Food Intolerance

How To Know If It’s A Food Intolerance or Allergy

Food intolerances and allergies are not the same things.

Food intolerance is the inability to digest certain foods and experiencing a negative physical reaction from them. Intolerances can cause abdominal pain and bloating, usually happening within several hours of eating the offending food.

A true food allergy can cause a range of health problems that go beyond abdominal pain and bloating.

There has been a rise in the number of people who believe they have a food intolerance, but there’s no real clue to find out the real number affected. Most people believe they have a food intolerance when the symptoms are actually related to something else entirely.

Signs Of Food Intolerance

• No allergic reaction involving the immune system and isn’t life-threatening
• Symptoms appear slowly, usually hours after the offending food is consumed
• Causes symptoms only when a certain amount of food is consumed
• Maybe the result of various kinds of foods

Signs Of Food Allergies

• Immune system sparks a reaction, protecting it from an infection; the system thinks the protein in food is dangerous
• Can cause allergy symptoms such as wheezing, watery eyes, rash, itching, etc.; usually right after eating minute amounts of the food
• Is usually caused by certain foods such as shellfish, fish, nuts, peanuts, eggs and milk
• These can be extremely serious to one’s health