Is Your Diet Hurting Your Health?

Do you ever wonder if the foods you are eating are doing you harm? It is estimated that 15% of the population suffers from some form of food sensitivity. These food intolerances are now being recognized as playing a significant role in many chronic and acute diseases.

Food allergies are usually clear.  If you have ever come into contact with an allergy, you will remember.  Picture a peanut or shellfish allergy; these can result in an anaphylactic reaction with symptoms such as shortness of breath, throat closure, hives and palpitations among others. A food allergy is an immune reaction to even small doses of a particular food.  The body creates antibodies, which releases histamines when they come into contact with the foods they were created to protect against.

Food sensitivities or intolerances are much more common than food allergies.   They can result from a deficiency in the appropriate digestive enzymes needed to digest a particular food substance.  The problem usually begins in the stomach.  Symptoms of food intolerance usually take longer to appear than food allergies, and require larger portions to produce a reaction.  A common example is lactose intolerance which is a result of the body not producing enough lactase to break down the lactose in milk.  One common food intolerance is salicylates. Salicylates are chemicals that can be found in apples, citrus fruits, strawberries, tomatoes and wine.  Salicylate sensitivity causes many symptoms the most common of which are: hives, stomach pain, head aches and mouth ulcers. It has even been linked to ADD and ADHD.  Food intolerances typically manifest in one of four places:  the skin, the intestines, the respiratory passages, and the brain.

How to Track Down Your Hidden Food Sensitivities?