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Allergies
Some of us experience adverse reactions to certain foods – some reactions are only mildly discomforting, whereas others may be life-threatening. There are a number of terms used to describe adverse reactions to foods.
Food intolerance is used as a general umbrella term, which refers to non-psychological, unpleasant reactions to a specific food or ingredient.
Food allergy is a specific type of food intolerance, resulting in an abnormal reaction by the immune system.
Often people presume they have a food allergy or intolerance when they do not; diagnosing food allergy is not a simple task as we all eat so many different types of food simultaneously. In adults, food intolerance occurs in around 1-2% of the population and only a small proportion of this number are truly allergic to food. In children, the incidence of food intolerance is estimated as being 5-7%, though most outgrow this by school age.
This section explores various foods and the symptoms caused by allergy.
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