Food allergy / Intolorence Test

xxfelix

Hi all,

Im having a food testy thingy today! Basically Blood Test and hold a silver bar to see what agrees etc.

Anyhow i just wanted to wish myself luck because i need to sort my diet out just had my 3rd baby (well a year ago) and im on a slippery slope.....so it will be a long road - detox first.......so feel free to wish me luck to boost me on:)

Has anyone done this and stuck to it;)

Byeee

EileenG

I hate to say this, but those tests are a waste of time and money. Didn't stop me trying it, and I got results that told me I was allergic to foods that don't cause me any problems, it didn't find foods that do upset me, and it told me I was allergic to foods I have never eaten in my life. Your body can't produce an allergic reaction to something it hasn't encountered.

If you seriously think you have food issues, try an elimination diet for a week or so (basically, you live on rice, lamb, pears, and a couple of other things which almost never produce allergic reactions) and then you introduce other foods one at a time to see if there's a reaction.

xxfelix

Hey thanks a mill for your reply - thats the test im getting the elimiating one!

Well you get a list of foods you can eat for a couple of weeks along with the blood test! shur ill give it a whirl anyhow!:)

CJhaughey

I thought the Intolerance/allergy test was where they put a drop of a solution of various allergens on your arm and then pricked it with a pin.
No reaction = fine
Reaction is usually a weal developing and the size is measured.
How does holding a silver bar work?

xxfelix

Not quite sure but ill let ya know tomorrow

--Kaiser--

I have the say the 'silver bar' thing sounds like a whole pile of quackery....

xxfelix

Well - the "silver bar" is connected to a machine which tells energy levels 35 would be a good reading - the energy level machine detects areas of the body you have trouble with and this is mostly caused by eating the wrong foods...... and the bloods test is done against over 300 food items and confirms what she tells from the machine....

Went yesterday and got a reading of 3 1/2 energy reading......not so good she then asked me was i have trouble with the bowel area / pains in sides / reflux with gas in stomach and pains going out my back pains in legs and trouble with my ears all to which i suffer from (thought the bowel and stomach was probably linked to wrong food) She then told me bannans/yogurt must be something i take alot of (i take them everyday) she says my body doesnt like them. She then took blood to confirm this and will send a list in a couple of days with food to stay away from and she will slowly re introduce these and if they play havoc with levels there wrong for me...... one off fee of 100 and back every couple of weeks until this is sorted.....


Ill let ye know how i get on if ya like......bit scared about this list though:rolleyes:

Ouchette

The silver bar, machine and energy levels bit sounds about as scientific as tarot reading to me. Did this person have any medical qualifications?

xxfelix

Ok so im doing this as a last resort to sort my system out and all im getting is knocks.


I wish to close this thread :mad:

piptypibe

Hi XXFELIX
I had some thing very similar done last Monday and I am feeling great after months of feeling unwell!
I have a list as long as my arm of food allergies and am trying my best to stay off them. So far so good but that's because I'm at home controlling what I am eating. The problems will start once I go anywhere!!
I went to the Healthfood shop and have stocked up on few items to help me along the way. They were most helpful there and gave me info on spelt, quinoa etc
I went to the library and got the book-What to eat when you cant eat anything and it's excellent! I made the hummus out of it last night and it's yum! :-)
Best of luck to you. If you are determined (which I am) to feel better by the foods you are eating, you will succeed.

xxfelix

Thanks a mill piptypibe just the boast i need!

Monty Burnz

xxfelix wrote: »

Well - the "silver bar" is connected to a machine which tells energy levels 35 would be a good reading - the energy level machine detects areas of the body you have trouble with

What are these 'energy levels' and how does the machine test them exactly?

Is there any scientific research that says this system works, or is it pseudo-science?

p.s. OP, good luck with the healthy eating

Ouchette

xxfelix wrote: »

Ok so im doing this as a last resort to sort my system out and all im getting is knocks.


