminated card sounds like a good idea. Have it worded to include something like "Life-threatening medical condition". Have key phrases in red capitals. Include a Red Cross logo.Wear it around your neck on a lanyard. No kidding.

I didn't stay in albergues. Buffet breakfasts were perfect for me. The occasional buffet dinners were the only times I had decent salads. A few times I scanned a menu and asked the waiter/owner to combine veg ingredients from different dishes to make a decent salad. They were always obliging.

I developed a few strategies for managing my diet. If you contact me via private conversation, I'd be happy to list a few suggestions. Doing that here might be boring for some.

Good luck, Mike

 

[Mark Lee]

Fortunately you will encounter a lot of places (markets, shops, grocers) to get food you can prepare yourself along the CF. Hot or cold food you can prepare as well as vegetables and fruit. A lot of pilgrims do it. It's quite common along the CF. Bring a backpacking utensil kit with you, and maybe a smaller food container with lid.

 

[JRO]

A few years ago I was bitten by a tick and contracted Alpha-Gal. I can not eat any Red Meat (any mammal protein) or else I have an allergic reaction. Once I start having the hives, I take an Antihistamine (Benadryl) and the allergic reaction calms down and goes away. I have to be careful with food that has been prepared in lard, beef broth or animal fat. I'm ok to eat animals that fly or swim. My question is how much of a concern is this on the Camino France?

Everyone that has responded so far about being very clear that your allergy is a medical condition is probably correct....so much of the food in Spain contains some type of animal protein. That being said, we found quite a few egg dishes, of course pulpo (octopus) in Galicia, which is very good. We also had reveultas (turkey) in Finisterre after a hysterical round of charades where the owner of the establishment pretended to be a turkey and said "December 25th, December 25th". I think he had Thanksgiving and Christmas confused. Anyway, somehow they had diagonally sliced a turkey thigh into a thin steak, and it was broiled with herbs. Best turkey I ever ate, and now I know that word quite well in Spanish. We also made it a practice to stop daily for fruit, especially oranges, and nuts at local markets. Sometimes the salads offered are like a main dish, containing hard boiled eggs and tuna, plus olives and other veggies. That would probably be a great option for you; they are usually dressed with olive oil and vinegar.

 

[Curtis]

I am a vegetarian, and potentially going to be a vegan before I walk my first camino. I have read all around that it will be difficult at times, but isn't walking a pilgrimage all about over coming obstacles and persevering?

buen camino

 

[Mike Trebert]

I am a vegetarian, and potentially going to be a vegan before I walk my first camino. I have read all around that it will be difficult at times, but isn't walking a pilgrimage all about over coming obstacles and persevering?

buen camino

Of course. It was fun sorting out my diet, by no means an ordeal. Land-Wanderer has a specific and dangerous problem, but manageable with some input from people like us. LW is not a vegetarian, so diet will be a lot easier to manage than vegan. Tuna fish is BIG in Spain. In fact I suspect it's a vegetable in that part of the world.

 

[MinaKamina]

Hello Land-Wanderer, on the backside of your laminated card, you might put drawings or cartoons of the foods and products that you need to avoid: pig, cow, butter (?) a cauldron with 'caldo'(broth), sausage, bacon and ham etc with a red cross through them. Plus the foods and products that you can eat without problems: chicken, fish, egg and vegetables with a green V.

The Wikipedia page about star ticks in Spanish mentions la alergia a la carne de mamífero no primate y productos cárnicos. The star tick has not arrived in Europe yet (?) but since ticks travel the world this may be a matter of time. Dermacentor reticulatus and Ixodes Ricinus are the most common ticks in the North of Spain.

Have a Buen Camino, stay safe and eat well!

 

[Castilian]

Be sure that dishes are OK for you and not just that they seem OK for you. For example, menestra de verduras would be a great dish for you... if it didn't include some jamón as many times includes.

I'm a big salad person but I understand they are not popular at bars.

You'll find ensalada mixta on some restaurants. In addition to vegetables, it includes hard-boiled egg and tunna but you are fine with those two (or so I think).

A simple salad (e.g.: tomato, lettuce and onion) may be used as garnish on some dishes and on some platos combinados so even if you don't see it on offer ask for it (and ask the price too, to avoid surprises).

There were bits of bacon in that frittata, but that turned out to be unusual

Yes, that's unusual but it's a good example of why I said what I said on at the top of this post.

I must have eaten about a thousand potato omelettes while on The Camino. A cheap and very common source of protein, but what will it be fried in?

Oil. If quality ruled, it should be olive oil but many places use sunflower oil or other vegetal oils.

