Do you suspect that certain foods don’t agree with you?
Do you think you might have a food allergy or intolerance?
Both food allergy and intolerance are where the body’s immune system reacts inappropriately to a food. Instead of tolerating the food as something harmless, it mounts an immune “attack”, generating antibodies to the food in the process.
Allergies are to do with a type of antibody called IgE antibodies and generally provoke an almost immediate reaction. Intolerances are controlled by IgG antibodies and symptoms can be triggered from several minutes after to 48 hours after exposure to the food. This makes them more difficult to spot.
It is quite common for people to react badly to certain foods not because they have in intolerance but simply because their digestive system is not working efficiently. However, having an under-functioning digestive system can cause food intolerances.