Are You Allergic To Some Foods You Eat?

Food testing is a safe and effective way to determine any food allergies that you may have as well as give you the knowledge of how to improve your diet to make you feel better. It can be difficult to recognize either a food allergy or a food intolerance by yourself because the symptoms may vary and you may also be eating a variety of different foods that you are either allergic to or intolerant to so the symptoms may just be “normal” to you.

Food intolerances normally manifest themselves 1-72 hours after eating. The symptoms vary widely between everyone dependent on how intolerant or allergic you are. It can be hard to identify the food causing a reaction in your body because of the long length of time it may take to affect you. For example if you have a piece of bread one day you may not feel the symptoms until 2-3 days later. The most common symptoms are headaches, bloating, gas and tiredness. If you continue to eat the foods you are allergic or intolerant to, the problems tend to become worse over the years with new symptoms being experienced and a greater intolerance to a wider range of foods. Although both affect your health, there are a few differences between a food intolerance and a food allergy. A food allergy causes a hypersensitive reaction of the immune system and usually reveals itself within a few minutes of eating. Some food allergy reactions are very severe and may result in death. Only about 2% of people suffer from food allergies , but over 80% have some type of food intolerance. Some symptoms of intolerances may be caused by an enzyme deficiency or chemical sensitivity, but others may cause the immune system to reaction in a certain way when a food is consumed.

It is a good idea to get tested for food allergies and intolerances even if you are not experiencing what you think are “symptoms”. The majority of people that get tested do find that once they avoid the foods they are intolerant to they feel much better. Talk to you doctor about these type of tests as he or she can refer you to a specialist in that field.