Food Allergies and Intolerances
Living with a food allergy can be challenging, so it’s essential to learn how to avoid triggers and manage allergy symptoms.
Below, I will cover the following:
- General information on food allergies, including diet, health, and nutrition.
- Advice on lactose intolerance, gluten-free diets, non-dairy foods with calcium, and alternative sources of proteins. Tips for taking probiotics and prebiotics.
Common Food Allergies
With a food allergy, the body’s immune system sees a particular product in food as harmful and creates antibodies to fight the perceived threat. Any type of food can trigger an allergy; however, certain foods are responsible for most allergic reactions.
The top eight food allergy triggers are milk, peanuts, tree nuts, wheat, eggs, shellfish, soy, and fish. A mild allergic reaction can cause itchy eyes, skin rash, sneezing, diarrhea, and/or stomach cramps. More severe symptoms include difficulty breathing, dizziness, swelling of the tongue or face, nausea, hives, and vomiting. Symptoms of food allergies may occur suddenly or develop over several hours.
Most food allergies develop in childhood. Children with milk, eggs, and wheat allergies grow out of their sensitivity. On the other hand, Peanut allergies are usually a dangerous, lifelong condition. Children and adults can develop allergies to less common foods, including meat, seeds, gelatin, fruits, or spices.
Food Intolerances
Food intolerances occur when certain enzymes are absent or when the body reacts to a chemical. Lacking the enzyme used for breaking down sugar, for instance, often results in lactose intolerance.
Unlike allergies, intolerances do not involve the immune system, and even though they are uncomfortable, they are not life-threatening. They are, however, often mistaken for allergies. Unfortunately, this causes people to avoid specific foods without the proper guidance. This self-diagnosing could result in health complications such as nutrient deficiency.
Living With Food Allergies
Of course, the most effective treatment for food allergies is to avoid the food that causes problems. Otherwise, people with food allergies need to read ingredient labels carefully and are careful of cross-reactions between closely related foods. It is a challenge when cooking in families with allergies, but the effort is well worth the feeling of well-being.
Ordering in or eating out can be a challenge because there could be triggers hidden in foods. Milk and dairy, for example, can be hidden in foods such as hot dogs, canned tuna, desserts containing caramel coloring, and some gum.
Self-Diagnosing is not a good idea.
As I mentioned earlier, avoiding a certain to a specific group of foods without proper medical guidance could lead to nutrient deficiencies.
Nausea, bloating, vomiting, itchiness, hives, rash, and other concerning reactions after eating are real symptoms for many adults and kids. However, understanding and determining what is going on may require a more serious investigation. Unfortunately, with the internet and social media, it has become too easy to find quick advice relating to symptoms and foods, leading people to make unhealthy and sometimes dangerous choices. The two terms that are often misused in self-diagnosing the root cause of your illness or symptoms are food intolerance and food allergy.
Food intolerance affects the digestive system and often occurs due to deficiencies of certain enzymes. Lactose intolerance, for example, results when a person lacks the enzyme for breaking down the sugar found in milk. The symptoms of lactose intolerance are intestinal gas, abdominal pain, and in some cases, diarrhea. However, too many misdiagnose their situation, calling this a food allergy. In the end, they avoid milk products altogether, not knowing that they can use lactose-free milk or can, in some cases, tolerate small amounts of milk.
Food intolerance can also happen when the body reacts to a chemical. Some people may be sensitive to certain food additives like nitrates or sulfites or chemicals naturally occurring in foods. Vegetables from the nightshade group — tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant — contain alkaloids that can lead to gut inflammation. In these cases, cooking the food properly or eating smaller quantities can help or even eliminate the issue.
Food allergies are different from food intolerance in that with a food allergy, a person’s immune system is fully involved. Food allergens are proteins that are attacked by the person’s immune system, and it is this reaction leads to symptoms from hives and itching to more severe reactions such as anaphylactic shock. Anaphylactic shock is considered a life-threatening situation. Unlike food intolerance, absorbing or consuming a small amount of an allergenic protein can be a life-threatening situation for the most sensitive.
