The most common food allergy signs and symptoms include:
- Tingling or itching in the mouth
- Hives, itching or eczema
- Swelling of the lips, face, tongue and throat or other parts of the body
- Wheezing, nasal congestion or trouble breathing
- Abdominal pain, diarrhea, nausea or vomiting
- Dizziness, lightheadedness or fainting
What are the symptoms of food allergies?
Overview. Food allergy is an immune system reaction that occurs soon after eating a certain food. Even a tiny amount of the allergy-causing food can trigger signs and symptoms such as digestive problems, hives or swollen airways. In some people, a food allergy can cause severe symptoms or even a life-threatening reaction known as anaphylaxis.
What is the difference between food sensitivities and allergies?
Food sensitivities and intolerances are different from food allergies and they cause an entirely different set of symptoms in your body. These delayed immune reactions to food are extremely common and lead to a number of the chronic symptoms that I see my patients struggling with on a day-to-day basis.
How do I know if I have a food sensitivity?
Cell-based blood tests, including the MRT and ALCAT, assess changes in your white blood cells when exposed to food antigens. Some practitioners report the tests are helpful in identifying food sensitivities, but both require further study. Antibody-based food sensitivity tests measure your production of immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibodies to foods.
How to identify food sensitivities?
The best tool we have to identify food sensitivities is a process of careful observation and experimentation. Removing certain foods believed to cause reactions from the diet for two to four weeks, reintroducing them one by one, and watching for symptoms is the current gold standard to pin down what may be causing symptoms. This so-called “elimination diet” is not high-tech, and it is far from perfect. A physician or nutritionist can provide guidance for undertaking an elimination diet, and can help you understand limitations and avoid possible pitfalls. Removing certain foods can help stave off undesirable symptoms and improve your quality of life.
What to do if you think you have a food allergy?
If you think you may have a food allergy, consider allergy testing and treatment, especially if your symptoms are severe (significant rashes, feeling of passing out, facial swelling, and problems breathing). Scrupulously reading ingredient labels is wise. And carrying epinephrine shots in case of accidental ingestion or contact with the food in question is essential and can be lifesaving.
What happens if you eat a certain food?
After eating certain foods, a large part of the population experiences symptoms that are not related to food intolerances, food allergies, or celiac disease. These are referred to as food sensitivities. Though there is controversy around what exactly happens in the body of someone with a food sensitivity, it appears that exposure to specific foods may create an immune reaction that generates a multitude of symptoms. The symptoms are not life-threatening, but they can be quite disruptive and include joint pain, stomach pain, fatigue, rashes, and brain fog. Gluten is probably the best-known trigger of food sensitivities.
What is gluten in food?
Gluten is found in a variety of grains, including wheat, rye, barley, semolina, bulgur, and farina. Many processed foods also contain gluten. People with celiac disease must also be careful about cross-contamination, when a gluten-free food comes into contact with a gluten-containing food.
What happens when you get older and you are lactose intolerance?
The most common food reaction appears to be lactose intolerance. As we get older, our ability to digest dairy decreases. That’s because, with age, our intestines make less of the enzyme (lactase) that processes lactose, a type of sugar present in milk and dairy products. As a result, we have more lactose sitting in the digestive tract, which can cause stomach bloating, inflammation, and diarrhea. Research has found that only about 35% of people worldwide can digest lactose beyond the age of about seven or eight.
What happens if you eat a snack?
Maybe you experienced some degree of sneezing, wheezing, rashes, brain fog, joint pain, nausea, bloating, diarrhea, or another symptom. This may have led you to believe you have a food allergy — and maybe you do.
Can gluten cause diarrhea?
Celiac disease is not a true allergy; eating gluten once does not cause an immediate life-threatening problem . However, prolonged and continuous ingestion can cause diarrhea, weight loss, and malnutrition.
How to find out if you have food sensitivities?
The best way to discover your food sensitivities is to complete an elimination diet. This means you take out the most common inflammatory foods from your diet and then add them back in one at a time to see if you have a reaction. It’s like getting to do your own science experiment on your diet!
What is the difference between food sensitivities and food allergies?
The first thing I want to note is that food allergies and food sensitivities are two very different things. A food allergy triggers an extreme and potentially life-threatening reaction, known as an IgE-mediated immune response.
What are some examples of foods that cause migraines?
You eat scrambled eggs, fresh sliced tomatoes, and a banana every morning for breakfast.
How long does it take for food sensitivity to show up?
It could take up to 72 hours for symptoms of a food sensitivity to present.
How many times a day should I eat to test for inflammation?
If that food is causing inflammation for you, I want to give your body the best chance to determine that, rather than letting silent inflammation creep in! You also want to make sure your results are clean and reliable, which is why you’ll test only one food at a time.
What to do if you don't have a reaction to food?
If you don’t have a reaction, take the food back out until you have finished the reintroduction phase
Is gut leaky testing accurate?
The downside of this type of testing is that it is not always 100% accurate. If your gut is leaky, you may show a reaction to food particles that are escaping into your bloodstream that would not normally trigger an immune response if your gut was healthy.
What is the difference between food sensitivities and food allergies?
The big difference between food sensitivities and food allergies all comes down to how your body reacts. If your body treats the substance like an invader and begins an attack, then you have a food allergy. If you suffer mainly from gastrointestinal concerns, then it’s likely just a sensitivity.
What happens when you have a food sensitivity?
When someone has a food sensitivity or intolerance, the reaction is typically less serious and often confined to digestive issues. Some people with sensitivities can eat a little of the food that bothers them without experiencing a reaction, or they can limit their reaction with medications and supplements designed to target the problem.
Why do people have food allergies?
Food allergies cause the immune system in the body to respond, and a variety of organs can show symptoms. Each person may react to different foods in different ways. The key factor is that the reaction can be severe or life-threatening.
