Drawing the line between food allergy and intolerance
Knowing the difference between allergies and food intolerance and following this religiously key to healthy living.
By Tosin Ayinde
Before the drift into the distinction between food allergies and intolerance, it’s helpful to first understand what allergy is. Wikipedia defines allergies as a number of conditions caused by the hypersensitivity of the immune system to typically harmless substances in the environment. These conditions range from hay fever, food allergies, atopic dermatitis, allergic asthma, and anaphylaxis. It must however be pointed out that a food allergy is different from food intolerance.
Food Allergy
A food allergy, according to studies, involves an immune system response by the body. It also passes an unwanted reaction to food that some people experience, like food intolerance, but it’s not the same with it and happens for different reasons.
When a person has food allergy, the body’s immune system responds incorrectly to a substance known as allergen, which is not necessarily a harmful substance. Doctors call them allergens because they trigger an immune system response in certain people.
Food Intolerance
Food intolerance usually means that a person has an enzyme deficiency. Enzymes are substances in the body that aids food digestion. If a person has an enzyme deficiency, their body cannot digest certain foods properly. The problematic food depends on the enzyme that is lacking. Food intolerance may also result from issues like certain chemicals in foods, food poisoning due to the presence of toxins, natural occurrence of histamine in some foods, the presence of salicylates that occurs in many foods, and specific food additives.
The table below shows features associated with either a food allergy or an intolerance.
The Symptoms
Food allergies and food intolerance have different symptoms.
For allergies, experts have said that allergic reaction to food can cause any of the following: Hives, itchiness, swelling of the face, lips, and tongue, swelling of the throat and airways, leading to breathing difficulties, dizziness, lightheadedness, and fainting, among others. If swelling occurs in the airways, this can make it difficult for a person to breathe. If the airway closes, this can become fatal. An allergic reaction can happen suddenly. If a person shows symptoms of an allergic reaction, they need medical help immediately.
For food intolerance, this often results in gastrointestinal pain and discomfort, but a person with an allergy can develop life-threatening symptoms. Its main symptoms are: intestinal gas, abdominal pain, and diarrhea. Other symptoms may occur, but the core symptoms relate to a person’s gut.
Treatment
If a person reacts to a food, the treatment will depend on whether they have an allergy or an intolerance. A person with an allergy may have a mild reaction on one occasion and a severe reaction on another occasion. About 20 percent of people with an allergy have a severe reaction, according to studies.
For food intolerance, this will not usually need urgent treatment. The best treatment is a long-term plan to manage the problem. Managing this usually starts with an exclusion diet and this is when a person avoids food that may be causing the problem for some time, usually 2 to 6 weeks.
Prevention
Once you know you have an allergy or food intolerance, you should avoid the trigger food as far as possible and carry an epinephrine autoinjector in case of an emergency. You may also have to check the ingredients of food products carefully, whether buying for home consumption or eating out.
