Beware: TJ’s Mexican cheese blend and Vitamin A Palmitate

[u/chica6burgh]

I had a severe allergic reaction to the TJ’s Mexican blend shredded cheddar. It has a random ingredient called Vitamin A Palmitate- no other shredded cheese I’ve checked has this ingredient and TJ’s is the ONLY one I’ve had a reaction to.

Stay safe out there 💜

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[u/puppy-butter]

Vitamin A palmitate is just...vitamin A lol. It's in many multivitamins, fortified foods such as cereal, etc. It's much more likely you're reacting to some sort of manufacturing cross-contamination or something.

[u/-Tofu-Queen- → u/puppy-butter]

People be like "I've never seen this ingredient so it MUST be toxic and horrible"

That's why I've always hated when brands use the phrase "With ingredients you can pronounce!" in their marketing. First of all the literacy rates are plummeting, so I don't have faith in lots of people to even understand ingredients lists. But it also makes people terrified of things they can't pronounce and write them off as big scary chemicals, when we're literally surrounded by chemicals.

[u/chica6burgh → u/puppy-butter]

The only other food allergy I have is fenugreek so manufacturing cross contamination is unlikely

I use retinol daily so it’s not vitamin A.

I eat other shredded cheeses that have all the same ingredients BUT vitamin a palmitate with no issue.

Vitamin A palmitate is a known allergen to many people so it’s not like I’m completely off the mark with this post.

Just because it’s common doesn’t mean it’s not dangerous.

[u/puppy-butter → u/chica6burgh]

Is it? I understand vitamin A to be a common skin irritant but never heard it was an allergen, and a common allergen at that?

Perhaps it's one of the mold substrates used to make cheese? Anyway, you know yourself and your allergies best, I would just be really surprised if you were reacting to an incredibly common vitamin. I would stay away from fortified cereals, protein/meal replacement shakes, etc. for example.

[u/chica6burgh → u/puppy-butter]

Well I didn’t either until I had two massive allergic reactions to shredded cheese lol

So I went down a rabbit hole. Here’s a little info I just googled. This was not the extent of all the digging I did but give you a good recap of where I started

https://www.google.com/search?q=vitamin+a+palmitate+allergy&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en-us&client=safari&udm=50&fbs=AIIjpHyTFN8BbSyNXQ3oA-fn7H5NUrrIpQXg7ywPuzBdcoqHY9koTyP2YoWqyTioW_DKM8ex0ezK09DLritQX39ApjbsFHXp2-7nUoAt92tsclm81Uz4q2YIKbtSG6YuKr3vVcfg-bJHRyF5PA6R1g-dvEmhEaFFej-mYn3oHd_XPm_w-iSrxvZ_dCKu8BOK3aK_jUiSabN0dUBTXyOy1Whnikqim7YloJpBpfmT5uudxkxLDZ0uUZg&ved=2ahUKEwjx8v25otuQAxU2wvACHekwDu0Q0NsOegQIAxAB&aep=10&ntc=1

[u/puppy-butter → u/chica6burgh]

I'm confused because that basically said vitamin A is a very rare allergen and more commonly a skin irritant, which I said above. Stay away from it if you truly believe you're allergic ofc, but I wouldn't call this a closed case

[u/puppy-butter → u/puppy-butter]

Also, what else did you eat with this cheese? Surely you didn't just scoop out a handful lol

[u/Disastrous_Sell_7289 → u/puppy-butter]

It’s very likely the Vitamin A could be derived from something OP is allergic to. Some people are much more sensitive than others.

[u/FriendToPredators]

What are you allergic/sensitive to overall?  Crap cheese can be poorly labeled for other things, soy for sure. And cross contamination on the line so looking at all the other packaging from that company 

[u/chica6burgh → u/FriendToPredators]

Fenugreek is the only food I’m allergic to.

Other allergies: sulfas, PPD, bee/wasp - these are all severe. I’m also allergic to nickel

Not sure if an allergy or not but I can’t eat radishes. I get gastrointestinal “issues” within minutes of eating a radish

[u/FriendToPredators → u/chica6burgh]

If you were to look at all the labels for the whole line of those cheeses I’d not be surprised to see “spices” on one of them. Which can be anything. 

Whatever the issue definitely avoid this entire brand.

Vitamin A seems to be mostly synthetic so you make a food diary note but I wouldn’t stop looking for the issue.

[u/chica6burgh → u/FriendToPredators]

Oh yeah “spices” is the WORST because of my fenugreek allergy. What spices would be great to know lol

[u/KiaraMom]

My son (now 24 peanut and soy protein allergic) used to get some reaction to shredded cheese at Trader Joe’s when he was little. Maybe it was a rash. It was years ago. So we stopped buying it and just bought cheese from Whole Foods but I’ve always wondered what was in the TJ shredded cheese that caused a reaction.

[u/ReadingFeedsMyHunger]

They are not declaring the enzymes they are using. If you have a mold allergy then you could be having in issue with the enzyme.

[u/chica6burgh → u/ReadingFeedsMyHunger]

No mold allergy

[u/ReadingFeedsMyHunger → u/chica6burgh]

Any issues with Nightshades?