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The term "food allergy" is sometimes used to describe all adverse reactions to food. However, more specifically, the term “allergy” refers to food reactions that are mediated by the immune system. To protect us from illness and disease, our immune systems are continuously trying to lessen the danger represented by substances called antigens. Antigens are parts of proteins that our bodies recognize as dangerous. Thus, our bodies take steps to neutralize them. Antigens can be found most anywhere there is protein. They can be found in foods, of course, but also in microorganisms like bacteria.
The term “allergy” refers to food reactions that are mediated by the immune system.
When our immune cells identify a dangerous antigen, they try to prevent it from causing harm in the body. For example, when antigens from bacteria or viruses interact with our cells, we can get the flu, or the common cold. We don't get the flu from food antigens, but we can get a wide range of immune-related symptoms that range from the sniffles to hives and anaphylactic shock.
Allergic reactions to food, also called food hypersensitivities, can be either immediate or delayed. Immediate hypersensitivity reactions occur within hours or even minutes after a food is eaten. The foods that are most often implicated as the cause of allergy include milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts (walnuts), soy, strawberries, wheat, fish and shellfish.
Many people with immediate food hypersensitivities must completely eliminate the offending food from their diet to avoid symptoms— and these symptoms can be severe and noticeable. They include a rash, the hives, a running nose, or a headache. In rare cases, immediate hypersensitivity reactions can cause anaphylactic shock, a life-threatening condition in which the throat swells and blocks the passage of air. Immediate hypersensitivities affect only a small percentage of the population. Because of their possible severity, however, it is good to be prepared. Remember that obnoxious cousin who tells you about her allergy to strawberries every time you get together for lunch? Next time, don’t just laugh it off! Instead, ask her more and make sure she has everything she needs in case of an emergency!
Immediate food sensitivities are pretty straightforward. If you have one, you know who you are. And you probably know which foods to avoid so you don’t wind up looking like the Pillsbury doughboy or end up in the ER.
When it comes to delayed reactions to food, however, things can get a little more complicated. This is because many of the same foods, such as milk or eggs, that are known to cause immediate hypersensitivities in a small number of people have also been implicated as a cause of delayed or "masked" food allergies in much larger numbers of individuals. In fact, some physicians have suggested that as many as 60% of all Americans suffer from masked food allergies!
The symptoms of these reactions can be a bit more varied as well. Here is a list of the most common ones:
- dark circles or puffiness under the eyes
- fluid retention
- dermatitis
- sinus congestion
- hay fever-like symptoms
- fatigue
- abdominal pain or discomfort
- joint inflammation
- mood swings
- indigestion
- headaches
- chronic ear infections
- asthma
- poor memory
- anxiety and depression
In addition, the food products that affect the most people as a delayed hypersensitivity are:
- dairy products
- eggs
- wheat
- soy products
- peanuts
- shellfish
- refined sugar
- refined corn products and high fructose corn syrup
As the name suggests, delayed hypersensitivities do not appear immediately after consuming a particular food. In most cases, the immune response is so delayed that it is difficult to determine which food is causing the symptoms. Thus, many people remain in the dark when it comes to the particular foods that they may be sensitive to. It is only through careful dietary manipulation, such as following an Elimination or Rotation Diet, that it is possible to identify these hidden food allergies. You can find out more about Avoidance, Elimination and Rotation Diets in the second half of this article!
Some food intolerances are caused by enzyme deficiencies, while others are caused by poor function of the digestive tract or sensitivity to a natural or synthetic chemical.
Immune-mediated food allergies represent one type of adverse food reaction. But there are others. Food intolerance is another type. When a woman has a food intolerance, this means that she has an abnormal physiological response to a food and that response is not caused by an antibody/antigen reaction. For example, some food intolerances are caused by enzyme deficiencies, while others are caused by poor function of the digestive tract or sensitivity to a natural or synthetic chemical.
