Surviving Food Intolerance

A growing problem in American health is allergies and intolerances to seemingly common food. Staples such as milk, wheat, and other edibles are having increasingly catastrophic effects on our digestive systems. If you think you may have a food intolerance, this article will give you the information you need to diagnose and understand it, as well as provide help in mitigating its effects.

So what distinguishes a food intolerance from a food allergy? The two conditions are often mixed up, but treatment is very different between the two. A food allergy is an immunological hypersensitivity, where the body produces an immune reaction to the consumed food rapidly. Allergies are, essentially, the body attacking the problem food because it mistakes it for an undesirable substance. Food intolerance, by comparison, does not involve an immune reaction. Rather, there are several causes involved from metabolic, where the body cannot process a certain nutrient present in the food, such as lactic acid, to pharmacological, where the body reacts to trace compounds in the food, to even psychological, where a physical reaction is triggered from emotions or memories associated with the food.

One thing that makes food intolerance more difficult to treat is the length of the symptomatic display. Unlike allergies, which present themselves rapidly after consumption, intolerance reactions can take place over hours or even days. Symptoms can strike the gastrointestinal tract, but also make themselves known in the skin and respiratory system as well. In addition, there are a number of conditions that can be triggered by food intolerance, such as irritable bowel syndrome. Untangling the root cause from all the symptomatic displays can be tricky.

Obviously, the most effective treatment for food intolerance is removing the offending food or ingredient from your diet. A doctor will usually prescribe an elimination diet to determine the cause of the intolerance and consult with a nutritionist to develop a meal plan that still provides adequate nutrition. One of the most common food intolerances today is lactose, which is present in milk and cheese products. The roots of lactose intolerance, which is based in the bodys underproduction of the acid lactase, are thought to be genetically propagated, with certain races far more likely to suffer from it. Thankfully, modern science has developed substitute foods for just about anything, and even the most intolerant person can survive and thrive. In addition, a number of medications exist to assist intolerant digestive systems in the act of digestion.

And, of course, if you believe you have a food allergy or intolerance, consult your doctor immediately. The sooner you get treatment, the sooner you can go back to the dinner table.

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