Related Readings: Lactose Intolerance
There are lots of people who are talk to me regularly about their food allergies and intolerances, and a lot of people kind of get confused and think that all food reactions are allergies, when in fact, many reactions are intolerances to foods and not food allergies. So how do you distinguish between them both? How do you know if you are actually allergic to something, or can’t tolerate a food?
Understanding food allergies and intolerances can be challenging. Many people confuse these reactions, assuming all are allergies when many are actually intolerances. How can you tell the difference? How do you know if you’re truly allergic or just intolerant?
A food allergy involves an adverse health effect from a specific immune response that occurs repeatedly upon exposure to a particular food. True food allergies are less common than many think. On the other hand, food intolerances are much more frequent in my experience. Digestive issues like burping, gas, and bloating are often signs of intolerances rather than allergies. This article by an expert panel on the diagnosis and management of food allergy in the United States discusses further.
From my clinical experience, food reactions are more commonly experienced in individuals with irritable bowel syndrome, candida, and leaky gut syndrome. Here’s our article about leaky gut syndrome.
If you suspect a food allergy or intolerance, keeping a food diary is invaluable. Use Eric’s Weekly Food Diary to document what you eat and any reactions you may experience. This can help identify problematic foods over time.
It’s essential to distinguish between a food allergy and a food intolerance. A food allergy involves an immune response, while a food intolerance does not. Intolerances often develop due to dietary indiscretions, stress, and factors like a lack of digestive enzymes and leaky gut syndrome.
Immediate IgE reactions occur within minutes to hours after consuming the allergen and are less common, affecting less than 5% of the population, mostly children. Symptoms include swelling, puffiness, redness, and itching.
IgE reactions typically happen immediately after exposure to the allergen. I’ve seen patients react severely, like a 14-year-old girl with a milk allergy who developed welts near a milk refrigerator and a 63-year-old man who nearly had an anaphylactic attack from being near fish.
Managing food allergies involves recognizing triggers and developing strategies to avoid them. Common allergens include eggs, dairy, gluten, wheat, corn, peanuts, shellfish, and fish. Symptoms of food allergies include swollen hands, itchy and swollen eyes, burning sensations in the lungs, and throat closure.
Many chronic illnesses are linked to food allergies, but conventional medicine often overlooks this connection. Allergies can affect conditions like arthritis, asthma, diabetes, and ADHD. Food reactions can also impact behavior and emotions and influence a baby’s health when breastfeeding.
Related Readings: Lactose Intolerance