Let’s talk about the difference.
BTW, if you’re looking for MRT testing for food sensitivities – check out my page HERE. Your IBS, chronic pain, skin issues, headaches, and fatigue can be a thing of the past with a personalized anti-inflammatory eating pattern.
I know these terms are often used interchangeably, but they actually refer to three distinct conditions.
And I hope you leave this article understanding the differences between them, how to identify them, and when it might be a good idea to address them with a professional.
Psst, disclaimer: I am not a doctor and this is not medical advice. This is my professional opinion as a registered dietitian but I am not YOUR dietitian. If you are worried, you should seek medical guidance.
Now let’s dive in.
Food Allergies
I’ll start with allergies because…well most people know what these are!
Food allergies are immune system responses to a specific food or food chemical/compound.
Symptoms of a food allergy can range from mild to severe and can include hives, swelling, difficulty breathing, and even anaphylaxis, a life-threatening reaction. Typically, the symptoms come on REAL fast, often within minutes or up to two hours after ingestion. In rare cases, the reaction can be delayed and occur several hours later but it really isn’t common.
As of 2021, food allergies affected around 4% of adults and 6% of children and now might be as high as 8% in children and 11% of adults 1,2. Approximately 50% of children will grow out of their food allergies by the time they are 5 but many will take longer. And for some, it will be a lifelong challenge.
And while food allergies are no joke because they can be legit life threatening, I’ll offer a light hearted explanation of the way it works because the science is super cool, but I’m not writing a super scientific article here and don’t want you to leave because I got too nerdy….
So think of your immune system as the bouncer at a nightclub, and it’s super strict about who gets in. When you eat something you’re allergic to, it’s like your immune system catches a glimpse of a troublemaker trying to sneak in. So, it sounds the alarm and unleashes the bouncer army to kick out the intruder. Except, in this case, the troublemaker is just a harmless piece of peanut butter toast or a shrimp cocktail, and the bouncer army is causing chaos in your body. Not cool, immune system. Not cool.
Diagnosis: with skin prick test at the allergist’s office.
Treatment: avoidance, symptoms management, and Oral Immune Therapy (OIT) one under doctor’s supervision.
Food Intolerances
Food intolerances, on the other hand, do not involve the immune system.
Instead, they occur when the body is unable to properly digest a certain food or compound.
Intolerances can be caused by a variety of factors, including lactose intolerance (a sugar), gluten intolerance (a protein), and sensitivity to food chemicals like caffeine or histamine.
Most people have heard of lactose intolerance, yeah? It’s actually pretty common and what this really means is, the person’s body doesn’t have enough, adequate, or any “lactase” (the enzyme to break down lactose…the sugar). So it’s a more functional reaction vs immunological reaction like allergies are.
Symptoms of food intolerances can have a delayed onset and occur hours later or the next day, but most come on fairly quickly. Maybe even right after you eat a meal. Symptoms are not life threatening and can include bloating, gas, diarrhea, nausea, and stomach pain.
And hey, just because symptoms are not life threatening, it does NOT mean things can’t escalate quickly! Your body whispers to you… it will quietly tell you ‘hey, I don’t want this’ but if you don’t listen… before you know it, you’re sprinting to the bathroom faster than Golden Tempo in the Kentucky Derby!
Just keep in mind, we MUST listen up sometimes. Even if we really love that cheese.
Food intolerances are way more common than food allergies, affecting up to 20% of the population.
Diagnosis: Sometimes diagnosed with a breath test. You can ask you GI doctor about this.
Treatment: digestive enzymes can help; digestive support (glutamine, omega-3, etc), healing leaky-gut (aka: intestinal hyperpermeability).
Food Sensitivities
On to food sensitivities. These are a bit more complex.
They involve a non-allergic immune response to a food, or antigen, or compound, or ingredient…whatever you want to call it.
Food sensitivities are actually not well understood and can be difficult to diagnose, but they are believed to affect a significant portion of the population.
Symptoms: Part of the challenge with food sensitivities is their onset of symptoms. They aren’t life threatening but can wreak havoc on a person’s system and body for a long time. They can appear several hours or up to 72 hours (3 days!) after consuming the trigger food. Also, symptoms can be SUPER diverse and sometimes get lumped into… well…just LIFE! Many people hear “inflammation” or “IBS” when really their food is making them sick and no one knows how to identify it.
Symptoms can be things like: diarrhea, constipation, GERD, fatigue, brain fog, headaches, joint pain, rashes, eczema, and other digestive issues. Plus chronic inflammation in general.
Diagnosis: Because food sensitivities can be difficult to diagnose and are commonly misunderstood… many practitioners or providers turn their heads. And you know, I don’t blame them. There are so many BS “food sensitivity” tests being marketed these days!
I get MASSIVE heartburn when a client comes to me and says they tried those over the counter tests where you give a finger prick, let it sit in your car for 7 days before putting it in the mailbox. Only to be offered insight into IgG reactions – which really only indicate what foods we have been eating! NOT that they cause inflammation.
I truly don’t know how companies get away with selling that crap.
Sorry. Not sorry.
Identifying food sensitivities truly takes a comprehensive evaluation of symptoms, along with an elimination diet and/or the MRT test. This is the only test I trust (and use) in my practice. It actually tests the mediators your blood cells are pumping out (true inflammation). You can learn way more about this in a blog post I wrote a while ago (check it out here).
Treatment: the GOLD STANDARD for treating food sensitivities is an elimination diet. There are many of them out there from the low FODMAP, AIP, Elemental, and more. I’ve been a Registered Dietitian since 2014 and taken hundreds (yes hundreds) of people through an elimination diet (many of them children), and never have I ever gotten such fast results until I started using the MRT test in 2022.
This tool acts as a quantum leap towards results.
Any other elimination diet is like walking into a room blindfolded, full of 100 pianists all playing a different song… and your mission is to find the one who is playing the wrong note!
Narrowing it down leads to much quicker results. Therefore more sustainable because healing the gut, and returning to “normal” life is within months and not years.
I’ll wrap it up there. I hope this helps clear up some answers about food sensitivities and other reactions.
Do you suffer from things that you can’t identify? Not allergies or intolerances but your intuition is telling you something isn’t right?
Or do you know someone like that?
Is your food making you sick? We can easily find out!
With a single blood test, and a 2 week phase 1, we can determine what foods are ACTUALLY leading to inflammation and the probable causes of many ailments.
- IBS – diarrhea or constipation
- Migraines
- Fibromyalgia
- Autoimmune disease
- Reflux
- Eczema
- Congestion
- Brain fog
- Depression/anxiety
- Behavior issues: anger, aggression, hyperactivity, attention difficulty
- Sleep problems
- Fatigue
THIS is inflammation. And likely from food sensitivities.
Between the individualized MRT test, 2 week phase 1, and some professional nutrition guidance, you be feeling better in a matter of weeks. Some people even see results in days! And get to heal with food!
If you’re ready to get your life back. This is the fastest path there. And I invite you to book a free consult with me to see food sensitivities may be the culprit, if my approach is what you’re looking for, and if we are a good fit.
Here is that booking link > BOOK TODAY
