HealthyPIG Magazine

Physical reactions to certain foods are common, but most are caused by food intolerances rather than food allergies. Food intolerances can cause some of the same signs and symptoms as food allergies, so people often confuse the two. A true food allergy causes an immune system response that affects many organs in the body. It causes a range of symptoms. In some cases, food allergic reactions can be serious or life-threatening. In contrast, food intolerance symptoms are usually less severe and are usually limited to digestive problems. If you have a food intolerance, you may be able to eat small amounts of the offending food without any difficulty. You can also prevent reactions. For example, if you are lactose intolerant, you can drink lactose-free milk or take lactase pills (Lactaid) to aid digestion.

Food allergies occur when your immune system reacts defensively to specific food proteins that are actually harmless to the body. When eating problematic foods for the first time, the immune system responds by producing specific anti-disease antibodies (called immunoglobulin E or IgE). When you eat the food again, IgE antibodies will immediately take effect, releasing large amounts of histamine to expel "foreign invaders" from the body. Histamine is a powerful chemical that can affect the respiratory system, gastrointestinal tract, skin or cardiovascular system.