Butter is rarely used for cooking in Spain.

Lard isn't as used as in the past but it's still used by some people to cook some dishes.

 

[Mike Trebert]

Thanks Castilian, "But what is it fried in?" also means what was it fried with. If the same hotplate is used to fry or grill something Land-Wanderer is allergic to right beside or before his "safe" omelette, he(she?) is so allergic that this could be a problem.

This whole issue is a very curly one.

 

[jsalt]

I'm a big salad person but I understand they are not popular at bars.

Hi, I often had an ensalada mixta for lunch. If not on the menu I would still ask, and they could usually do one for me. Some were more generous than others with the hard boiled egg and tuna. It usually comes with some crusty bread, and of course olive oil, vinegar and salt. Jill

 

[Kanga]

Coincidentally there was a program last night on our TV about local research into ticks, and the bacteria and viruses they can transmit. Nasty, nasty stuff. Give me a bedbug bite in preference any day!

 

[Albertagirl]

Coincidentally there was a program last night on our TV about local research into ticks, and the bacteria and viruses they can transmit. Nasty, nasty stuff. Give me a bedbug bite in preference any day!

@Kanga:
I brought a tick home with me from the mountains last week. I was afraid I might develop Lyme Disease, so I took the tick, still alive and kicking but no longer attached, to a clinic. I was eventually informed that my tick was not a black-legged tick, which spreads Lyme Disease, but a dog tick, which only spreads a nasty disease called Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever. No symptoms so far and the percentage of ticks which are infected is low. But I think I may avoid the mountains from now on during tick season, in the spring. The whole experience has rather freaked me out.

 

[Kanga]

In Australia our ticks don't have the same bacteria (or virus? Not sure which it is) as those that transmit Lyme Disease in the USA. But they have a whole spectrum of other, uniquely Australian, bad stuff. Some of which may produce similar symptoms. And the meat allergy thing is truly horrible. Here's a recent news article:
http://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/he...t/news-story/1f64fdb74e86fe7fd1a9c30793806548

 

[Albertagirl]

In Australia our ticks don't have the same bacteria (or virus? Not sure which it is) as those that transmit Lyme Disease in the USA. But they have a whole spectrum of other, uniquely Australian, bad stuff. Some of which may produce similar symptoms. And the meat allergy thing is truly horrible. Here's a recent news article:
http://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/he...t/news-story/1f64fdb74e86fe7fd1a9c30793806548

@Kanga:
The article is pretty creepy, alright. I have learned a lot about ticks in the past week. If I remember correctly, Lyme Disease is passed on by a virus. Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever is cause by a bacterium, and is fortunately treated with a common antibiotic. Without treatment, it may be very serious or even fatal. Symptoms appear in about 2 days to 10 days. While I was wandering about in the backcountry, a tick was setting me up for what might have been serious consequences. Fortunately, we do not have a bandicoot equivalent in our backcountry. But nature proves itself to be stranger and more dangerous than one might have imagined.

 

[VNwalking]

If I remember correctly, Lyme Disease is passed on by a virus.

Wow, @Albertagirl, you had quite an adventure. Glad you're safe and sound, and that the tick is not the Lyme sort! A nasty disease, no doubt about it. For the record, Lyme is also transmitted by a bacterium, a spirochete.
Back to the OP's question--
Reading the article, it seems that even dairy can be a problem--as well as contamination in the cooking process:
"And it’s the end of casually eating out at restaurants. Many are so sensitive, they can have an allergic reaction to a food that is cross contaminated with red meat during preparation or serving."
One of the people quoted in the article now has to eat a vegan diet. These days vegan food is getting easier to find on the Camino, so in addition to that laminated card, @Land-Wanderer, perhaps a list of vegan restaurants is in order. A search here on the Forum will uncover some threads about where you can find vegetarian food.

 

[Land-Wanderer]

There are different degree of sensitivity to the Alpha-gal. I'm lucky that my sensitivity is mild and cross-contamination has not been a problem. I'm also lucky that I have not been a big meat eater in the pass and this has not been a big lifestyle change. I just have to be careful on prepared food outside the home. Restaurants like to kick-it-up-a-notch on safe foods by seasoning with meat and meat fats, I have been surprised a few times with the allergy.

All the comments have been great. The comments assured me that I will be able to manage my diet.
For the camino, I plan to diet on bake goods, fruits, nuts, raw veggies, canned fish, baked or grilled chicken, baked fish and dairy products that have been pasteurized. This is basically my diet now.

This is a great forum! Thanks to everyone.

 

[VNwalking]

Buen Camino, @Land-Wanderer!