Attention, food allergy! The 5 most common intolerances and allergies

In addition to the healthy food shelves in supermarkets, you will increasingly see other separate areas – for example, areas that only contain gluten-free products. In addition, cream, cheese and milk labelled ‘lactose free’ (usually in purple) are appearing in the fridges. (usually in purple). All this is due to the fact that year after year, food intolerance affects a growing percentage of the population, allergies are not unfamiliar, nor is the autoimmune disease celiac disease.

This time we will take a look:

• the differences between food intolerance and allergy,
• problems with the most common allergies in children,
• ways of neutralisation – food allergy and diet,
• the most frequently searched questions: gluten-free products versus lactose intolerance.

All this in five examples of allergies and intolerances that you may encounter on a daily basis and which effectively make life difficult. We also discuss anaphylactic shock later in this article – read on!

Food allergy – symptoms

To begin with, there is a small but important difference between intolerance and allergy. It is very often the case that an intolerance goes undiagnosed for a long time, because the symptoms of hypersensitivity are there, but not very severe. The reason for this? Most often a deficiency in the production of some enzyme by the body, often as a result of damage to the intestinal membrane by drugs (e.g. NSAIDs, antibiotics).

Food allergy, on the other hand, has typically immunological symptoms, i.e. it can be diagnosed by an abnormal reaction of IgE and IgG class antibodies. In practice, this means that a medical diagnosis can be made by means of an appropriate test. It is also worth noting that allergic reactions are much stronger than those caused by food intolerance.

1. lactose intolerance

To begin with, briefly about lactose intolerance, a fairly common inconvenience. It is an abnormal reaction of the body caused by a deficiency of the enzyme that breaks down lactose, namely lactase. If its presence is recorded at a normal level, lactose is able to be broken down into simple sugars, making it easier to assimilate.

If this does not happen (lactase deficiency), the lactose travels further into the small intestine where biochemical processes involving bacteria take place, resulting in undesirable by-products such as hydrogen and methane, which cause bloating.

Typical problems associated with lactose intolerance:

• frequent diarrhoea,
• flatulence,
• an “overflow” effect in the intestines,
• nausea,
• parasitic diseases of the intestines.

In particular, the consumption of milk, milk powder, yoghurt, buttermilk, cream, ice cream, kefir, homogenised cheese and cottage cheese must be monitored. The severity of lactose intolerance is an individual matter. It is possible that products containing less lactose are well tolerated, e.g. feta, mozzarella and Edam cheese, and these products may be present in reduced quantities in the diet of such a person.

Lactose is also present to a greater or lesser extent in many other products, for example in chocolate, tinned foods or confectionery products. The panacea may be the lactose-free products that are increasingly available in shops, although their price is usually slightly higher than that of the classic products.

This food intolerance is relatively easy to detect even at home – it is enough to observe the reactions of the body after drinking milk. A so-called hydrogen breath test can also be performed at the doctor’s, which clearly confirms the existence of the problem. If this does occur, the only solutions are a dairy-free diet or special lactase tablets, which must be taken before consuming dairy products.

2. gluten-free diet

At one point, eating gluten-free even became fashionable. This doesn’t mean that everyone is acting on the trend – some people just have to be careful with gluten. In this case, the most difficult issue is not only a food allergy, but also a genetic condition called celiac disease.

While at the time of noticing a slight intolerance you can usually afford, for example, products with the information “may contain gluten”, in the case of allergies and celiac disease such an option would already be unwise. For people with coeliac disease, the only option is food with the crossed-out spike symbol, the hallmark of “gluten-free”.

But let’s start at the beginning – what does gluten contain? And what is it?

Well, gluten is found primarily in wheat, rye and barley. It is a protein in the form of glutamine and proline combined into one polypeptide. Sounds complicated? The easiest way to think of gluten is as a filler, a connector, a binder. For example, in dough it combines with water and gives it the right consistency.

A gluten-free diet should be rich in gluten-free products only. The whole difficulty is that this ingredient is present in many quite obvious places (such as pasta) and less obvious ones (corn crisps, spice mixes).

The first months with a gluten-free diet are very tiring just at the stage of choosing a menu and scouring the shop shelves in search of “something at a normal price”. Yes, unfortunately very often certified products are much more expensive.

It is also not uncommon for people on a gluten-free diet to complain about the taste of food – this is particularly the case for those whose intolerance has developed over time. This is why it is so important to learn to avoid gluten properly, and to do so, it is worth hiring a professional to guide your daily menu accordingly.

3. the Chinese restaurant syndrome

Who likes Asian cuisine? It’s usually tasty, uses aromatic spices and fresh vegetables, and doesn’t cost too much. A skilled cook can prepare most dishes very quickly, usually using a wok. Plus eating with chopsticks, ah…

…but not everyone enjoys oriental specialities in the same way. If someone has food intolerance in the form of Kwok disease, Chinese, Thai and Vietnamese restaurants will have to be avoided. The problem manifests itself, for example, in heart palpitations, headaches, paralysis and excessive sweating after a meal.

Since the 1960s, however, scientists have not worked out what ultimately causes such reactions. The number one type is monosodium glutamate, which is widely used in Chinese cuisine. Another hypothesis says that the unique composition of various ingredients – including the aforementioned spices – characteristic of individual dishes remains to blame.

4. nut allergy

At this point, it is worth mentioning a total of three ingredients: nuts, almonds and, separately, peanuts. Peanuts are an alarmingly common source of allergic problems, but they are not nuts – they belong to the same plant group as, for example, soya, beans and green peas, i.e. pulses.

Where are nuts found? Nowadays they are very often added to various products, from chocolates to cakes. They can also be found in ice cream, desserts, salads, pesto paste or oriental dishes. If you are experiencing the typical symptoms of a nut allergy, you need to be particularly careful with the products you buy.

Allergists most often complain of swellings of various kinds, usually in the throat, mouth and face. Redness (sometimes eczema or urticaria) and abdominal pains also frequently occur. The most serious consequence is anaphylactic shock – associated not only with such a phenomenon as a severe food allergy. Symptoms can be identical, for example, in the case of a sting or even very strong stress. This is a very rapid reaction of the body, where typical allergic conditions run their course with redoubled force, and immediate medical attention is required.

5. food allergy in infants

Finally, a few words about problems encountered with the youngest. Here the issue is quite simple – if colic, diarrhoea, vomiting, skin lesions and stomach pains occur frequently, parents should automatically consult a doctor. Most often the reason lies in the milk, this is a typical food allergy in a baby. The good news is that many childhood allergies pass by the age of five.

If the problem is genetic, then unfortunately it will be present for the rest of their lives. It is very important for babies to have a suitable diet, particularly one that includes the gradual introduction of selected products. In this way, the young body can become accustomed to certain strong allergens.

Food allergy and food intolerance are terms that accompany us with increasing frequency. There are many reasons for this, but the general trend is unstoppable. Therefore, gluten-free products will be more and more visible in shops, and restaurants will abound in lactose-free dishes. Abnormal reactions are easy to observe, so it is worth keeping an eye out – problems can appear at any stage of life.

If you are looking for ideas for healthy, gluten free or lactose-free recipes, you can find them in the Fitatu application in the “Recipes” section. More information about Fitatu can be found at: https://www.fitatu.com.