I wish to close this thread :mad:

I was just worried you'd get ripped off and/or end up with an unnecessarily restrictive diet. No offence intended, only concern.

dlofnep

Food allergies are amongst the most understudied areas of medicine today. Sure, through trial and error you might be able to find out what foods don't sit well with you - but you're never told why. Up until 5 years ago, I could eat anything with gluten - then all of a sudden, I become completely intolerant. Doctors don't have a clue.

Adelie

dlofnep wrote: »

Food allergies are amongst the most understudied areas of medicine today. Sure, through trial and error you might be able to find out what foods don't sit well with you - but you're never told why. Up until 5 years ago, I could eat anything with gluten - then all of a sudden, I become completely intolerant. Doctors don't have a clue.

I had the exact same thing happen 6 months ago my doc also has no explaination

Sapsorrow

Jesus I really can't get my head around how people are allowed to perform this sort of quackery on people and charge money for it, it's a disgrace :mad:

OP I studied nutritional science for the last four years and did several modules on immunology as well as on food allergies, intolerances and the various tests and I can absolutely guarantee you there is no logical basis for a test like this and there is no possibility that it works. You need to get a proper test done with a doctor or dietician if you want to sort your health out. You are being conned.

dlofnep

Sapsorrow - Did your studies ever look at stomach parasites?

Sapsorrow

dlofnep wrote: »

Sapsorrow - Did your studies ever look at stomach parasites?

Only in the context of human development and third world nutrition. We mainly looked at parasites from tropical regions.

dlofnep

Anything in relation to them & sudden intolerances to specific foods?

hug0

Sapsorrow or anyone else out there who knows, what do you think of the blood tests done by docs to see what vitamins/ minerals you are deficient in. Vitamins that may effect mood etc.

Do you think its worth doing? Anyone you could recommend?

teacosy

hug0 wrote: »

Sapsorrow or anyone else out there who knows, what do you think of the blood tests done by docs to see what vitamins/ minerals you are deficient in. Vitamins that may effect mood etc.

Do you think its worth doing? Anyone you could recommend?

Most tests to look at blood / storage levels of vitamins and minerals are quite expensive (with the exception of iron & B12 tests).
If a doctor/dietitian feels that your diet may be deficient / your recent requirements are increased, then they may suggest an appropriate course of an over the counter multivitamin and mineral supplement.
The tests really aren't deemed to be necessary as the treatment (vit and min supplement) is cheap and safe, and effective in the short term.
If your diet is poor and lacks certain vitamins/minerals in the long term, then this is something which should ideally be addressed with dietary changes.

Sapsorrow

dlofnep wrote: »

Anything in relation to them & sudden intolerances to specific foods?

No, we were learning about parasites in the context of extreme malnutrition and starvation. Leaky gut and the role of Lectins would be the thing to investigate in the case of sudden development of intolerances.

I have a couple of posts here on them:

http://foodfloraandfelines.blogspot.com/search/label/lectins

hug0 wrote: »

Sapsorrow or anyone else out there who knows, what do you think of the blood tests done by docs to see what vitamins/ minerals you are deficient in. Vitamins that may effect mood etc.

Do you think its worth doing? Anyone you could recommend?

If you have medical issues and your doctor or dietician thinks that they are likely related to nutritional inadequacies then yes they can be very worth while and they are generally a very reliable indice. Some of the tests they use aren't ideal but they're generally the most scientifically reliable out there.

I tend to get my bloods checked once or twice a year, usually at the recommendation of my doctor, I've never had one prefer to prescribe a supplement as a precautionary measure without actually testing for inadequacy first. That would be a bit suspect in my opinion.

There's no point supplementing with a lot of the vitamins and minerals unless they are really needed as it can be harmful to supplement with unnecessary synthetic supplements. The exception generally being vitamin D3 and K2, which most people are insufficient in.

