{"id":2911,"date":"2015-02-20T05:12:52","date_gmt":"2015-02-20T05:12:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pantryparatus.com\/wpmigration\/?p=2911"},"modified":"2015-04-29T18:45:27","modified_gmt":"2015-04-29T18:45:27","slug":"food-allergy-vs-food-intolerance-definitions-the-practical-realities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pantryparatus.com\/articles\/food-allergy-vs-food-intolerance-definitions-the-practical-realities\/","title":{"rendered":"Food Allergy vs. Food Intolerance Definitions & the Practical Realities"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u00a0I felt the need for legitimacy.\u00a0 The doctor said not to bother.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know if it is an allergy or sensitivity,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n

\u201cDoes it matter?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, well\u2026maybe.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLook, it poisons your son.\u00a0 It is a severe reaction no matter what you choose to call it.\u00a0 False positive rates are high, and learning that it is or isn\u2019t an allergy doesn\u2019t minimize his physical reaction or your need to avoid it\u2026.does it?\u201d\u00a0 The doctor took a visible pause and continued, \u201cIf it were me, I\u2019d skip the allergy test on him.\u00a0 You would have to poison him with the corn to determine that corn is a poison\u2026to learn what you already know.\u201d<\/p>\n

Well, when he put it that way, I decided that it was okay not to learn\u2014in our situation\u2014the difference between food allergy and food sensitivity or intolerance.\u00a0 We were not dealing with a physical reaction (such as anaphylactic shock , respiratory problems, or rashes, etc) but instead with a neurological one.\u00a0 Fast forward to a new town, new doctor one year later:<\/p>\n

\u201cI wouldn\u2019t do the allergy test,\u201d the new pediatrician said.<\/p>\n

\u201cReally? Why not?\u201d I felt compelled to ask, and I heard the same answer, nearly verbatim, but this one added, \u201cIf you know it\u2019s corn avoid corn.\u00a0 It\u2019s that simple.\u201d<\/p>\n

That simple, eh?\u00a0 Snort.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

*********<\/p>\n

I am not implying that either of these pediatricians is right or wrong; simply that in my anecdotal experience there are doctors out there that see the difference between allergy and sensitivity in pragmatic terms. By either name, the food makes you sick.\u00a0 Avoid it.<\/em><\/p>\n

I cannot say that I entirely agree.\u00a0 First, a true allergy can become a medical emergency.<\/strong>\u00a0 You need to know and you need to be prepared for that scenario.\u00a0 Secondly, we often only get bits and pieces of nutritional science through food blogs, margarine commercials or the latest medical television show: food science is highly prone to fads<\/strong>.\u00a0 I thought I was gluten-intolerant for years but misdiagnosed myself.\u00a0 Gluten had nothing to do with it<\/a>\u2014dead flour did.\u00a0 I now attribute home-milled flour<\/a> for giving me a vibrant and active lifestyle.\u00a0 According to WebMD<\/a>, 15% of Americans believe they have a food allergy, while only 3-4% actually do.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0Finally, while the practical reality is that you are sick regardless of the proper term \u201callergy vs. intolerance,\u201d the term connotes different physiological reactions that require different interventions, some that go beyond \u201cjust avoid it.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Food<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Definitions: Let\u2019s make sure we\u2019re talking about the same thing<\/strong><\/h3>\n

I\u2019m not a licensed nutritionist.\u00a0 I\u2019m a concerned mother and a professional that has spoken to countless other concerned parents who are grasping at the hope of food solutions to innumerable physical, emotional, and psychological problems within their families.\u00a0 Don\u2019t just believe everything I say.\u00a0 You can use this as a jumping off place for your own research.\u00a0 I have a Masters of Science in Psychology and I can \u201cspeak geek\u201d and comb the prevalent literature\u2014that\u2019s really all I have to offer you\u2014no medical opinions or advice here.\u00a0 I do believe we need to start with the scientific community\u2019s definitions.\u00a0 If we are not speaking about the same things, misinformation shall prevail. <\/strong>\u00a0It is important to understand that medical professionals and scientists specializing in the field of allergies had a full two year debate about the definitions themselves.\u00a0 There are no easy answers.<\/p>\n

\u00a0NOTE:<\/strong> \u00a0Celiac Disease is considered wholly different from non-Celiac Disease allergies.\u00a0 Much of the following information is in no way related to Celiac Disease since Allergy Experts define and treat it differently.<\/p>\n

\"Allergy<\/p>\n

The World Allergy Organization defines \u201callergy\u201d as a hypersensitivity reaction initiated by specific immunologic mechanisms (Fiocchi, 2010).\u00a0 Basically, a true allergy has both clinically defined symptoms (such as swelling, skin conditions, respiratory conditions, or digestive maladies), but it will also have a clear and quantifiable spike in immuniglobin (antibodies) present in your blood.\u00a0 Food intolerance and hypersensitivity (by itself) are physical reactions to food that do not sound your Immune System Alert or put your blood cells in full battle gear. \u00a0\u00a0The pain and physiological symptomology is very real\u2014even dangerous\u2014in either case.\u00a0 One is not more legitimate than the other.<\/strong>\u00a0 They are, however, different.<\/p>\n