Archives for December 2010

Food Intolerance : Symptoms And Treatments

December 28, 2010 by

Does drinking a glass of milk cause you stomach to hurt? Have you eaten something, and later felt nauseous? Are there specific foods or beverages that cause you to feel sick? Many people share these symptoms with you. There is a condition called food intolerance, and millions suffer from it. You too may have this condition.

When your body is unable to digest specific types of food, this is called food intolerance. Milk is the most common food to cause a food intolerance. In about 10% of Americans, milk is poorly digested. Food intolerances can manifest at any point in your life, they can even be present at birth. Food intolerances can be temporary or permanent.

Do you have any symptoms of food intolerance? Not everyone will have the same types of problems, but some signs of the condition can include abdominal discomfort, scratchy throat, nausea, bloating, and diarrhea. This malady is no fun whatsoever and may indicate that years of sickness and suffering may be ahead.

Don not confuse these symptoms with those caused by food allergies. Allergies can cause all of the aforementioned symptoms, plus itching, skin hives, vomiting, swollen lips and throat, and wheezing. These reactions start immediately after the offending food is consumed, and can be serious or even life-threatening. Call for medical help immediately if you suffer these symptoms after eating.

If you are not able to decide whether you are allergic to something or are intolerant to particular food then it is best to seek an advice of an allergist. He will do the allergy testing and tell you if you are allergic to some substance. Although these tests cannot figure out the foods to which your body is intolerant. But if you are assured that you are not allergic to something than you can concentrate on your food intlerance.

After you have figured out which foods that you are allergic to, how do you consistently avoid them? First, you need to completely remove that food from your diet. Make sure to read the labels of processed foods, many of which have unexpected ingredients that may trigger allergies. You should start feeling better as soon as that food is out of your diet.

If dairy is the food that causes you pain, you may find it difficult to completely remove it from your diet. The good news is that most people who are lactose intolerant can eat some forms of dairy without feeling sick. Try taking a two-week dairy-free period to let your system heal, and then slowly start trying different dairy products. Most people who can’t drink milk can still eat hard cheese or yogurts, so you may be able to keep some dairy in your diet.

Does drinking milk cause abdominal discomfort? Have you eaten something, and later felt nauseous? Are there specific foods or beverages that make you sick? Many people share these symptoms with you. Millions suffer from food intolerance. Some people are born with intolerances to certain foods, and others may develop intolerances much later in life. Lactose intolerance, a problem handling the sugar in milk, is very common in about 10% of the US population, and it can be congenital or may develop with aging. Some intolerances last for life, while others may occur sporadically. Food allergies can cause the same problems, so allergy testing may be in order.

– Robert Harrison

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Food Intolerance: What Are The Causes?

December 28, 2010 by

A Food intolerance is when you have a bad reaction to food or food additives. A food allergy is strong and there is an instant reaction to the food. With an allergy the body’s immune system is directly involved.

Since not all reactions can be covered by the term food allergy, doctors use the term food intolerance to describe those unfavorable reactions that don’t involve the immune response system. Allergy tests are used to detect allergens. Sometimes food intolerance is just the result of too much of the same thing over a long period.

Non-immune responses are also possible with some foods. You should be familiar with generic toxicity. This would be the body’s reaction to known poisons such as arsenic, lead, and mercury. These poisons can occur naturally and show up in food when you least expect them to.

This can result in a number of health risks. Indeed, in the worst case, one can grow ill or even die due to ingested impurities. A second group is those who carry mutations for specific digestive enzymes. The problems they regularly encounter are less apparent than those who have more violent food allergies.

You have probably heard of lactose intolerance. This is the technical term describing the condition people have when they cannot digest dairy products. They are missing an enzyme which is used to digest milk sugar, or lactose. Most people have no problem digesting dairy products because they have this enzyme.

Another example of non-allergic food intolerance is the reaction caused by naturally occurring chemicals in food, or by additives which cause a chemical reaction. These reactions are similar to allergic reactions, so there is a possibility that these may be incorrectly identified as responses to a food allergy.

There are various things which come under the food additives category. They include substances like preservatives, flavoring agents, coloring agents etc. Some familiar examples include tartrazine, MSG or monosodium glutamate, sulphur dioxide as well as benzoates. When chemical reactions are involved with respect to food or food additives, they are not actually allergic reactions since here the body’s immune system is not involved.

Naturally occurring substances can occur in such high concentrations that they make food unsafe to eat. Another category of food intolerance involves people who lack certain enzymes which are required to digest certain foods, such as lactose intolerance. These conditions are less dangerous but still serious. Common symptoms include dry eyes, breathing difficulties or fatigue. Type tired, or “fatique” into a search engine to learn more details. Lactose intolerance is a familiar instance. Such situations can often be discovered through an allergy test. An alternative situation comes from a negative reaction to chemicals found in food. These substances may be of natural or artificial origin.

– Robert Harrison

Filed Under: Fitness
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