There are over 160 known food allergens, but a small group accounts for the most significant percentage of food allergy reactions. There are eight food proteins in this group:
Dairy, eggs, fish, peanuts, crustacean, shellfish, soy, tree nuts, and wheat
Children are more prone to have food allergies. Some of these allergies can fade with time, while others may stay with the person their whole life. Most allergies are diagnosed in young children, but some allergies show up later in life. So, an adult can become allergic to a food protein that they had been able to eat as a kid.
Avoiding food allergens is the key. This is done by understanding what foods contain allergen proteins and being aware of the potential for cross-contact exposure where food allergen proteins inadvertently get onto foods that do not contain the allergen.
Avoiding dairy products based upon a self-diagnosis that you are allergic to milk when it is just an intolerance could lead to the risk for calcium deficiencies, and calcium is a crucial nutrient in bone growth and repair.
In some cases, a one-time reaction after eating can lead to someone avoiding food for the rest of their life, although they don’t need to. In other cases, people too frequently blame specific food groups for ongoing symptoms that have nothing to do with that food. So self-diagnosing is a big no-no in my book.
Lactose Intolerance
Lactose intolerance is the inability to break down and absorb lactose components, the sugar that occurs naturally in dairy products.
Nutrition Information
Lactose requires lactase, an enzyme found in the intestine, to break it into smaller, more easily digested sugars. If this enzyme is absent or the body does not produce enough, lactose cannot be fully broken down and is often fermented by the good bacteria in our colons. If this results in symptoms such as nausea, cramping, bloating, abdominal pain, and gas, it is described as lactose intolerance.
Symptoms can occur 15 minutes to several hours after eating lactose-containing foods. The severity of symptoms will vary from person to person based on how much lactose was consumed with other foods. It is essential to see a doctor, nutritionist, or dietician before eliminating milk and dairy products from the diet to identify the cause of the symptoms. Lactose intolerance may produce similar symptoms to other digestive conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome, inflammatory bowel disease, celiac disease, or small bowel bacterial overgrowth. An official diagnosis that includes a detailed family and medical history, physical exam, and testing is the only way to know. Generally, diagnoses are based on symptoms, and then milk and dairy foods are eliminated with a reintroduction to see if symptoms return.
It is important to note that lactose intolerance and a milk allergy are not the same. Lactose intolerance occurs because of the body’s inability to digest lactose, the naturally occurring sugar in milk. A milk allergy is the body’s immune response to milk protein. People with a milk allergy must avoid all milk products to avoid a reaction, whereas a person with lactose intolerance can still consume milk and dairy products, though in limited amounts.
Current research indicates that most individuals with lactose intolerance can still handle the amount of lactose found in one cup of milk (about 12 grams) with minor to no symptoms. Smaller amounts (less than 6 grams per serving) are unlikely to result in symptoms.
Ways to Minimize Symptoms
Try to opt for lactose-free products, which provide the same nutrients as dairy foods but without lactose.
Sip it: introduce dairy slowly; start with a ¼ cup of milk and gradually increase.
Stir it: mix milk with food; don’t consume milk and other dairy foods on their own; always combine with other foods.
Slice/shred it: choose aged cheeses; add a slice to sandwiches or shred on veggies.
Spoon it: try Greek yogurt.
You may want to consider the following products on your next shopping trip: yogurt, kefir, and buttermilk with “live and active” cultures, which help digest lactose.
Choose cheeses naturally lower in lactose, like Swiss, Colby, Parmesan, and cheddar. They lose most of their lactose through processing and aging.
Take lactase enzyme capsules or drops (e.g., Lactaid®, Dairy-Ease®) at the beginning of your meal to aid the digestion of lactose-containing foods.
Try plant-based beverages, such as soy, almond, or rice, fortified with calcium and vitamin D.
Always read the ingredient list on food labels. Look for terms such as milk solids, cream, or whey which can indicate the presence of lactose. While the label may state that it “contains milk,” ingredients such as casein, lactalbumin, lactate, and lactic acid come from milk but do not contain lactose.
When your goal is to reintroduce milk into your diet
Start with 1/4 cup with supper and gradually include a 1/4 cup at breakfast and lunch over the next 3 weeks.
