These can cause death to me

Sometimes I really don't like to go out for meals with unfamiliar people especially at a sit-down restaurant because of one single question..

Don't look at me like that!
I don't eat you!

"You don't eat beef?

"Why?"
"Religion?"

No, dumbass. I am a Christian. 

I cannot eat beef because I am allergic to beef!

And then I have to explain everything I know about beef allergy to these uninterested people who then wouldn't be interested to hear why/how someone can have beef allergy.. 

People usually laugh at me.. 

And I get pretty offended.. 

So, what is beef allergy?

Think of it same as having an allergy to peanuts or seafood.. In severe cases, it can be fatal.. 

You don't give peanuts to a nut-allergic person or shellfish to a seafood-allergic person, do you? 

Beef allergy is by far the most common type of meat allergy - beef allergy is a real issue.. It's rare and only affects less than 2% of the entire world's population, but it does happen.. It is often disregarded as beef intolerance (inability to digest beef proteins), but it's not the same.. 

People with beef intolerance CAN eat beef, in small quantities or in cooked well done.. People with beef allergy CANNOT eat beef, however small however whichever way it's cooked, it didn't matter! 

No milk for me.. 

People with beef allergy also cannot tolerate fresh milk.. Studies have shown 9.5 out of 10 people who has beef allergy cannot consume fresh milk.. It is therefore safe to say that everyone who has beef allergy also is allergic to milk from the farm.. 

So, what happens following an allergy attack?

I've experienced minor, mild (gastronomically and respiratory reactions together) to severe (which required immediate medical attention once) depending on the onset..

Minor symptoms like (all will happen): 

• hives or itching/red rashes 
• headache 
• feverish

Mild symptoms like (all will happen):

• nausea
• stomach cramps
• indigestion/bloating
• vomiting
• diarrhoea
• wheezing (much like an asthma attack)
• restless/anxiety

In many instances of accidental beef consumption, I experience ALL OF THE ABOVE at the same time, usually within the hour.. I quickly turn unwell and that's when all of these happen..

Severe symptoms or anaphylaxis like (these can be LIFE-THREATENING as the immune system goes into an overdrive and releases a massive amount of histamine): 

• blurred vision (I called it "seeing stars") 
• slurry speech
• shock/confusion (unable to function normally)
• shortness of breath
• irregular heartbeat (really fast) as a result of lack of oxygen (owing to shortness of breath)
• heartburn/pressured/tight chest (chest pain) related to shortness of breathe and forcing the lungs to go into overdrive gasping for air.

Only once had I experienced the need for a doctor right away.. I can tell you that is no joke.. It's like a scene out of a movie.. Immediate first aid can be antihistamine or diphenhydramine.. Of course, plenty and plenty of water to "wash" down, and medical attention is therefore required..

I have experienced ALL of the above to put me in the right position to say this as I know my body best.. 

All my close friends who grew up with me or usually dine with me knew this too well to not share whatever they eat (beef or even the sides on the same plate touching the meat) as they have seen me in distress.. 

And things can get a little complicated in Malaysia when they don't tell you if the "ham is made of beef or chicken or pork" (they just say "ham", like dude, you can have turkey ham too!) or if the bacon is "beef bacon" (whatever the fuck is beef bacon!? In Malaysia many instances bacon means beef bacon.. unless otherwise disclaimed...) ... bacon is from pork pork porrrrkkkk!!!!! I tend to roll my eyes whenever people say "beef bacon" or in diners who serve fake bacons (beef/turkey/duck/elk/venison/buffalo).. Don't get me started on luncheon meats.. 

In restaurants like Subway, I have to ask the server to change his gloves when making my sandwich if someone before me has something beef.. 

As for McDonalds, the question does not arise as they don't put quarter pounder in McChicken, and there's no beef in nuggets and Filet-O-Fish, and fries.. so these are safe foods for me, but I had to stayed away from the Samurai and Prosperity burgers cos they are all beef (or even this year they both came in chicken variants, but HELL no, accidents can happen, some monkeys can mix them up still - I accidentally had a bite into a wrongly mixed burger in McDonalds Australia and had diarrhoea whole day, but since processed meat is somewhat safer for me, I just need to clear it off my system...)

In IKEA Malaysia, I cannot eat the meat balls..  but in IKEA Singapore, meatballs comes in pork too.. THANK YOU JESUS!! Funny IKEA Bangkok does not have pork the last time I ate there..

It's tough trying to stay alive by avoiding beef totally but sometimes, things happen and that's when I will get an allergic reaction.. I really hate Malaysian food, you know? 

In Japan I dare not eat at Yoshinoya because the Yoshinoya in Malaysia are all beef (most Yoshinoya closed down already anyway), I can't read Japanese and I don't wanna risk myself eating beef - they do look somewhat like pork when fully cooked since it's all red meat.. 

What about processed cow products?

Cow products that has been processed like flavoured milk and butter is fine because it no longer contains the allergens found in beef, but processed beef is still beef! LOL... so corned beef, or whatever beef luncheon meat still no-no for me..

There.. 

I said it.. 

It's bothering me because people don't understand the misery, and the risk..