Allergies and Reactions
Are you suffering from a food allergy or food intolerance? Or from Multiple Chemical Sensitivity? Or Toxic Overload? If you are, this could explain a whole host of symptoms that impinge on your vitality and energy. This blog explores how you can find out if you have allergies or intolerances and what you can do about it.
There are two main types of reaction to food: immediate, or delayed. An immediate reaction happens when a person often reacts quickly and violently to a food or substance. This is called an allergy.
In delayed response, the allergic reaction occurs a few hours or even days after eating the food and this is called an intolerance or a sensitivity.
Immediate reaction responses can include:
- Itchy red eyes
- Tingling, itching or swelling in the lips, tongue and mouth
- Face or throat swelling
- Difficulty swallowing and breathing
- Wheezing, choking, breathlessness, noisy breathing
- Metal taste in your mouth
- Coughing
- Sneezing or blocked nose
- Fast and irregular heartbeat
- Itchy body
- Widespread rash on the skin (like nettle-rash)
- Diarrhoea within an hour of eating
- Confusion and anxiety
In extreme cases, foods and substances can cause an anaphylactic shock, which is a particularly severe and potentially life-threatening version of the reactions above.
Delayed Response symptoms can include:
- Headaches and migraines
- Mouth ulcers
- Irregular heartbeat
- Chest pain
- Heartburn
- Nausea and indigestion
- Stomach cramps
- Diarrhoea
- Constipation
- Aching muscles and joints
- Backache
- Water retention (oedema)
- Fatigue
Other symptoms include excessive hunger or thirst, twitching muscles, muscle cramps, restless legs, numbness, insomnia and excessive sleeping.
Interestingly, people are often sensitive to the foods that they eat most often. These can include wheat products (breads, pasta, breakfast cereals etc), dairy, soya, gluten and eggs – which are all staple foods in the UK.
Eliminate toxins
From a nutritional therapist’s perspective, detoxification is about eliminating toxins and nourishing the body with healthy nutrients.
Our bodies can give us indications when our liver is functioning poorly and when we need detoxification and cleansing from toxins. For instance, if you suffer from fever, nausea or have difficulty digesting fatty food, you may have too many toxins in your body. Or if you have increased sensitivity to cigarette smoke, strong perfume, petrol and other chemicals, this is also an indication that you need to look after your liver!
We have specific enzymes in our bodies to allow our bodies to cope with the onslaught of toxins! These specific enzymes promote clearance and the balance of enzymes determines the efficiency of detoxification.
We are also continually excreting toxins from our body via urine, stools, sweat and normal breathing processes. Incidentally, this is why it is essential to prevent constipation. The stool is loaded with toxins and since blood goes from the bowel to the liver, constipation causes the liver to overwork. I have got a great green smoothie recipe which is helpful for relieving constipation and boosting liver function.
Read my blog ‘Do I need to detox?’ if you feel like you need a more intense detox or if you want to try other ways of helping the body’s natural cleansing processes.
It is also important to eliminate toxins from the water we drink and the air we breathe, as I explore in more detail in my blog ‘Exposing Hidden Toxins’.
Having plants such as cacti, succulents, ferns and palms can clean the air, help you get a good night’s sleep, reduce stress and anxiety, help you get well soon and boost your brain power. Plant respiration means plants take in dangerous pollutants in the air and release clean oxygen. The bigger the plant and the bigger the leaves, the better its ability to purify and remove toxins from the air. And of course, beautiful plants such as the flamingo lily or peace lily bring great joy and wellbeing into your life as well!
Make sure to avoid chemicals and try to stay away from chemical-filled candles and air fresheners as they are known to contain carcinogens. Instead use all-natural beeswax candles and plenty of fresh air!
What can we do to improve the quality of the water we drink every day? We know there are traces of chemicals such as chlorine, fluoride, pesticide and herbicide residues, and pharmaceutical drug residues are found in our tap water. Although these levels of toxins are considered to be safe, over the long term they accumulate in the tissues of the body and can cause long-term health problems. You can find out more about water quality in my blog on drinking water.
I hope this post has given you more insight into how to identify and remove some of the toxins that fuel food and environmental allergies.
With every blessing,
Emma
Emma Maitland-Carew – Registered Nutritional Therapist
Dip.ION, mBANT, CHNC Registered Practitioner,
Metabolic Balance® Coach, HeartMath Coach, Accredited Wellbeing Coach.
