Food Intolerance Tests
Food is something that you need to consume every day. What you eat really has a big impact on how healthy you are. Prefer a diet that is filled with healthy foods, and your body gets the micronutrients and macronutrients it needs to remain healthy. On the other hand, opt for unhealthy foods, and you may find yourself becoming obese and developing certain diseases, like heart problems and diabetes.
Sometimes, the body has an adverse reaction to certain foods. Food intolerance can quickly make you feel ill and cause other problems to develop, as well. Up to 20% of the population may be affected by food intolerances. Identifying this issue and recognizing the specific foods that are causing these problems can sometimes pose a serious challenge.
We consider how food intolerance tests can be useful and why you should consider undergoing this simple yet exceptionally valuable test.
What Is A Food Intolerance Test?
A food intolerance test is a relatively simple procedure that helps a person identify foods that they are experiencing adverse reactions to. The condition is also called non-IgE mediated food hypersensitivity. In some cases, the procedure is called a non-allergic food hypersensitivity test. It looks for foods that the immune system responds to in a negative way, without causing a full allergic reaction to develop.
There are several foods that are commonly found to cause intolerance in the human body. These tests usually help to determine which of these foods are causing such reactions to occur in your own body. This helps you identify foods that you might want to limit in your daily diet. By reducing your intake of foods you are intolerant to, you may be able to reduce the symptoms you experience.
How Do You Know If You Have A Food Intolerance?
Before you may consider undergoing food intolerance tests, you first want to recognize that you have this problem. There are a few symptoms that have been linked to these reactions that your body may have in the presence of certain foods.
The symptoms of a food intolerance take somewhat longer to develop compared to a food allergy. Still, take note of these symptoms a while after you have eaten something:
· A runny nose
· Bloating
· Headaches
· The headaches sometimes escalate to migraines
· Stomach ache and abdominal pain
· Your bowel may feel irritated
· You may experience hives
· Some people tend to cough
Many people also explain that they feel “under the weather” – simply ill and not like they should – when they experience this type of reaction to food.
Why Would You Want A Food Intolerance Test?
Even though food intolerance is not as serious as an allergic reaction you experience when you eat certain foods, this particular effect can still be unpleasant and even potentially harmful to your body.
It is important to note here that a food intolerance will not show up when you undergo a test for food-related allergies.
This can be a concern. You might find that when you eat or drink dairy products, you feel unwell. You think you have an allergy to these foods; thus, you decide to undergo a food allergy test. The test shows that you are not allergic to dairy, so you consider yourself safe with this food. Yet, when you continue to consume these products, you do not feel well after you had a meal.
This is where a food intolerance can become useful. When food is making you feel unwell, it may be due to an intolerance instead of an allergy. Food intolerance tests can help you determine if this might be the case. In such a scenario, avoiding or at least limiting your exposure to these foods can be helpful.
The Benefits Of A Food Intolerance Test
The major benefit of a food intolerance test is the fact that you have the ability to determine what may be causing you to feel ill after you had a meal. Even though there are several foods that are considered common in terms of food intolerances, it can still be difficult to determine what, in particular, you are experiencing an adverse reaction to.
The use of a food intolerance test helps you get a more accurate view of the foods that are causing you to feel this way after you ate. The test will usually be able to provide an overview of chemical structures too – which is important, since food intolerances are often considered difficult to diagnose, detect, and effectively manage.
How The FIT Test Works
Signs of food intolerance and allergy are often very similar. This does make the process of detecting these intolerances more difficult. Still, there are certain tests that can help shed more light on the topic.
A professional healthcare provider will usually be able to conduct a food intolerance test to help determine if it is an intolerance you experience when you eat certain foods.
The procedure depends on what a healthcare provider recommends. This may include a blood test. In some cases, a skin test may be ordered instead. A combination of the two tests is sometimes also used.
Food Intolerance Tests At Medicine Center Pharmacy
Food intolerances can be exceptionally unpleasant, making you feel sick after you ate some foods. This becomes even worse of a problem when your favorite foods are causing these intolerance flare-ups to occur. Prevention is better than treatment in terms of allergies and an intolerance to certain foods, which is why you should consider getting yourself tested.
Medicine Center Pharmacy is equipped with the right testing kits to help you out. Visit one of our locations to gain access to our highly accurate food intolerance tests. The procedure is quick and easy, and there are no invasive procedures involved. We will help you determine what foods are causing you to feel ill and assist in the process of identifying your food intolerances.
Food sensitivities affect more than 100 million people worldwide and can cause a range of illness and symptoms, including skin rashes and chronic intestinal diseases.
The FIT Test is a patented, multi-pathway delayed food sensitivity test using new technology that measures both IgG and Immune Complexes, the most common food-related pathways in the body.
The FIT Test measures sensitivities to up to 132 different foods and additives spanning all major food groups.
Food elimination based on the FIT Test results reduces symptoms a patient is experiencing.
References
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6074204/
https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/conditionsandtreatments/food-allergy-and-intolerance