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Food allergy and sensitivity is an important, complex, and often overlooked cause of symptoms and disease. Chasing down the culprits may require the services of a doctor. To further complicate matters, delayed food reactions can be cyclic or fixed in nature.- Cyclic types account for 80+% of food allergies. A sensitivity may slowly develop by repetitive eating of a food. Avoidance for months may result in tolerance again unless eaten too frequently. Such foods may be tolerated every one to four days.
- Fixed allergies are sensitivities that occur whenever a food is eaten regardless of the time span between contacts.
Some physicians claim that food allergies are the leading cause of most undiagnosed symptoms. There are basically two methods of detecting which foods may be causing symptoms.- Experimentation. Going on an elimination diet (fasting, or consuming foods which have a low allergic rate such as rice, lamb, cabbage) for 4-7 days until symptoms clear. Reintroducing foods one at a time may point to the culprit. An elimination diet can be accurate, but difficult at the same time.
- Food allergy testing. Recent improvements in laboratory techniques have made blood testing more reliable. Costs for the tests run from $130.00 to $300.00 for 90+ foods, but can be a valuable and time-saving approach.
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