Food Allergy & Food Intolerance.

Food allergy and food intolerance are both caused by your body reacting to the food you eat, but food allergy is a quick and serious reaction, while food intolerance is much slower to happen, and the body's allergic reaction is in every way more subtle and diffuse. This makes food intolerance much more difficult to identify, which is a problem because it is probably quite widespread, and so the home tests for this are really useful. Fortunately food allergy is much rarer.

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Food Allergy & Food Intolerance Products

Food Allergy & Food Intolerance Inforrmation
Related Pages : Coeliac Disease : Gluten Intolerance : Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) :
Related Articles : York Test Food Intolerance Tests ::

The Difference Between Food Allergy & Food Intolerance

Some people are sensitive to certain foods, which can make them ill. This response can be very specific and involve the body's own immune system reacting to certain foods, and producing antibodies to fight against that food. These antibodies can be detected in the blood, and are used to diagnose food allergies and intolerances. This immune response is much more specific than, for example, eating a really hot curry, which most people would react to due to it irritating the stomach.

There are two types of food reactions:

Classic food allergy. This is a rapid and potentially severe allergic reaction, which produces IgE antibodies. It can be life threatening, such as the reaction to peanuts or bee stings. This type of allergy will be recognised and understood by your doctor.
Food intolerance or hidden food allergy. This is a slow and usually mild allergic reaction which produces IgG antibodies. This type of reaction is usually not even recognised by the NHS and not taken seriously by doctors. It can, however, cause a wide range of low grade health problems, which do not respond to conventional treatments.

Food Allergy

Classic food allergies are usually rapid, and symptoms appear within minutes or a few hours of eating the food you are allergic to. Sensitive people can have this reaction triggered by the minutest trace of the problem food. Severe reactions are a medical emergency, and can result in death.

Fortunately few foods produce this type of allergy, and then only in sensitised people. The problem food can usually be easily identified because the reaction to it is so quick, and can be immediate to within two hours.

Foods which can produce allergy include -

Milk can cause an allergic reaction to the many proteins it contains. This is different to lactose intolerance, which is caused by the body not producing the enzyme lactase to digest the lactose, which then causes a problem.
Peanut and other nut allergies are increasing in the UK as more of these nuts are being eaten. These reactions can be fatal.
Fish & Shellfish
Eggs
Wheat causes an allergy due to the gluten content, which leads to coeliac disease, where the lining of the gut suffers an allergic inflammatory reaction and is damaged to the extent that food is not properly absorbed into the body. However, a low grade gluten intolerance is much more common.
Soy is becoming increasing important as an allergen, and genetically modified soy seems to be increasing this problem.

Food Intolerance

Food intolerance is not always accepted by most doctors, so don't expect your doctor to always take this too seriously, however it is accepted by nutritionists as being a common problem at the root of many diseases, and also the cause of many general health problems where patients know that they are not really well, but neither they or their doctor can find out what is actually wrong with them.

Food intolerance is difficult to diagnose, because the body's reaction to the food does not happen straight away as in a classic allergy. The delay between eating the food and the body's reaction can be between a few hours and a few days. The offending foods are usually those which are eaten regularly and for some people dependence on and craving for them may develop, so they remain as part of the regular diet.

Symptoms and health problems can vary from mild uncomfortable symptoms to chronic diseases. Here are some of the commonest symptoms:

Energy & Sleep - Tiredness and lack of energy, insomnia and disturbed sleep, excessive drowsiness after eating, chronic fatigue syndrome.
Weight & Swelling - Swollen stomach or bloating, water retention, sudden increase in weight, unable to lose weight.
Bowels - Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), diarrhoea, constipation, abdominal pains and cramps, nausea and vomiting.
Nervous System - Headaches and migraines, food cravings, brain fog, inability to concentrate, irritability, low mood and depression symptoms, hyperactivity and attention deficit disorder in children and adults.
Joints - Arthritis, joint pain, swollen joints.
Nose - Hay Fever like symptoms as runny or blocked nose, catarrh, recurrent sinusitis.
Skin, Hair & Nails - Eczema, rashes, psoriasis, acne,dry skin, brittle dry hair and nails, cold sores.
Chest - Asthma, irregular heartbeat and increased heart rate, congestion, breathlessness and wheezing
Eyes - Dark circles around the eyes (allergic shiners), swelling, wrinkles or puffiness under the eyes, itchy eyes
Ears - Ear infections.
Neck & Throat - Sore throat and chronic cough, tonsillitis and hoarseness
Body - Chronic swollen glands, menstrual disorders, fibromyalgia, dizziness, faintness, growing pains and failure to thrive in infants.

Hidden food allergies are mainly due to an unhealthy gut, caused by the typical unhealthy western diet and lifestyle. The health of the gut is vitally important to our general health, and is greatly under rated in our modern society. Poor gut health stems from poor nutrition, poor health and poor digestion. The gut bacteria can swing out of balance, with unhealthy bacteria growing at the expense of the good bacteria, and fungal overgrowth or candida can occur. Stress also reduces the protection given to the gut lining, and this is why stress can make some conditions worse. Leaky gut syndrome occurs when the gut walls become inflamed, and no longer provide an effective barrier to stop partially digested food elements entering the blood stream. These can be attacked by the body's immune system to produce an allergic reaction, and this type of reaction releases IgG antibodies to specific food elements, causing food intolerance.

Food intolerance can happen to anyone who is exposed to any of the following risk factors:

Excessive regular consumption of a limited number of foods
Regular consumption of allergy triggering foods
Early weaning and early introduction of solid foods
Improper weaning – early introduction of dairy products and solid food
High intake of preservatives, stabilizers, artificial colourings and flavouring
Long term use of some drugs and medications
Adrenal exhaustion (fatigue) and chronic stress
Inherited predisposition to allergies
Nutrient deficiencies and imbalances
Consumption of alcohol, coffee, tea, junk food and carbonated drinks
Cigarette smoking and passive smoking
Hypoglycaemia and other blood sugar imbalances
Reduced gastric and pancreatic secretion
Chronic candidiasis (intestinal yeast overgrowth)
Leaky gut syndrome
Presence of inhalant sensitivity
Under-functioning liver with poor detoxification capacity
Disturbed immune function
Severe viral infections
Heavy metal poisoning
Chemical exposure and free radical oxidative damage .

Food Allergy & Food Intolerance Tests

There are tests to find out if you react to certain foods. Some of them may need to be done by your doctor, and you may need to do some yourself. It is best to test for food reactions rather than try to eliminate foods on a random basis.

There are two common types of tests:

Food allergy tests measure IgE antibodies in the body, which are produced in response to an immediate allergy. This may be done as a RAST blood test, or a skin test which introduces the allergen into the skin with a pin prick and looks for a reaction. Neither of these tests detect food intolerances.
Food intolerance tests measure IgG antibodies in the body, which are produced in response to a food intolerance. The most reliable test is an ELISA Test which measures IgG antibodies in your blood. YorkTest produce reliable ELISA home testing kits to test for food intolerances.

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