Hidden Allergies
It is amazing what you can find out about how you are when you embark on an elimination diet programme. Once you have got over the first week or so, you might notice some significant improvements in one or more health markers. This may well be because you have hidden allergies, or at least, adverse physiological responses to foods that you either didn't know about or hadn't noticed.
Below is a list of signs and symptoms associated with hidden allergies, and also relating to nutritional deficiencies that might be the result of hidden allergies. These are all symptoms and conditions that have been known to clear up or improve once the original source of the problem has been identified and dealt with.
Allergy, traditionally, has been held to encompass medical conditions that cause itching, sneezing or wheezing, thus:
| Traditional understanding of Allergies | |
|---|---|
Almost always caused by allergy: | Asthma, hay fever, perennial rhinitis/catarrh, atopic eczema, contact eczema, anaphylaxis |
Sometimes caused by allergy: | Chronic urticaria/angioedema, diarrhoea, food intolerance |
But we now know that the immune system is very much more involved virtually all physiological processes in the body, and we can apply allergy methods, particularly elimination diets, to conditions that do not at first appear to be directly related to what was formerly understood as an allergic response. Often the actual processes that go on in the body and mediate these allergic responses are not that well understood, but nevertheless, they still seem to respond to clinical measures that one would apply to visible and apparent allergies.
| Symptoms of Hidden Allergies Can Include: |
|---|
|
Migraine, Crohns disease, rheumatoid arthritis, depression and other mental/emotional disorders, chronic fatigue syndrome, irritable bowel syndrome, dysmenorrhoea, fibromyalgia, endometriosis, as well as classic allergic conditions. |
Food Intolerance
Individual sensitivity to certain foods can cause intolerance, which can have far reaching effects on the digestive system, and compromise our ability to absorb the nutrients we need from our diet. Here are some of the signs of nutrient deficiencies. Please be aware that all the signs or symptoms below can be caused by other medical conditions.
| SOME SIGNS OF NUTRITIONAL DEFICIENCY | |
|---|---|
Sign or Symptom: | Can be caused by deficiencies of: |
Cracks at corners of mouth | iron, vitamins B2 or B6, or folic acid |
Recurrent mouth ulcers | iron, folic acid, or vitamin B12 |
Dry, cracked lips | Vitamin B2 |
smooth, sore tongue | iron, vitamins B2 or B12, or folic acid |
Fissured tongue | Vitamin B3 |
Tastebuds at tip of tongue enlarged, red and sore | Vitamins B2 or B6 |
Bruising or enlargement of veins under tongue | Vitamin C |
Red, greasy skin on face, especially at side of nose | Vitamins B2 or B6, zinc or essential fatty acids |
Rough, pimply skin on upper arms and thighs | B vitamins, vitamin E, or essential fatty acids |
Red, itchy rash on scrotum or vulva | Vitamin B2, zinc |
Dry, rough, cracked, or peeling skin | zinc, essential fatty acids |
Poor hair growth | iron or zinc |
Dandruff | Vitamins B6 or C, zinc or essential fatty acids |
Bloodshot, gritty, sensitive eyes | Vitamins A or B2 |
Poor vision after dark | Vitamin A or zinc |
Dry eyes | Vitamin A or essential fatty acids |
Brittle or split nails | iron, zinc or essential fatty acids |
White spots on nails | zinc |
Pale appearance | iron, vitamin B12 or Folic acid |