By far the most common food intolerance is lactose intolerance, which affects as many as 30% of American adults. It is particularly common in people of African and Asian heritage. People with lactose intolerance do not produce enough of the digestive enzyme lactase, which breaks down the milk sugar (lactose) found in dairy products. When too much undigested lactose makes its way into the large intestine, lactose-intolerant individuals suffer from gas and/or diarrhea.
Muffins, cake, white breads, pies… these are all foods that most of us crave because they taste good and comfort us in times of stress. However, for individuals with wheat intolerance, wheat allergy, or wheat sensitivity (and the numbers of these individuals worldwide is increasing every year), these products can be the cause of a list of delayed allergic responses.
Wheat is unique among all the common substances that cause adverse food reactions. It has long been classified as the primary "gluten grain" for the American diet and its research history has been complicated and controversial. The best way to understand allergy-related issues associated with wheat is to first understand its relationship to gluten.
Gluten is a substance that occurs during the processing of baked goods in commercial facilities.
Scientifically speaking, there is really no such thing as "gluten. This is because the term "gluten" comes from the world of industry. It is a substance that occurs during the processing of baked goods in commercial facilities. During the dough-washing phase of production, many of the water-soluble materials and starches are washed off as well. What's left is a gummy, yellow-gray substance. This substance is gluten. Sounds tasty, right? In its raw form, probably not. But when it is incorporated into baked goods and breads, it is what is responsible for giving your muffin its fluff, your white bread its bounce, and your angel food cake that buoyancy and texture.
Here are some other little known facts about gluten:
- The dough used to produce gluten does not have to be made from wheat flour. Other cereal grains like oats can also be used to produce gluten too. In most baking factories, however, wheat is almost always the food source for producing gluten.
- When a gluten dough ball is dried out and analyzed, it weighs in at about 80% protein by weight. Now that’s one protein-packed ball of goo! The other 20% of its weight is made up of fats, carbohydrates, and minerals.
From a chemical standpoint, then, gluten is a diverse mixture of substances, even if it may look and taste pretty darn strange in its raw form.
Remember our discussion in the beginning of this article about antigens and proteins and how they related to food allergies? Well, the same rule applies with respect to protein-related gluten allergies as well. When a person has a protein-based reaction to gluten, it is a case of the body responding to antigens within a certain gluten protein. That is why it is important to know about the 4 primary types of proteins found in gluten and which of these proteins may cause the most stress on your body. The four main proteins found in gluten are (drum role please…):
- albumins
- globulins
- prolamins
- glutelins (when found in wheat, they are called glutenins)
Of these four gluten proteins, prolamins are the ones to watch out for with respect to protein-based wheat allergies. However, the role of these proteins is complicated because prolamins are also found in other cereal grains, not just wheat.
For all you technically-minded individuals out there, here is the breakdown of the different names for this protein culprit when found in five main grain types. Prolamin proteins are also called:
- gliadins (wheat)
- avenins (oats)
- zeins (corn)
- secalins (rye)
- hordeins (barley)
To take this information a step further, within the prolamin family of proteins found in wheat gluten, it is the tiny alpha-gliadin polypeptides (protein chains) that have been most closely linked to food allergy. In non-wheat cases, the allergy-triggered events associated with the prolamin proteins become less predictable, and sometimes fail to occur altogether.
Now that was a lot of technical information! Don’t worry though, there won’t be a test on this material at the end of this article (but we do suggest you print it out or bookmark it so that the info is there when you need it). All this is very important, however, because now you know the specific kinds of proteins (you got it-- prolamin proteins) to watch out for with respect to protein-based gluten allergies.
The differences discovered between prolamin protein composition in wheat and that found in other cereal grains have prompted much controversy, especially in reference to the term "gluten grains" and the role they play in allergic reactions.