If it's a mood problem then get your B-vits checked out and if possible your vitamin D3 too. You can pretty much assume you're vit D3 insufficient in this part of the world though, no matter how good your diet is.

teacosy

It's not true to say that taking an appropriate course of a standard over the counter Vit and min and mineral supplement available from a Pharmacist is harmful to health.*They're not a long term solutions, but can be helpful to counteract short term inadequacies in diet or periods of increased requirements. A dietitian (and some doctors) would be able to judge (based on your clincial and dietary history) whether or not you're deficient in any nutrients.* Laboratory tests to confirm nutritional inadequacies in the general population would rarely be considered nceessary.

I'm not sure of any evidence about the Irish population having insufficient levels of Vitamin K2 (either intake or stores, both of which would be very tricky to measure), i'd be interested to read anything new on this if you have the references? Thanks.

Sapsorrow

teacosy wrote: »

It's not true to say that taking an appropriate course of a standard over the counter Vit and min and mineral supplement available from a Pharmacist is harmful to health.

Potentially, yes it is. More to the point, it's usually completely unnecessary.

I don't know what doctors you go to, but I have had my vitamin and mineral levels checked out more times that I can think of since a young age (I was veggie and prone to anaemia), it's a very standard procedure and no big deal at all. I know doctors can assess whether deficiency is likely with an examination but in my experience I've never known one to suspect it and not then test for it to make sure.

Irish people are largely vit D3 deficient, I wouldn't recommend supplementing vitamin D3 without also taking K2.

EDIT: I don't have access to my college database any more so I can't go looking up studies at whim for free, but I did work on the last National Adult Nutrition survey, and believe me after months of interviewing people on their diets and coding endless food diaries, I can be fairly damn certain that the Irish population are not getting enough K2 from their diets.

rocky

Is vitamin A not necessary to balance vitamin D, or are we getting enough of it already? I think vit D without A can cause severe symptoms, granted on big enough doses.

Chris Masterjohn has a good few very detailed articles on the issue.

Sapsorrow

rocky wrote: »

Is vitamin A not necessary to balance vitamin D, or are we getting enough of it already? I think vit D without A can cause severe symptoms, granted on big enough doses.

Chris Masterjohn has a good few very detailed articles on the issue.

You're right, but people in the Western world generally get plenty of vitamin A.

This is why supplementing with multivits is a bad idea, vitamins and minerals work synergistically or antagonistically in many cases, and when you tinker with one, you mess with how another one works. So just going and taking mega doses of all of them at the same time is not a good idea.

teacosy

Sapsorrow wrote: »

Potentially, yes it is. More to the point, it's usually completely unnecessary.

I don't know what doctors you go to, but I have had my vitamin and mineral levels checked out more times that I can think of since a young age (I was veggie and prone to anaemia), it's a very standard procedure and no big deal at all. I know doctors can assess whether deficiency is likely with an examination but in my experience I've never known one to suspect it and not then test for it to make sure.

Irish people are largely vit D3 deficient, I wouldn't recommend supplementing vitamin D3 without also taking K2.

EDIT: I don't have access to my college database any more so I can't go looking up studies at whim for free, but I did work on the last National Adult Nutrition survey, and believe me after months of interviewing people on their diets and coding endless food diaries, I am fairly damn certain that the Irish population are not getting enough K2 from their diets.

I work with many GP surgeries and doctors for over 10 years. Routine test for vitamin and mineral deficiencies (with the exception of iron and b12, because they're cheap, common and readily available) are not the norm. Unnecessary supplementation is very very common too. The national Nutrition Survey that you mentioned also concluded that "Supplementation appears to be beneficial in promoting adequate intakes of some micronutrients, particularly Fe and folate in women aged 18-50 years and vitamin A in men. There appears to be little risk to supplement users of experiencing adverse side effects due to excessive intakes of micronutrients". http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11820922

My memory of the micronutrient paper (have it at work) was that Vit K2 was not mentioned as being problematic.

metamorphosis

k2 seems to be underground for quite some time but the last few years, and I think thanks to a lot of research on its work alongside d3 (weren't there trials done in by Japanese doctors?, i remember reading a few articles last april/may about k2s great effects with bone disease), it's coming up to the fore.

