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Ticker
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31 May 2007, 2:58 am

I had the dumbest allergic reaction today at work. :oops: I *think* it was blue cake frosting that did it, but not sure. I had a piece of someone's birthday cake. It was a Pirates of Carribean design with two-tone blue frosting to make it look like ocean waves and there was a touch of orange frosting on that piece. I've had cakes from that grocery store before as I work with hundreds of people and we have a LOT of birthday cakes there. Cake batter was a swirled chocolate and white cake mix and frosting was white whipped cream all of which I've had many times before. Over top of the whipped cream was gobious amounts of blue icing....the only thing remotely different about this cake.

I went into itching fits and got a rash, including itching inside mouth. I have severe latex and banana allergy, but I always have swelling & trouble breathing with those. So I don't think the cake was contaminated via latex glove or banana. Thing is I have never heard of blue dye allergy, only red or yellow. And I've most certainly had blue dyes before as old as I am. Unless this was some special ingredient in the blue frosting. I should probably add the blue dye was particularly strong as it stained my finger and fingernail blue and would not wash off.

Any ideas??

PS: I'm having a Benedryl party tonight at my place. BYOB



iceb
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31 May 2007, 8:34 am

I avoid Colourings I know both Green and Blue colours especially E142 give me a most unpleasant bout of depression.



TheMachine1
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31 May 2007, 8:51 am

Looking online but found nothing for sure I did find this link of a book:

http://www.chipublib.org/001hwlc/litlis ... anfic.html (lesbian fiction :) )

Leslie Adams
Allergic Reaction 2000



skahthic
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31 May 2007, 10:00 am

it could be the dye or anything in the cake that reacted you. There have been instances of people breathing in allergens without even touching them causing reactions. I'd avoid those blue cakes from now on...



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31 May 2007, 10:38 am

WW, that cake gave you the blues! I hope all is well this morning.


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larsenjw92286
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31 May 2007, 11:15 am

Interestingly enough, Nathan Cook, a celebrity who had appeared on a primetime soap opera called "Hotel" appeared on a game show 19 years ago and 6 days after he appeared, he died of a serious allergic reaction to penicillin!


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Beenthere
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31 May 2007, 11:25 am

If I would guess anything I would say the blue coloring. Especially if the decorations where a darker shade of blue. The decorating bags are generally plastic or canvas, but not latex that I know of.

I used to decorate cakes in a bakery a long time ago...customers loved the dark blue, deep red, or even black colorings...you don't EVEN want to know how much coloring it takes to get those shades...black & red being the worst, but the deeper blue comes in a close second.

I scrape those colors off first thing if I happen to be somewhere and I'm offered a piece of store-bought cake decorated like that...the red has even made my tongue blister.


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Beenthere
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31 May 2007, 11:28 am

If it had a scene painted on it...they usually airbrush the scene with the coloring...so it's pretty concentrated.


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Last edited by Beenthere on 31 May 2007, 11:30 am, edited 1 time in total.

Ticker
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31 May 2007, 11:28 am

TheMachine1 wrote:
Looking online but found nothing for sure I did find this link of a book:

http://www.chipublib.org/001hwlc/litlis ... anfic.html (lesbian fiction :) )

Leslie Adams
Allergic Reaction 2000


I'm not sure what that has to do with my having an allergic reaction Machine.



Pikachu
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31 May 2007, 11:29 am

hmmm, I personally have never known anyone to be allergic to blue food colouring, my advice would be to go see a doctor and see what they say about it


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Ticker
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31 May 2007, 11:30 am

I had a rebound reaction last night so took more antihistamine. This morning woke up with a Benedryl hangover and am still itching.

But that cake really tasted good.



Pikachu
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31 May 2007, 11:33 am

Ticker wrote:
I had a rebound reaction last night so took more antihistamine. This morning woke up with a Benedryl hangover and am still itching.

But that cake really tasted good.
Best get to a doctor then if you had a rebound reaction


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31 May 2007, 11:50 am

http://nac.allergyforum.com/additives/colors100-181.htm

Quote:
E132 Indigo carmine blue color, people with allergies should avoid it. May cause nausea, vomiting, high blood pressure, skin rashes, breathing problems and other allergic reactions. Typical products are confectionary, biscuits


Blues not a common food coloring I think most people would eat.

http://www.lactose.co.uk/milkallergy/fo ... es100.html

Quote:
E132#
Indigotine, Indigo carmine
FD&C Blue No.2, commonly added to tablets and capsules; also used in ice cream, sweets, baked goods, confectionary, biscuits, synthetic coal tar derivative; may cause nausea, vomiting, high blood pressure, skin rashes, breathing problems and other allergic reactions. Banned in Norway


Blue no 1 is in household food coloring but that was a store cake you ate.

Quote:
E133
Brilliant blue FCF
FD&C Blue Dye No.1; used in dairy products, sweets and drinks, synthetic usually occurring as aluminium lake (solution) or ammonium salt; banned in Belgium, France, Germany, Switzerland, Sweden, Austria, Norway


You could do some detective work and see what the precise product the store bakery used was. Then contact the manufactor on the precise color used and then obtain a sample from another source of the pure dye and do a small skin test of it.



Ticker
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31 May 2007, 12:06 pm

Hey BeenThere since you're a cake decorating expert do you know if a decorator at the store would commonly know which kind of blue dye they used? Like the name/numbers Machine listed?

I can't say for sure if it was airbrushed since most of the cake was consumed before I got a look at it. They did appear to use a butter knife to create the swirls for the ocean waves, but I 'spose they could have airbrushed underneath that. It was done very artfully. However beware of Pirates of Carribean cakes they could be deadly.

Will have to consult my allergist on this one. If nothing else its a forewarning to him if anyone comes in with a weird new reaction that it could be the new Pirates birthday cake.



Beenthere
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31 May 2007, 12:29 pm

The decorator should have access to the bottle, which should tell you or enable you to look it up.

It's comes in a powder, concentrated liquid or a paste form...most bakeries use the liquid or the paste for the bold colors.


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31 May 2007, 12:41 pm

Quote:
They did appear to use a butter knife to create the swirls for the ocean waves, but I 'spose they could have airbrushed underneath that.


Betting they drizzled a few lines of the liquid coloring and just swirled the knife through to create the effect....if it was staining your hands like you said...that stuff stains wonderfully straight out of the bottle...I used to come home with multi colored hands even after having them in dish water for hours. 8O


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