Food
intolerance and food allergy are common terms that are often used
interchangeably. But the two are not the same. Symptoms are generally benign in
food intolerance and often limited to digestive signs and symptoms. An allergic
food reaction, however, may be severe or even life-threatening and may occur
even by eating a microscopic amount, touching or inhaling the food
There
are IgG food tests to detect insensitivities to various foods. Based on the
results, individuals are advised to either omit these foods from their diet or
reduce the ingestion of these foods or to consume them on some sort of rotating
diet.
While
few published studies (Monogr Allergy. 1996;32:221-5; Gut. 2004;
53:1459) have shown the benefits of elimination diets in terms of improvement
in symptoms, many reputed international bodies such as the American Academy
of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (AAAAI), European Academy of Allergy
and Clinical Immunology (EAACI) and the Canadian Society of Allergy and
Clinical Immunology (CSACI) do not recommend IgG tests to detect food allergies
or food intolerances / sensitivities.
“The
scientific studies that are provided to support the use of this test are often
out of date, in non-reputable journals and many have not even used the IgG test
in question”, says
AAAAI.
The
EAACI Task Force Report published in July 2008 in Allergy, the European Journal
of Allergy and Clinical Immunology concluded that “food‐specific IgG4 does
not indicate (imminent) food allergy or intolerance, but rather a physiological
response of the immune system after exposition to food
components. Therefore, testing of IgG4 to foods is considered as
irrelevant for the laboratory work‐up of food allergy or intolerance and should
not be performed in case of food‐related complaints.”
The
CSACI position statement on the use of food IgG tests says: “the
inappropriate use of this test only increases the likelihood of false diagnoses
being made, resulting in unnecessary dietary restrictions and decreased quality
of life.”
Also,
these tests are very expensive and detect only a limited number of food
intolerances.
All
lifestyle diseases such as hypertension, CAD, obesity, type 2 diabetes,
hypothyroidism are now recognized as chronic inflammatory diseases and have
been linked to protein in diet.
Proteins
are broken down in the body to peptides and then to amino acids. Wheat is
broken down into peptides but not amino acids. This is because humans lack the
enzymes to completely digest the complex proteins in wheat. Therefore, wheat,
which forms a staple part of diet for most Indians, is a chronic inflammatory
substance, which has been implicated in the inflammatory process in chronic diseases,
as it may cause inflammation even beyond the gut.
Our
ancient rituals and traditions have given us a way out of this conundrum. They
advocate the principles of “variety” and “moderation” i.e. eat a variety of
food, and eat in moderation.
They
also recommend including all seven colors (red, orange, yellow, green,
blue/purple, white) and six tastes (sweet, sour, salty, bitter, pungent, and
astringent) for a balanced diet.
There
are several examples of food rotation in our mythology.
Fasting
is a tradition for us. But, fasting does not mean ‘not eating’. It means
omitting certain foods from the diet on the day of the fast.
Our
Vedas advocate that one should observe 80 fasts in a year and these should
involve not eating cereals (wheat). Observe one wheat fast a week. Eat
only one light meal on the day of the fast they should not contain
carbohydrates or wheat cereals. Wheat cereals can be replaced by besan ki roti
or Samak rice (fruit), singhare ki roti (fruit), kuttu ki roti (fruit) or sabu
dana. Use rock salt in your food instead of usual salt as it helps in better
mineral absorption.
For
example, wheat and grains are avoided during Monday fasts; non vegetarian food
and alcohol are prohibited on Tuesdays; sour foods are completely avoided
during Friday fasts.
These
traditions were probably a way to desensitize the body to potential food
allergens.
But
people have mostly stopped observing weekly fasts with change in lifestyle
owing to increasing urbanization. And, possibly since then the incidence
of lifestyle diseases has increased.
Dr KK Aggarwal
Padma Shri Awardee
President Elect Confederation of Medical
Associations in Asia and Oceania
(CMAAO)
Group Editor-in-Chief IJCP Publications
President Heart Care Foundation of India
Past National President IMA
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