Written by: Leslie Parran, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Did you know that food can make you sick or crazy? Many people experience physical or mental symptoms related to food sensitivities. While you may hear practitioners refer to food as medicine, even typically ‘healthy’ foods can be ‘poison’ to an individual.
If you think that gut symptoms are the barometer to tell you whether a particular food makes you sick, think again. While the gut may be the root cause of food sensitivity, non-gut-related, also called extra-intestinal symptoms such as migraines, joint pain, muscle pain, anxiety, mood swings, brain fog, weight gain, weight loss, fertility issues, skin disorders, and sinus infections are common. Even mental disorders have been attributed to food sensitivities. “Bread madness” is a term coined many years ago, to describe individuals such as bakers who developed schizophrenia which resolved spontaneously with eliminating exposure to wheat flour. Developing research is providing new information about bipolar disease, ADHD, and other neurologic or psychiatric conditions related to wheat or other food sensitivity. Unfortunately, these diseases are often misdiagnosed, missing the root cause as food sensitivity.
So, what are the causes of food sensitivities? Inflammation in the gut is the number one trigger for the development of food sensitivities. This results from dysbiosis (imbalance of gut bacteria), pathogens (organisms such as bacteria, parasites, viruses, and fungi which cause disease), or toxins (biologically produced poisons) that can lead to a leaky gut, where the gut lining opens up to allow food particles that normally should not be able to pass through the gut wall and into the circulation. Your immune system responds to the invading food particles, recognizing them as foreign bodies, releasing chemicals called pro-inflammatory cytokines, and release of immune cells to fight off the invaders. Endotoxins from bacteria inside the gut may also leak into the circulation.
Chronic leaky gut can lead to autoimmune disease. If you have an autoimmune disease, have recovered from a gut infection, have been exposed to a toxin, you likely have one or more food sensitivities. Antibiotics can also wipe out the normal gut microbiome, leaving you susceptible to dysbiosis or other gut pathogens.
Antibodies (also known as immunoglobulins) help your body get rid of molecules that could potentially harm it and are very important for fighting disease and keeping us healthy. Antibodies are also what cause the symptoms (inflammation, runny nose, sneezing, etc.) of an allergic reaction. Contrary to popular belief, allergy testing won’t show food sensitivity. Here are the different types of food hypersensitivity reactions that you should know:
Type I Hypersensitivity: This is an acute hypersensitivity reaction that occurs when the immune system mistakenly treats a component in food as if it were a germ. This can lead to a wide range of allergic responses: hives, swelling, vomiting, diarrhea, itching, and life-threatening drops in blood pressure.
Food intolerances: This reaction is not produced by the immune system and is not a hypersensitivity or immune reaction, but rather an enzyme problem where an enzyme is not sufficient to digest a particular food. This reaction is typically found in the gut where there is gut dysbiosis (imbalanced bacterial composition of the gut). This can lead to an inability to process or digest certain foods. For example, someone who is lactose intolerant doesn’t have adequate amounts of the digestive enzymes needed to break down lactose, a sugar present in dairy products. The gut subsequently can become leaky, meaning that the foods leak through the lining of the wall of the gut, which can then potentially lead to another food reaction such as acquired hypersensitivity reactions either to the food you are intolerant to or whatever food the immune tissue ultimately reacts to.
Type 2 Hypersensitivity: This is a delayed hypersensitivity reaction to food and is thought to be a chronic, low-level allergic reaction. It is a combination of the above two terms, allergy, and intolerance. It is a spectrum that involves both the allergic component, but also the intolerant component.
The most common foods thought to cause hypersensitivity are wheat, dairy, and corn. Symptoms are usually delayed hours to days and may not occur after every exposure to the allergen. Immunoglobulins are also released for Type 2 sensitivity, but these are usually IgG or IgA. Immunoglobulin G (IgG) or IgG-mediated food intolerance is believed to be caused by increased gut permeability, which permits food substances to gain access to the circulation and trigger food-specific IgG production. This is the most common antibody. It's in blood and other body fluids and protects against bacterial and viral infections.
Immunoglobulin A (IgA) is found in the linings of the respiratory tract and digestive system, as well as in saliva (spit), tears, and breast milk. IgA reacts with food antigens to form an immune complex, but unlike IgG and IgE, does not cause inflammation. When IgA fails to maintain adequate anti-inflammatory control, mucosal damage can occur. IgA reactions to specific foods may be indicative of increased exposure caused by damage to the intestinal mucosa.
So, how do you find out if you identify if your symptoms may be related to food allergies or sensitivities? While you can try either dietary changes or even in-home lab testing on your own if you suspect a certain food is causing your symptoms, often food sensitivities may not be limited to just one dietary change. Diet changes, alone, may not correct other hidden imbalances in your body. Also, true IgE allergies are best identified and addressed with an allergist or licensed practitioner. Therefore, a good practice for finding out if your symptoms are caused by food is to find an experienced provider or functional practitioner. Here are some ways they may test for and assess food-related issues.