I was surprised that a pharmacist was not actually aware of k2 when i asked her about it, she was aware of vit k and its blood clot properties but had never heard anything of k2.

Sap (or anyone else) - what do you reccomend dosage wise k2. i was taking 4400iu d3 but lowered it a little now and usually take much smaller amounts of k2

teacosy

metamorphosis wrote: »

k2 seems to be underground for quite some time but the last few years, and I think thanks to a lot of research on its work alongside d3 (weren't there trials done in by Japanese doctors?, i remember reading a few articles last april/may about k2s great effects with bone disease), it's coming up to the fore.

I was surprised that a pharmacist was not actually aware of k2 when i asked her about it, she was aware of vit k and its blood clot properties but had never heard anything of k2.

Sap (or anyone else) - what do you reccomend dosage wise k2. i was taking 4400iu d3 but lowered it a little now and usually take much smaller amounts of k2

I'm not sure that there's sufficient evidence to recommend anyone take a daily dose of vitamin k. It would probably do you no harm, but anyone who is pregnant, breastfeeding or has liver or kidney disease should be cautious about taking any type of vit k supplement.

Adelie

I would be interested in the answer to metamorphosis's question and I also have another related K2 question

I'm currently supplementing K2 but I'd like to stop in the future if I think I'm meeting my needs from dietary sources. Right now, I get through nearly a 1/2 lb of Irish butter each week, as well as meat and eggs every day. I guess I'd probably need to add organs to have a chance of getting enough K2 naturally.

So anyone have any idea what I'd need to eat to get enough K2?

teacosy

Adelie wrote: »

I would be interested in the answer to metamorphosis's question and I also have another related K2 question

I'm currently supplementing K2 but I'd like to stop in the future if I think I'm meeting my needs from dietary sources. Right now, I get through nearly a 1/2 lb of Irish butter each week, as well as meat and eggs every day. I guess I'd probably need to add organs to have a chance of getting enough K2 naturally.

So anyone have any idea what I'd need to eat to get enough K2?

Dietary deficiencies of Vit K2 are extremely rare. The human body makes it from bacteria in the intestine. The amounts we make are difficult to measure. Individuals with extensively damaged (or removed) intestines would be most at risk of deficiency. The McCance & Widdowson Composition of Food Tables list only Vit K1 content of foods. Vit K2 is present in many foods (green leafy veg, dairy, meat, cereals, veg oils).

Sapsorrow

There is a difference between deficiency and sub-optimal intake though, just because people aren't overtly deficient doesn't mean they are getting enough for optimum health either.

Metamorphosis, 100mcg a day should be fine if you are supplementing with D3, although El D is the person I would ask as she's very clued up on D3 and K2 metabolism.

teacosy

Sapsorrow wrote: »

There is a difference between deficiency and sub-optimal intake though, just because people aren't overtly deficient doesn't mean they are getting enough for optimum health either.

Metamorphosis, 100mcg a day should be fine if you are supplementing with D3, although El D is the person I would ask as she's very clued up on D3 and K2 metabolism.

But who says our Vit K2 intakes are even near suboptimal? Overt deficient is virtually unheard of in the normal population. There's simply not sufficient evidence to suggest that routine supplementation of vit K2 is necessary.

Sapsorrow

teacosy wrote: »

But who says our Vit K2 intakes are even near suboptimal? Overt deficient is virtually unheard of in the normal population. There's simply not sufficient evidence to suggest that routine supplementation of vit K2 is necessary.

I was discussing it in the context of D3 supplementation, not by itself, in which case it probably would be necessary to supplement.

pampootie

Sapsorrow wrote: »

Irish people are largely vit D3 deficient, I wouldn't recommend supplementing vitamin D3 without also taking K2.

