Food Allergy or Food Intolerance?
A food allergy is different from a food intolerance but the term is often used in a vague, all-encompassing way. The difference lies in how the body handles the offending food. In a true food allergy, the body’s immune system recognizes a reaction-provoking substance, or allergen, in the food–usually a protein– as foreign and produces antibodies to halt the “invasion”. The most severe hypersensitive reaction (called “Anaphylaxis”) is potentially life threatening and can be triggered by a minute amount of an allergen. A food intolerance is a much more common problem and the problem is not with the body’s immune system, but rather with the digestion of a food item. For example in a lactose intolerance a person lacks the enzyme (lactase) necessary to digest the sugar found milk (lacatose). Also, with a food intolerance the person can usually tolerate the item to which they are sensitive in small amounts. Allergy Symptoms The symptoms of food allergies can begin within moments of ingesti