Elimination Diet: An elimination diet removes certain foods or groups of foods to help you determine which foods may be contributing to your symptoms. Elimination diets currently are the gold standard for identifying food intolerances, sensitivities, and allergies through diet. There is a wide variability of how to conduct an elimination diet. One example is The Institute for Functional Medicine’s (IFM) Elimination Diet, which is a short-term, three-week program that requires the patient to remove specific foods and categories of foods from their diet for 21 days. After that period, a careful reintroduction plan helps you identify the foods that may trigger your symptoms. It is often important to have a functional practitioner or health coach assist with these diets. This is especially important when there are IgE-mediated food allergies, where reintroduction should only occur in the presence of trained healthcare professionals.
Another example of an elimination diet is the Autoimmune Paleo Diet (AIP) which is based on the paleo diet. It includes lean proteins, vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, and foods rich in vitamins and other nutrients. Added sugar or other additives that can trigger an autoimmune response are avoided.
Food Allergy Testing: Food allergy testing is Testing IgE sensitivity or true Type 1 allergies. Most often performed by allergists, allergy testing identifies a particular immune response, called Immunoglobulin E (IgE) or Type I hypersensitivity. Traditional providers often consider testing for food allergy and miss considering other types of food-related issues.
Food Sensitivity Testing:
Testing IgG and IgA: This is only useful if you are having symptoms of sensitivity and is usually indicative of inflammation and sensitivity but not necessarily hypersensitivity. Research shows that there is a high rate of false positives when using these antibodies to diagnose food sensitivity. Unfortunately, there are limitations with IgG testing that may result in the following risks:
You continue to eat foods that could be the source of your symptoms
You stop eating foods that are healthy for you, limiting your diet and potentially putting you at risk for nutrient deficiencies.
You fail to diagnose the true problem.
There are many tests for testing IgG and IgA which may use blood, dried blood spot, or even saliva to test for the presence of these immunoglobulins. Tests may be specific to a certain category of food, measure a variable range of specific foods, and or chemicals put in food such as meat glue, food coloring, or gums.
Mediator Release Testing: Mediator release testing is testing for the release of chemicals such as histamine, prostaglandins, serotonin, cytokines, and many other chemicals that may be involved in an inflammatory response related to a specific food antigen which indicates sensitivity. These mediators result in the particular food sensitivity symptoms you may experience. This type of test has increased reliability compared to IgA/IgG-only tests as it measures volume changes in all circulating white cells after an antigen challenge.
DNA Testing: Genetic DNA testing can show genetic susceptibility to food allergies or sensitivities. There are at-home testing kits available. However, the reliability and accuracy of this testing need to be further established with larger populations. While the results of DNA testing may serve as a guide to what factors to consider to avoid developing food reactions, it is not a predictive test. Factors such as the environment, epigenetics, gut microbiome, influence also influence the development of food allergy and sensitivity.
Foods are making people sick and crazy and this is a growing problem with eating highly inflammatory diets such as a Standard American Diet (SAD). It makes sense to make sure if you have chronic symptoms, that they are not related to a food problem. A food problem can be corrected. Unfortunately, food problems are often left unidentified, and therefore, not correcting them can become a bigger health problem. Chronic sensitivity to a particular food or foods and repeated exposure, usually over many years, can lead to autoimmune disease or even some mental or neurological disorders.
While allergy testing is very reliable for identifying food allergies, testing for other forms of food sensitivity or intolerance is not as reliable. This is why it is important to work with a functional practitioner to help uncover factors that may be involved in inflammation. A skilled practitioner uses functional lab tests to identify not only possible food sensitivities but provide additional testing for identifying inflammation, the presence of pathogens or toxins. Functional practitioners can also assist with an elimination diet to identify what foods you may be sensitive to as well as help you rebalance your gut microbiome to address dysbiosis, heal leaky gut, and rebalance your metabolism so that your body works the way it's supposed to.
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Leslie Parran, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine Leslie Parran is a leader in natural holistic healing from inflammation and pain. As a nurse for 40 years with advanced nursing certifications, Leslie helped patients with chronic diseases and pain. Now as a Board-Certified Functional Wellness Coach and Functional Diagnostic Nutrition Practitioner with several other holistic and functional practitioner certifications, she helps active and motivated people with chronic inflammation and pain move from pain to peace so that they feel better, move better, and live better. Leslie is the Owner and Champion Peacemaker of Peace x Piece Wellness Coaching. As a functional practitioner, she uses in-home lab testing to uncover hidden metabolic healing opportunities such as food sensitivities, hormonal imbalances, gut pathogens, and toxins that can sometimes, unknowingly, lead to inflammation, pain, and chronic health conditions. As a health coach, she uses positive psychology and personalized holistic healing protocols including diet, rest, exercise, stress management, and supplementation to help her clients make their bodies work the way they are supposed to and achieve their wellness goals.
