The foods you eat can affect your body in a myriad of ways. If you experience chronic fatigue, weight loss, unexplained rashes or chronic digestive problems, your doctor may recommend a diet that eliminates certain foods, particularly wheat, dairy, eggs and soy. While it may seem little is left to eat, many foods are naturally free of these ingredients, so you can still enjoy a varied and complete diet.
Significance
Over 90 percent of food allergies can be attributed to just seven foods, four of which are dairy, wheat, eggs and soy, notes Dr. William Sears on his website. Children are particularly vulnerable to intolerances or allergies to these foods. Eliminating these food items may also be prescribed help alleviate the symptoms of certain conditions, particularly migraines, irritable bowel syndrome, rheumatoid arthritis, celiac disease, autism and attention deficit disorder.
Foods
A diet free of wheat, soy, eggs and dairy focuses on plain meats, vegetables, fruits and alternative grains. Fish, chicken, turkey, bison, beef, lamb and even pork without purchased marinades or seasonings are allowable. Shop the produce section and stick to fresh vegetables such as leafy greens, orange vegetables, potatoes and herbs for seasoning. Fresh fruits, including apples, berries, grapes and bananas, are also acceptable on your diet. For grains, look to plain brown rice, quinoa, millet, teff, buckwheat and amaranth. Gluten-free breads made with flours from these grains may be okay, but many contain eggs and/or dairy so read your labels. As an alternative to cow and soy milk, use almond, hemp, hazelnut or coconut milk. You can even purchase coconut milk yogurt and kefir in some stores along with almond-based cheese.
Considerations
If you are following a dairy-, wheat-, soy- and egg-free diet to identify food allergies or intolerances, you must follow it for at least a week. While following a strict diet, avoid packaged and processed foods. Many foods you would suspect to be safe contain soy, dairy, wheat or eggs as stabilizers, thickeners or flavor enhancers. Canned soups, frozen dinners, snack crackers and even breakfast cereals often contain soy, wheat and dairy. For example, several brands of canned or pouched tuna have added soy. Watch for ingredients such as: albumin, which indicates eggs; duram, semolina and farina, which indicates wheat; and casein or sodium caseinate, which indicates dairy.
Sample Plan
For breakfast, you could begin with a smoothie made with almond butter, a frozen banana, coconut milk and ice cubes. At lunch, create a salad with dark leafy greens, roasted chicken breast, tomatoes, cucumbers, mushrooms and shredded carrot. As many commercial salad dressings contain soy or wheat, create your own with lemon juice, olive oil and fresh basil. Have a piece of fruit and a coconut milk yogurt on the side. At dinner, enjoy broiled salmon with a baked sweet potato, quinoa and steamed vegetables. For snacks, you could have raw nuts, dates, raisins, fresh fruit, air-popped popcorn, bean dip with vegetables and rice crackers -- watch for soy ingredients -- and mashed avocado with carrot sticks.
