|
A food intolerance is an adverse food-induced reaction that does not involve the immune system. Lactose intolerance is an example of a food intolerance. A person with lactose intolerance lacks an enzyme that is needed to digest milk sugar. When the person eats milk products, symptoms such as gas, bloating, and abdominal pain may occur.
A food allergy occurs when the immune system reacts to a certain food. Basically, the body sees that food as a "threat." The most common form of an immune system reaction occurs when the body creates immunoglobulin E (IgE) antibodies to the food. When these IgE antibodies react with the food, histamine and other chemicals (called mediators) cause hives, asthma, or other symptoms of an allergic reaction.
Gluten reactions vary wildly, making them poorly understood and diagnostically challenging. For one thing, there is what I call a “sensitivity” continuum. On one end is Celiac Disease (also called gluten-sensitive enteropathy and celiac sprue), a hereditary autoimmune disease that damages the small intestines. It is detected through blood tests and subsequent intestinal biopsies. A person with celiac disease can NEVER safely eat gluten. Gluten challenges to the "left" of celiac disease on the spectrum, are called by many "gluten intolerance," since these may not be immune related. (To further muddy things, celiac disease is occasionally referred to as “gluten intolerance.”)
If you are gluten intolerant, you can probably consume an occasional gluten-filled food without major consequence. I wouldn't recommend going against the messages your body is giving you, however. Why potentially exacerbate your delicate system?
Trackback(0)
 |
allergies & intolerances 
TrackBack URI for this entry