Are you experiencing a ton of unexplained symptoms that are keeping you from being able to perform at your potential? Maybe you feel constantly bloated and constipated, fatigued, inflamed or swollen, you have chronic migraines, or skin conditions like acne and eczema. You’ve been to several different doctors searching for answers, but always come up empty handed. You’ve been told your symptoms are related to stress, are untreatable, or worse…all in your head. But you know that’s not the case. You know you don’t feel well. You know you’re in pain. And you know this isn’t normal. And you’re right.
Whenever clients come to me with these types of symptoms that don’t seem to have an explanation, the first thing that comes to my mind is… food intolerances. I know what you’re thinking, “but I’ve been tested for food allergies and I don’t have any!” Food intolerances are different from food allergies. Intolerances won’t show up on an allergy test, but they do have severe health and performance consequences.
The Difference Between Food Allergies and Intolerances
When you’re allergic to a certain food, you know right away after eating it. That’s because your immune system reacts immediately by producing IgE antibodies. You might experience things like gastrointestinal conditions (vomiting, diarrhea), airway inflammation (wheezing or trouble breathing), sudden swelling and rashes (like hives). These reactions can range from mild to life threatening (Yu et al., 2016). On the other hand, food intolerances don’t cause symptoms right away, which is what makes them so hard to pinpoint. Symptoms can manifest hours or even days after consuming a food that you might be sensitive to! Food allergies are caused by the individual’s immune system recognizing a food product as dangerous and mounting an immune response to this specific food. Food intolerances, on the other hand, can be caused by a lack of a specific enzyme needed to digest a food group (for example, lacking “lactase” in lactose intolerance), can be developed during the course of other concomitant diseases like in IBS, or they may be a result of GI disturbances (Zopf et al., 2009). Whereas food allergies affect between 2-5% of the population, food intolerances can affect between 15-20% of us, making them a potential likely culprit to your mysterious symptoms.
The Dangers of Food Intolerances
If you’re reading this, I don’t have to tell you that your symptoms are a bit more than uncomfortable. They can definitely impact your ability to feel good, and show up as the best version of yourself both personally and professionally. Not only are they distressing, but food intolerances can have severe health consequences if left untreated. If you do have a food intolerance, and unknowingly continue to consume those types of foods, you may be at risk for developing autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis and multiple sclerosis (Couke, 2018), neurological conditions like ADHD (Stevenson et al., 2014) or schizophrenia (Samaroo et al., 2010), neurodegenerative diseases (Serretiello et al., 2015), obesity, and metabolic syndrome (Tateya, Kim, & Tamori, 2013). In many cases of food intolerances, the immune system is activated, and when one continues to consume the offending food, it can result in systemic, chronic inflammation, which as you know contributes to a whole plethora of health and performance challenges.
Most Common Food Intolerances
As I’ve mentioned before, food intolerances are increasingly common in today’s society. Here are some of the most common:
- Lactose Intolerance: in this food intolerance, one lacks the lactase enzyme and therefore isn’t able to fully break down the sugars found in dairy products called lactose. This intolerance may affect up to 65% of the world’s population!!
- Celiac Disease: contrary to popular belief, celiac disease is not synonymous with a wheat allergy. Instead, in celiac patients, they suffer an immune response to the gluten protein. In many cases, this type of intolerance can impact the gut and result in GI disturbances, but in some cases this intolerance is silent. In “silent” cases, those who suffer from CD don’t even know it!
- Non-Celiac Gluten Intolerance: yes, you can still react to gluten even if you don’t have a wheat allergy or Celiac Disease! In fact, up to 1 in 20 Americans may suffer from Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity (Kresser, 2019). This intolerance can cause a plethora of symptoms like brain fog, GI issues, migraines, fatigue, even depression and anxiety. Unfortunately, many people who do not test positive for Celiac or a wheat sensitivity are oftentimes blown off by their doctors, not realizing that they may be suffering from this intolerance, and not able to get the help they need (more on this in a moment!).
- Lectins: for some people, the “anti-nutrients” found in certain foods can cause an immune response and may point to an intolerance. Lectins are found in foods like legumes, wheat, corn, and nightshade vegetables, and can bind to the cells lining your intestines causing leaky gut and an inflammatory response in the body. They can even block insulin receptors, which may cause weight gain and an increased risk for metabolic syndrome (Cordain et al., 2007).
