Food Allergies  

An IgE-mediated response is a permanent allergy and causes an immediate histamine reaction within minutes to hours of ingested food. 
Potentially life-threatening-difficulty breathing and low blood pressure following exposure.
Food allergies can show up at any time in our lives, even during older adulthood.

                       

Food Sensitivities

IgG/Immune mediator response.
More common than food allergies, food intolerances are estimated to affect up to 20 percent of the population in industrialized countries. 
Food Sensitivities can cause delayed symptoms hours to days after ingesting food that can mimic many other diagnoses. These symptoms can include joint pain, stomach pain, fatigue, depression, anxiety rashes, and brain fog. 
Gluten is probably the best-known trigger of food sensitivities.
 IgG-mediated responses are temporary sensitivities that do not activate a histamine response and can usually be remedied with a period of elimination. In many cases, other immunoglobulin antibody responses may also be involved with food sensitivity, including IgA (which is found in the mucus membranes).
The Importance of Food Sensitivity Testing- Food sensitivity testing can help pinpoint the exact foods and spices that are affecting our patients’ health. Once the tight junctions have opened up, it is common for the body to react to multiple foods making it hard to narrow down the exact cause.

Food Intolerance

The inability to process or digest certain foods. 
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.
Lactose intolerance is not a serious disease, but it can be quite uncomfortable. Avoiding dairy products is a surefire way to avoid symptoms; some, like milk, tend to produce more severe symptoms than others, like yogurt and cheese. 

Celiac Disease

Celiac disease affects about 1% of the Western population. In this autoimmune condition, the ingestion of gluten initiates a complex inflammatory reaction that can make people with celiac disease very sick. 
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 mucosal barrier damage, nutrient deficiency diarrhea, weight loss, and malnutrition.
Avoiding gluten is the only solution to this problem. Gluten is found in a variety of grains, including wheat, rye, barley, semolina, bulgur, and farina. People with celiac disease must also be careful about cross-contamination when a gluten-free food comes into contact with gluten-containing food.



 

Food Allergies, Sensitivities, and Intolerances.