Food intolerance can be found in half of the population. It is a discomfort after food consumption that causes a rash, nausea, bloating, diarrhea and headaches. Symptoms showing up within 4-72 hours after you consume food, makes it hard to find out what is it that makes a person feel unwell. In discovering what food makes us feel unwell we determine specific IgG4 antibodies from patient’s blood sample.
Food intolerance is often misunderstood for allergy to certain food. True food allergy is rare and is defined as an exaggerated response of the immune system to a specific substance in food (usually a protein). Symptoms show up immediately and are moderate to severe (anaphylactic shock). Food allergy is diagnosed using skin prick tests, measuring the IgE antibody, or by observation. In the lab we perform investigations of intolerance to food for specialists gastroenterologists and nutritionists, where there is a suspicion of food intolerance, but other tests did not show the expected results. The most common form of food intolerance is intolerance to milk, which comes from the lack of the enzyme lactase, which aids in digestion of the sugar lactose. Very common are also various forms of fructose intolerance and eggs for example.
Food intolerance testing allows us to determine which food is causing us problems like headache, IBS and diarrhea. Eliminate the this foods and feel better!