Why not? I've had a quick search on the metabolism but everything I've found is in the context of osteoporosis as opposed to supplementation. Also I have a jar of vitamin D tabs that I've been merrily swallowing away for 2 months without a K2 in sight!

metamorphosis wrote: »

I was surprised that a pharmacist was not actually aware of k2 when i asked her about it, she was aware of vit k and its blood clot properties but had never heard anything of k2.

I'm a pharmacist and this board was the first place I came across K2, to be honest. In my course, vitamin and mineral supplements weren't covered in any depth, so what I know is just what I've learned since from a personal interest in the subject. I've done some distance learning and stuff on it but I actually find this forum to be the best resource I use! I'd love to do some kind of proper course in it to broaden my knowledge but there doesn't seem to be any decent part time ones around.

Sapsorrow

I got an interesting email in my inbox today from someone better at making an argument than me so I thought I'd paste here (I was given permission )

K2 is converted from K1 by bacteria in the gut but only in paltry amounts. K1 does not have the same effects as K2

There is no K2 in vegetables or cereals (only MK7 in fermented natto, and that **** tastes rank!) and teensy amounts in meat. The k2 in dairy is in the fat.

Best dietary sources of K2 are butter and liver, modern society eats little of either

Research showing the importance of K2:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15514282

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15309455?ordinalpos=8&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum

Oh and there are several studies linking folate supplementation with cancer.

teacosy

Sapsorrow wrote: »

I got an interesting email in my inbox today from someone better at making an argument than me so I thought I'd paste here (I was given permission )

K2 is converted from K1 by bacteria in the gut but only in paltry amounts. K1 does not have the same effects as K2

There is no K2 in vegetables or cereals (only MK7 in fermented natto, and that **** tastes rank!) and teensy amounts in meat. The k2 in dairy is in the fat.

Best dietary sources of K2 are butter and liver, modern society eats little of either

Research showing the importance of K2:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15514282

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15309455?ordinalpos=8&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum

Oh and there are several studies linking folate supplementation with cancer.

But the Dutch paper you cite reports cheese as the main dietary source of metaquinone in the dutch population? Hardly something we're short of here in Ireland! They conclude that "Adequate intake of foods rich in menaquinones, such as curds and (low-fat) cheese, may contribute to CHD prevention". They don't sugegst anything about supplementation?
Are you suggesting we recommend the entire population to take K2 supplementation? Or just people who don't eat cheese?

Sapsorrow

teacosy wrote: »

But the Dutch paper you cite reports cheese as the main dietary source of metaquinone in the dutch population? Hardly something we're short of here in Ireland! They conclude that "Adequate intake of foods rich in menaquinones, such as curds and (low-fat) cheese, may contribute to CHD prevention". They don't sugegst anything about supplementation?
Are you suggesting we recommend the entire population to take K2 supplementation? Or just people who don't eat cheese?

Saying cheese is the main source of K2 in the Dutch population isn't the same as saying the Dutch get adequate K2 from cheese.

Again, I'll reiterate, I am talking about K2 supplementation in the context of D3 supplementation, not by itself. If people are supplementing with D3, which they should be in Ireland, then K2 should also be supplemented. You can keep arguing around this point if you like but you won't get anywhere.

Parsley

Sapsorrow wrote: »

Saying cheese is the main source of K2 in the Dutch population isn't the same as saying the Dutch get adequate K2 from cheese.

how did this thread get from the topic of food allergy tests to arguing semantics of the dutch people's cheese eating habits???

teacosy

Parsley wrote: »

how did this thread get from the topic of food allergy tests to arguing semantics of the dutch people's cheese eating habits???

Kinda meandered off the point alright

metamorphosis

It was an interesting topic changeover though, and educational, but kind of funny to see it go from food allergy's to vitamin d3 and k2 and the dutch

Parsley

true, but i think we lost the OP a while back there :P

xxfelix

:P:P:P:P:P:P

Cadyboo

dlofnep wrote: »

Food allergies are amongst the most understudied areas of medicine today. Sure, through trial and error you might be able to find out what foods don't sit well with you - but you're never told why. Up until 5 years ago, I could eat anything with gluten - then all of a sudden, I become completely intolerant. Doctors don't have a clue.

