Food intolerance, Food allergy and food elimination diets :
Food allergy can be life threatening whereas food intolerance is a 'masked allergy' i.e. it may not cause a life threatening symptom such as restricting air intake caused by swelling of the tongue and oesophagus.
Food Allergy Explained :
Food Allergy is the hypersensitivity to a foreign protein that produces a violent reaction, sometimes a fatal reaction, taking the form.
Allergy can be loosely defined as an altered reaction to a normally harmless substance with which the body comes into contact.
Strictly speaking, an allergy involves the rapid onset of symptoms which can be clearly linked with immune system response.
Some Allergy Symptoms are:
All kinds of foods & chemicals (known as Allergens) can be responsible for these reactions.
In defence to these Allergens, the body produces Antibodies to fight off the Allergens. However, violent reactions occur when the body overreacts to the Allergens.
A good example is an allergic reaction to peanuts. Anaphylactic shock can occur, where the blood pressure falls to life-threateningly low levels.
Food Intolerance Explained :
Food intolerance is a 'masked allergy' – in other words, reactions are often delayed, intermittent or chronic and although they may involve the release of histamine by the mast cells of the immune system, the reactions are not as severe and are not generally considered to be immune system mediated.
BUT, these 'lesser' symptoms are not harmless – they may not kill you but Food Intolerance is the prime cause of many niggling, long-term problems that are able to run down your immune system and make feel ill over time.
Following an elimination diet is the best method to follow when trying to determine your intolerance to foods.
There are many types of food intolerance i.e. :
- lactose intolerance
- gluten
- glucose
- wheat
- fructose
- milk / dairy
- egg
- alcohol
- insulin
- yeast
- sugar
- carbohydrate
An intolerance can be caused by a metabolic reaction to an enzyme deficiency e.g. a lack of Lactase results in Lactose Maldigestion.
Maldigestion occurs when the digestive system does not produce enough of this enzyme to break down the lactose into simpler sugars (called glucose and galactose).
The lactose sugar therefore ferments in the small intestine, producing the following symptoms after drinking milk or eating dairy produce ...
This problem is very widespread but we are continually told to make sure we eat enough dairy product !!!
Click here to do a basic Food Intolerance Test
NOTE: Lactose intolerance is NOT the same as a milk allergy.
Some Major Food Intolerance culprits are:
- Dairy Produce
- Gluten Products
- Food Additives, preservatives & artificial colourings
Gluten Intolerance, as with Dairy Intolerance is an every increasing problem amongst the population as we are not able to properly digest it.
Gluten is a protein found in Cereal grains.
Foods containing Gluten are:
- Wheat (bread, pasta, biscuits etc.)
- Rye
- Barley
- Oats (small amount)
These foods contain the gliadin sub fraction of gluten that is toxic to persons with Celiac Disease.
Some Symptoms Of Food Intolerance Are:
FOOD INTOLERANCE SUMMARY |
- If you are allergic to certain foods, avoid them.
- It you exhibit food intolerance symptoms, follow a food elimination diet to determine the offending foods.
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BENEFICIAL INGREDIENTS
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- Digestive enzymes
- Probiotics e.g. Acidophilus & Bifidophilus
- Peppermint
- Ginger
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This page deals with adverse reactions of foods on your body. Food elimination diets and the associated symptoms of allergy and food intolerance.
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