Affecting Different Age Groups
As we age, our bodies gradually produce less lactase, resulting in some degree of lactose malabsorption or, when symptoms occur, lactose intolerance. African Americans, Latinx, Asians, and Native Americans are more likely to be lactose intolerant. Milk and dairy foods are important sources of calcium, protein, riboflavin, vitamins A and D, magnesium, potassium, and other nutrients essential for good bone health. Therefore, it is essential to realize that you do not have to give up these foods, even lactose intolerance. The key is to consume them to your tolerance level; it is what and how much.
Keep your gut healthy and happy!
While we may think of our digestive system as simply breaking down the foods we eat and then getting rid of the waste, it is more complicated than that. It plays a vital role in our overall health. The gastrointestinal tract (GI tract for short) has many bacteria. These bacteria help the GI tract to do its job as a barrier that allows nutrients to be absorbed while keeping toxins and disease-causing microorganisms from entering the body. About 70 percent of the body’s immune function is in the GI tract.
Prebiotics and Probiotics are essential functional components of foods that help keep our digestive system running smoothly!
These are considered functional elements that provide health benefits above and beyond basic nutrition. Prebiotics are the non-digestible fiber that may stimulate the growth and activity of the “good” bacteria found in the intestines. On the other hand, probiotics are “live” microorganisms that result in many health benefits when consumed in adequate amounts.
When it comes to probiotics, the most familiar are Lactobacilli and Bifidobacteria, found mainly in cultured dairy products such as yogurt and kefir. Streptococcus thermophilus and Saccharomyces are other strains of bacteria commonly found in fermented foods like tempeh, miso, kimchi, and sauerkraut. There has to be enough of the bacteria to be beneficial, and they have to be active or live. These probiotics help maintain the balance of “good” bacteria in the GI tract, allowing it to do its job.
Probiotics are also available in supplement forms such as powders, creams, capsules, and suppositories. Anyone can consume food sources of probiotics, but if you are considering a supplement, check with me or your doctor first and do your research before selecting a supplement. One of the benefits of probiotics is in the treatment of diarrhea. In these cases, the duration of symptoms is shortened. Probiotics aid in the treatment of atopic eczema. Other benefits being researched include a reduction in the symptoms of lactose intolerance, decreased risk of colorectal cancer, management of irritable bowel syndrome, and prevention of specific allergies.
Since probiotics are “living” organisms, they must have a source of nourishment, whereas prebiotics enters the picture. Prebiotics are natural, non-digestible carbohydrates in food such as oligosaccharides, inulin, and polydextrose that promote the growth of the ordinary, healthy bacteria already in our gut. Good food sources of prebiotics include bananas, berries, legumes, garlic, onions, asparagus, artichokes, leeks, nuts, seeds, and whole wheat. Prebiotics are not as well known for maintaining gut health, but current research points to the fact they may improve calcium and magnesium absorption, increase resistance to infection and reduce the risk for other intestinal problems.
So how can you reap the benefits of probiotics and prebiotics? First, when grocery shopping, be sure to look for yogurt that contains “live active cultures,” not “made with active cultures.” Be willing to try new foods such as kimchi (fermented vegetables), kefir, or miso (fermented soybean paste). Since pre and probiotics work together, plan your meals to include combinations of foods, such as topping yogurt with bananas or stir-frying asparagus with tempeh.
I am a big fan of using kimchi, a spicy condiment made with fermented vegetables and Asian seasonings. You can mix it into eggs, and rice, stir it into soups or stews, mix it with pasta, or use it as a topping on hamburgers. Sauerkraut is another favorite of mine. It really helps keep our tummies happy and healthy.
Celiac Disease Versus Gluten Sensitivity
Celiac disease is an autoimmune disorder in which gluten causes the immune system to trigger an attack on the intestines. Blood testing will reveal antibodies to gluten, and an intestine biopsy will show damage. Celiac disease is not a food allergy. Gluten-free diets are recommended for those with Celiac disease and often those experiencing a gluten sensitivity.
Non-celiac gluten sensitivity (NCGS) may cause similar symptoms, but there are no gluten antibodies in the blood or damage to the intestine as seen in celiac disease. Many people think that gluten sensitivity is a milder form of celiac disease, but these are two different conditions with different immune responses exhibited in the body.