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Food Relationship Woes How to Recognize the Effects of Food Sensitivities by Tatiana Fleischman
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hen our immune system declares war on food, the entire body becomes the battlefield. Our relationship with food is the longest relationship we have in our lives. Things don’t always go smoothly in relationships; the disagreements can be mild or severe. Although problems are usually resolved quickly, sometimes they can drag on for weeks, months or years, causing chronic distress. When things are not going well between us and food, many parts of our bodies suffer. Unexplained pain, weight gain, fatigue, arthritis, headache, depression and many other conditions have been linked to ingesting food that is wrong for us. The symptoms, however, may be too vague for most people and even doctors to attribute to a strained relationship with food. The negative reaction, whether
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quick and obvious or hidden and delayed, involves the immune system and is usually called a food allergy or sensitivity. When the immune system takes center stage in our conflict with food, its actions vary. Sometimes they are quick and easily recognized as an allergy, such as hives, rashes, swelling or even life-threatening anaphylaxis. Peanut allergy is a common example of such a reaction. The quick allergic reaction may happen only in the gut and lead to nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain and diarrhea. The victims—or their parents as this type of reaction often begins in childhood—may think they just have food poisoning when, in reality, it is an allergic reaction called gastrointestinal anaphylaxis. In the case of food sensitivity, the immune system response is neither quick nor immediately obvious. It starts
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with inflammation that damages the wall of the intestine, reducing its ability to absorb valuable nutrients. The now “angry” immune system doesn’t always stop there. It now looks for “enemies” everywhere; its “foot soldiers” start attacking normal organs. Meanwhile, the damaged intestinal wall becomes leaky, allowing allergens and toxic substances to enter the bloodstream, spreading throughout the body, making the person sick and triggering even more immune system attacks and inflammation. Some of the mechanisms of abnormal immune system reaction to ingested substances are better understood than others. Celiac disease is the best studied example of such an immune response going awry. In case of celiac disease, the immune system reacts to gluten or similar proteins found in common grains, such as wheat, rye and barley. The resulting inflammation in the intestine leads to malabsorption, gastrointestinal symptoms and can eventually damage virtually any organ in the body, including joints, skin, bones and the brain. Although the most infamous, gluten is far from being alone in producing inflammatory responses. Cow’s milk is another major offender. While in some people it causes an instant allergic reaction, in many others it leads to chronic inflammation, the mechanism of which is not completely understood. Many additional substances, including food that is normally considered healthy such as vegetables or fish, can trigger an abnormal immune system response. Because the reaction is delayed, the symptoms are not always typical; different individuals have their own unique immune response triggers. They may complain of fatigue or arthritis, or be diagnosed with premature osteoporosis or anemia. Attention deficit, lethargy, headaches and even gait disturbance have been shown to improve after elimination of certain foods from the diet. The true cause of health problems may go undiscovered for years while the person is unsuccessfully treated with multiple medications that cause their own slew of side effects. Among less expected manifestations of food allergies is unexplained