Food Sensitivity or Food Allergy? What is the Difference?
Having an unpleasant reaction to something you've eaten is a common experience. We've all been there. Stomach aches, gas, and bloating, even constipation or diarrhea after eating something that doesn't agree with you is a universal experience. But if you have a sensitivity to a particular food, you may find you experience these symptoms frequently along with additional side effects.
Food allergies are also common but tend to be more severe than sensitivities and have some important hallmark differences. It can be helpful to know how to distinguish between the two.
What is the difference between food sensitivity and food allergy?
Food Sensitivities
Typically irritate the digestive system.
Symptoms include bloating, gas, diarrhea, constipation, cramping, nausea, joint pain, brain fog, mood imbalances, and skin conditions. More on skin conditions here.
Reactions can happen quickly or up to 72 hours after the food is eaten.
Sensitivity can depend on the amount consumed, a specific combination of foods eaten together, or any amount of the food eaten by itself. Some people can tolerate a small amount of the particular food on occasion but not when consumed regularly.
*Associated with IgG antibody activation.
Common food sensitivities include: dairy, sulfites, histamines, gluten, caffeine, FODMAPS (short-chained carbohydrates whose sources include wheat, garlic, onion, legumes, dairy, and some grains).
Food Allergies
Can cause a severe systemic allergic reaction
Symptoms can include those similar to food sensitivity, hives, swelling, shortness of breath, itching, anaphylaxis, dizziness, swelling of the face or tongue.
Can be potentially life-threatening
Can occur within a few minutes to 2 hours of exposure to the food
Even a small amount of the food can cause a reaction, and the reaction occurs every time the food is eaten.
*Associated with IgE antibody activation.
Triggers an immune system response.
Some of the most common food allergens include milk, eggs, fish, shellfish, peanuts, tree nuts, wheat, and soybeans.
*IgG antibodies are the most common in humans and are found in all body fluids. They are typically associated with a delayed immune system reaction. IgE antibodies are found in the lungs, skin, and mucous membranes and are associated with an immediate allergic reaction.
An IgG-based reaction is less severe and typically lasts longer than an IgE reaction.
Food sensitivities are common among certain health conditions. They can often be found in autoimmune diseases like Hashimoto's Thyroiditis, Graves Disease, Rheumatoid Arthritis, and Sjorgren's. People with IBS and other digestive disorders often find that their symptoms improve when they eliminate certain foods. The same is true for some children with ADHD, Autism, and other cognitive challenges or health issues. After eliminating foods like gluten, dairy, and certain food additives, attention and behavioral difficulties have been known to improve, and frequent ear and throat infections and skin irritations can resolve.
For more about how food sensitivities can affect behavior click here.
For more about digestive issues in children and the symptoms they can cause click here.
If you are intolerant to a food, it can cause inflammation in the body, which can weaken the gut lining and cause intestinal permeability. When proteins from the food we eat pass through the gut lining into the bloodstream, this can trigger an immune system response. We often see this response due to leaky gut in those with autoimmune conditions. This immune response can serve to perpetuate the disease and inflammatory state of the body.
The best approach to alleviating symptoms of food sensitivity is adopting a temporary elimination diet. This can be done in a few ways depending on the specific sensitivity. One easy way is to eliminate the food you suspect is causing discomfort for 2-4 weeks and observe whether symptoms subside. You can then reintroduced the food slowly to see if symptoms reappear. This method can help identify which foods you are reacting to and which are not problematic.
More in-depth elimination diets can be attempted with the guidance of a nutritionist. A nutritionist can help you design a diet free of problematic foods while maintaining nutrient density thereby ensuring that you don't miss out on critical nutrients. If you need to eliminate multiple foods it is often advised to reintroduce them on a specific timeline. A nutritionist can help with this as well. An elimination diet coupled with a gut healing protocol including prebiotic and probiotic-rich foods can resolve many cases of gut dysbiosis. Once the gut is healed food sensitivities are often resolved and those foods that were once not tolerated well can be added back into the diet.
In the case of food allergy, the offending food needs to be eliminated permanently.