Traditionally, wheat, oats, barley, and rye have all been referred to as "gluten grains” and the conventional advice for those with gluten sensitivity has been to avoid them all. Recent discoveries in the protein chemistry of wheat and other cereal grains have caused some organizations to start thinking about wheat as a substance that warrants its own unique category, however. These organizations have largely abandoned use of the term "gluten grains.” They have begun to think exclusively about wheat and wheat gluten when it comes to allergies. They have also begun to place restrictions on wheat and wheat gluten only and not the other grains when allergy is the issue. These steps have had interesting consequences. For example, several organizations formed to support individuals with Celiac disease have altered their public health recommendations to include oats as an acceptable food for persons diagnosed with this condition. Previously, oats had been categorically avoided for all persons who must follow dietary restrictions related to Celiac.
Wheat is unique in another way as well. In addition to the problems associated with wheat's prolamin proteins, there are other wheat components that have been associated with allergy. These components include wheat germ agglutinin (WGA), a glycoprotein, and two very short amino acid strings called tetrapeptides (PSSG and GGGP). These substances are present in significant amounts in wheat but do not appear in the same way in other grains.
Some healthcare practitioners believe that wheat allergy-related problems are triggered in part by the highly processed nature of wheat products in the marketplace. When flour is processed, it is stripped of the germ, the bran, and the majority of its fibers, vitamins, and minerals. Commercial production of baked goods contains specific amounts of processed flour in its recipes as well as a specific amount of equally processed wheat gluten. Manipulation of this flour-to-gluten ratio can dramatically improve textures of highly processed breads and baked goods. The natural balance of nutrients found in whole wheat is dramatically altered by these processing events and some health experts point to this as the major underlying reason why so many people today have allergies to wheat.
One-hundred percent whole grain breads and baked goods, on the other hand, are created without processing, thus leaving the majority of the grain’s germ, bran, fibers, vitamins and minerals intact. Gluten may be added but… Furthermore, whole grain breads are the only products recommended by the World's Healthiest Foods (WHF). Wheat processing practices are completely avoided with the World's Healthiest Foods approach.
Some healthcare practitioners believe that wheat allergy-related problems are triggered in part by the highly processed nature of wheat products in the marketplace.
The condition called “Celiac Disease” has gotten a lot of media attention these days, as the numbers of people who have wheat intolerance continues to rise. But just what is Celiac Disease? Some people associate it with simple gluten intolerance. In truth, however, it is a multi-system autoimmune disease in which changes in liver function, digestive tract function, and the function of other organ systems comes into play. The role of a specific enzyme, called tissue transglutaminase, or tTG, appears to be especially important in Celiac Disease. Short strands of protein (polypeptides) found in gliadin (one family of wheat proteins) are acted on by this enzyme, resulting in many of the problems associated with this condition. For some individuals, a blood test measuring the ratio of antibodies to tTG can be an effective screening test for Celiac Disease.
Many people are also unable to "tolerate" natural and synthetic chemicals, such as sulfites, that appear in abundance in our commercial food supply. These sulfur-containing preservatives are used in dried fruits, wines, and many other processed foods. Between 1980 and 1999, the United States Food and Drug Administration received more than 1,000 reports of adverse reactions, some fatal, to sulfites. It has been estimated that at least 1% of all people with asthma are sensitive to sulfites.
Synthetic food colorings, including food dyes and Color Yellow No. 5 (tartrazine), are problematic for many people. Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) is another example of an additive used to increase flavor, particularly in Asian foods. After eating at restaurants that use MSG, many people become bloated, experience severe headaches or have other adverse reactions.
While food colorings and additives like MSG are examples of human-created substances that many people react to, salicylates and amines are examples of naturally-occurring food substances found in many vegetables, herbs, spices, fruits, and chocolate. Even though they are naturally occurring, these substances may create adverse reactions as well. Salicylates and amines have been associated with a variety of symptoms including mental confusion, depression, and migraine headaches.
The following is a partial list of natural foods and prepared products that contain salicylates and amines:
- tomatoes
- broccoli
- olives
- spinach
- mushrooms
- avocado
- all dried fruit
- smoked meats
- canned fish
- hard cheeses
- soy sauce
- miso
- chocolate
- cocoa
- beer,
- cola drinks,
- vinegars,
- Yeast extract.
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