Can I ask how you realised you were intolerant, how did you feel?

xxfelix wrote: »

:P:P:P:P:P:P

OP do you think that the test is working?

xxfelix

Have'nt got my list of what not to eat yet!

Adelie

Cadyboo wrote: »

Can I ask how you realised you were intolerant, how did you feel?

I'm not dlofnep but since I also suddenly became gluten intolerant I'll answer too.

I was avoiding wheat because I noticed it made me slightly bloated, like it does to lots of people, but I was still eating it a couple of times a week because it's in everything and I only had a very minor reaction to it. Like I would eat a pizza once a month and a burger once a week with no major effects.

One day I ate quite a lot, muesli for breakfast, bread for lunch, pasta for dinner. Next evening I got the most awful stomach pains & major bloating & high temperature & sweating which lasted most of the night, and digestive issues for a few days. I put it down to a stomach bug but since then, everytime I ate something like a sandwich the next day I would get pain, bloating, other digestive issues, for a few days. And if I ate something smaller like a biscuit I would still get minor digestive issues without the pain. Have been to a doctor, got blood tests which were all normal, she said it sounded very typical of gluten intolerance and that she would call it IBS.

LuckyGent88

Adelie wrote: »

I'm not dlofnep but since I also suddenly became gluten intolerant I'll answer too.

I was avoiding wheat because I noticed it made me slightly bloated, like it does to lots of people, but I was still eating it a couple of times a week because it's in everything and I only had a very minor reaction to it. Like I would eat a pizza once a month and a burger once a week with no major effects.

One day I ate quite a lot, muesli for breakfast, bread for lunch, pasta for dinner. Next evening I got the most awful stomach pains & major bloating & high temperature & sweating which lasted most of the night, and digestive issues for a few days. I put it down to a stomach bug but since then, everytime I ate something like a sandwich the next day I would get pain, bloating, other digestive issues, for a few days. And if I ate something smaller like a biscuit I would still get minor digestive issues without the pain. Have been to a doctor, got blood tests which were all normal, she said it sounded very typical of gluten intolerance and that she would call it IBS.

Have been having much the same health issues as yourself Adelie and i went to a consultant and got a few tests done( wont go into the details:() and all came back negative including me being a celiac. But went to get an allergy and food intolerant test today and Wheat showed up aswell as a lot of acidic foods and also dairy so i have diagnosed myself with being a celiac so my diet is going to have to change dramatically.
No more Wheatabix :(, startin on the Corn Flakes tomorrow and no more beer either :(

xxfelix

xxfelix wrote: »

Hi all,

Im having a food testy thingy today! Basically Blood Test and hold a silver bar to see what agrees etc.

Anyhow i just wanted to wish myself luck because i need to sort my diet out just had my 3rd baby (well a year ago) and im on a slippery slope.....so it will be a long road - detox first.......so feel free to wish me luck to boost me on:)

Has anyone done this and stuck to it;)

Byeee

Ok so im about 6 weeks in -

And i have lost 1/2 stone but have gone down 2 dress sizes due to not bloating etc- feel fantastic - still off alot of food but been slowly reintroducing some foods and have found out cant take yogurt but thats just 1 prob linked to dairy - no longer bloated/cramps/ constipation/ painfull periods not as bad as use to be so glad got this done and dont feel ive been ripped off!

ggwalie

Can anyone help me identify supermarket foods that do not contain MSG (Monosodium Glutamate), otherwise known as E621 with other various alias names from what I have read. Apparently it is in everything, and it does occur naturally in some foods, while it is added as a flavour enhancer to foods that wouldn't naturally contain it. I recently have developed a severe allergy to MSG. If anyone with the same/similar allergy to MSG could post a list of foods that are safe for you to eat it. Any feedback would be helpful.