There are a number of different ways to identify Food Allergies – each with differing rates of success and advantages/disadvantages. A lot of people complain that the Elimination Diet is “too hard” but in most cases it is the required course of action. We’ll be exploring all of the different identification methods in this upcoming series of posts. But first… an introduction to food allergies.
Food Intolerance vs Food Allergy
These two terms along with “Food Sensitivity” seem to be used interchangeably. In my opinion, Food Sensitivity covers both Food Intolerance & Food Allergy.
Food Allergy (for simplicity and for the purpose of this blog) means any adverse reaction to food where the immune system is involved. Allergens in food trigger antibodies etc etc.
Food Intolerance is any adverse reaction to food where the immune system involvement is unproven or allergy tests are negative. (Unfortunately for migraine sufferers, food intolerance and not necessarily an allergy has a big impact on migraine attacks and intensity. The bad news is a lot of doctors don’t regard Food Intolerance as a sound diagnosis.)
Some Known Food Allergies
- Peanut Allergy
- Nuts / Tree Nuts
- Shellfish
- Milk
- Eggs
- Soy
- Wheat
- Latex (food cross-reaction)
Some Identification Methods For Food Allergies
We’ll be going through some of these methods/topics relating to identifying food allergies (among others).
- Elimination Diet (everyone’s favorite)
- Skin Prick Tests
- Blood Tests
- Medical History
- Symptoms Reported For Food Allergies
- Things To Look For