Because they don’t show up on allergy tests, food intolerances can be hard to identify. Like many of you, one of the clients in my MINDPEAK program had gone to several doctors to determine the cause of her destructive symptoms: chronic gastric distress, overwhelming anxiety, fatigue, and uncontrollable weight gain no matter what she was eating. Her doctors were never able to determine what could be causing her symptoms, and simply sent her on her way with a prescription and the advice to “eat better and exercise more.” She was confused, frustrated, and as she put it, “sick and tired of being sick and tired.” When I first heard her symptoms, my immediate reaction was that she was experiencing an intolerance to something she was eating, which was causing her gut lining to be permeable, and her immune system to be activated. We worked her through an elimination diet to both heal her gut from the damages that had been done, and determine what foods were at the root of her symptoms. After a few months of working together, we found a few food sensitivities that were causing her troubles, and worked together to develop a lifestyle and dietary pattern that helped her to remove these foods for good which improved all of her symptoms. She no longer had gastric troubles, she was able to lose weight with ease, and she had lasting energy all throughout her work day.
If you feel like a food intolerance may be causing your unexplained symptoms, it’s imperative that you determine what it is that you’re intolerant to, and develop a lifestyle that helps you to eliminate this food group. Beyond discomfort, food intolerances can be wreaking havoc on your health and your ability to perform optimally. As I mentioned before, these can be hard to determine via test, so it’s important to work with a trained professional to both determine your intolerance, and work to improve it. This is one key aspect of my MINDPEAK program that I work my clients through if they are experiencing any unexplained symptoms like the ones I mentioned above. If you feel like you might be experiencing a food intolerance, and want to see how we can work together to determine your intolerances, and work to reverse your symptoms to optimize your health and performance for good, sign up for a free 30 minute coaching session here. In this session, we will discuss the symptoms you’re having, try and recognize any themes, and work together to see if you would be a good fit for my MINDPEAK program.
I’m going to tell you what your doctors won’t: the symptoms you’re having are NOT normal. You DON’T have to continue feeling this way. And it is EXTREMELY important for you to determine what is actually causing your discomfort. Your performance, and long-term health are relying on it!
References
Cordain, L., Toohey, L., Smith, M., & Hickey, M. (2000). Modulation of immune function by dietary lectins in rheumatoid arthritis. British Journal of Nutrition, 83(3), 207-217. doi:10.1017/S0007114500000271
Coucke, F. (2018). Food intolerance in patients with manifest autoimmunity. Observational study. Autoimmunity Reviews, 17(11), 1078–1080. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.autrev.2018.05.011
Kresser, M. C. S. (2019, March 14). Food Allergy vs. Food Intolerance: Why the Difference Matters. Chris Kresser. https://chriskresser.com/food-allergy-vs-food-intolerance-why-the-difference-matters/#Food_Allergy_vs_Food_IntoleranceTheyre_Not_the_Same
Samaroo, D., Dickerson, F., Kasarda, D. D., Green, P. H., Briani, C., Yolken, R. H., & Alaedini, A. (2010). Novel immune response to gluten in individuals with schizophrenia. Schizophrenia Research, 118(1–3), 248–255. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.schres.2009.08.009
Serretiello, E., Iannaccone, M., Titta, F., G. Gatta, N., & Gentile, V. (2015). Possible pathophysiological roles of transglutaminase-catalyzed reactions in the pathogenesis of human neurodegenerative diseases. AIMS Biophysics, 2(4), 441–457. https://doi.org/10.3934/biophy.2015.4.441
Stevenson, J., Buitelaar, J., Cortese, S., Ferrin, M., Konofal, E., Lecendreux, M., Simonoff, E., Wong, I. C. K., & Sonuga-Barke, E. (2014). Research Review: The role of diet in the treatment of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder – an appraisal of the evidence on efficacy and recommendations on the design of future studies. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 55(5), 416–427. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcpp.12215
Tateya, S., Kim, F., & Tamori, Y. (2013). Recent Advances in Obesity-Induced Inflammation and Insulin Resistance. Frontiers in Endocrinology, 4. https://doi.org/10.3389/fendo.2013.00093
Yu, W., Freeland, D. M. H., & Nadeau, K. C. (2016). Food allergy: immune mechanisms, diagnosis and immunotherapy. Nature Reviews Immunology, 16(12), 751–765. https://doi.org/10.1038/nri.2016.111
Zopf, Y., Baenkler, H. W., Silbermann, A., Hahn, E. G., & Raithel, M. (2009). The Differential Diagnosis of Food Intolerance. Deutsches Ärzteblatt International. https://doi.org/10.3238/arztebl.2009.0359