Maybe you’ve noticed that you have reactions after consuming certain foods, or maybe you have vague symptoms occurring regularly and are wondering if there is a connection to your diet.
Let’s get to the bottom of it, and start with some important definitions.
What is the difference between food allergies, food intolerances, and food sensitivities?
Food allergies occur when the body mounts an immune reaction to a food, causing systems ranging from mild to severe, usually occurring within one hour. Food allergies are a type one hypersensitivity reaction, causing mast cell activation and the release of large quantities of histamine. These reactions involve a particular component of the immune system - the IgE antibodies. Foods that cause an IgE reaction in the body usually need to be permanently removed from the diet. We commonly think of a peanut or shellfish reaction causing symptoms if these foods are ingested.
Food intolerances result from a problem with the proteins or enzymes necessary for digestion of that food. Commonly, we think of lactose intolerance. In this food intolerance, symptoms such as digestive upset and diarrhea can occur following dairy consumption because the lactase enzyme is not present for lactose breakdown. Sometimes a lack of digestive enzymes or insufficiency of stomach acid can cause a food intolerance symptoms.
Food sensitivities can occur when there has been a disruption in immune function. These sensitivities involve a different part of the immune system than true allergies, and are mediated by IgA and IgG antibodies. This is a type 2, 3, or 4 hypersensitivity reaction and occurs when the immune system sees a food as a threat (an antigen) and develops an antibody reaction towards the food. These reactions are typically delayed and difficult to pinpoint, spanning the body systems resulting in symptoms such as digestive issues, headaches, joint pain, fatigue, brain fog, skin problems, etc.
Why do food sensitivities occur?
In a food sensitivity, the immune system has become dysregulated and stops seeing foods as safe. This can occur if food proteins are entering the blood stream through increased gut permeability or leaky gut. In leaky gut, the gaps between the cells lining the digestive tract enlarge, allowing food proteins through the barrier. Seeing these proteins outside the digestive tract, the body mounts a reaction and then remembers it to do it again next time this occurs. This process triggers inflammation and can disrupt the gut microbiome, changing the diversity of our intestinal flora.
What causes leaky gut?
Pesticides and herbicides like glyphosate can affect gut permeability, the microbiome, and cause food reactions. This brings up the question of whether you are reacting to certain foods or to the chemicals used in farming those foods...
Antibiotic use can trigger the development of leaky gut by influencing gut flora.
A lack of fiber and probiotics can negatively impact gut health by starving the. microbiome of essential nutrients.
Heavy alcohol use can trigger increased gut permeability and inflammation, while also disrupting the balance of gut flora.
Stress hormones produced in response to emotional or physiological stressors can alter gut health and function.
Infections such as a bacterial overgrowth in the gut can produce harmful endotoxins that damage the intestinal barrier and affect gut permeability.
How can I know if I have food sensitivities?
Food sensitivity testing can be a guide to discovering whether your symptoms are food related, however there is a lot of cross reactivity occurring in this kind of testing, potentially influencing the results.
The elimination re-challenge diet is the best way to know what foods you are reacting to. This is done by removing suspect foods from the diet for at least 4 weeks, and then challenging them one by one and monitoring symptoms.
Although testing or changing your diet may uncover the foods that your immune system is reacting to, it will not uncover the root cause behind why your system became dysfunctional.
What else can I do to prevent food sensitivities?
Consume pre-biotic foods and fermented foods daily
Use antibiotics responsibly and only when necessary
Buy and eat organic foods
Limit alcohol, sugar, and processed foods
Handle stress effectively
Address gut infections
Sometimes avoiding the food triggers for a period of time will allow the for inflammation to decrease and symptoms to resolve. However, sometimes there are other pieces of the puzzle that need to be addressed alongside the food eliminations. After these interventions have been made, the gut is often able to heal and repair, and foods that were previously causing symptoms can sometimes be reincorporated back into the diet.
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