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INTOLERANCE & ALLERGY SENSITIVITIES

Discover the difference between being allergic and being sensitive or intolerant to an item?

Allergies and intolerances or sensitivities differ by the way the body responds. In the event of an allergy, your immune system causes the reaction which presents in different symptoms. A food sensitivity or food intolerance, is a reaction triggered by the digestive system.

SENSITIVITIES AND INTOLERANCES

Food intolerances or food sensitivities are not immune-mediated and therefore not life-threatening as they are caused by an inability by the body to process or digest a particular food.

Sensitivities and intolerances are more common than food allergies, and both do not involve an immune system response.

Food triggers a sensitivity/intolerance during digestion where the body can’t properly break it down, or the body reacts to the item.

A PERSON COULD BE SENSITIVE OR INTOLERANT TO A FOOD FOR SEVERAL REASONS:

A lack of the correct enzymes you need to digest certain foods.
Reactions to additives/preservatives such as MSG or artificial colours.
Sensitivity to sugars naturally found in particular foods.

ALLERGIES

A food allergy is when the immune system identifies a protein a particular food that has been consumed as an invader to the body and reacts by producing antibodies to fight it.

A food allergy is an immune-mediated reaction to trigger foods with the most common being immunoglobulin E (IgE)-mediated response. They present an immediate reaction when chemicals, like histamine from mast cells, are released too.

Food allergies in certain conditions are fatal, unlike intolerances or sensitivities. In severe cases, the ingesting or contact with a small amount of the allergen can cause a severe reaction.

In addition, non-IgE mediated food allergies occur when other parts of the immune system are activated.

Symptoms of non-IgE reactions are usually present as a delayed reaction and occur primarily in the gastrointestinal tract.