Allergy, Intolerance, or Distaste?
Continuing on my food and nutrition jag, another topic around which there is a lot of misinformation and misunderstanding is food allergies. First, let us nail down what is a food allergy. An allergy is the immune system overreacting to a harmless substance. To be clear, this overreaction can be severe and life threatening and goes far beyond the itchy eyes and runny nose of seasonal allergies. Other things commonly referred to as food allergies are usually various forms of food intolerance.
It used to really bother me to hear people refer to things like lactose intolerance or celiac as food allergy because that is not at all correct. Then I realized that people in the medical profession commonly use “allergy” to mean “adverse reaction.” An example is medication “allergies.” For example, some antihistamines cause my ears to ring, which is an adverse reaction, so they are listed as a medication to which I am allergic, although I take them to suppress allergic reactions to pollen.
I am also lactose intolerant, which some people think of as being allergic to milk. Milk does not cause an allergic reac- tion for me, but it is hard for me to digest. The problem is that my body does not produce enough of the lactase enzyme that breaks down the sugars in the milk—lactose—so it causes all sorts of issues that you do not want to read about. There is a true milk allergy, but that is an allergic reaction to milk protein, casein. Casein allergies can cause vomiting, hives, and the worst-case scenario of any allergic reaction, anaphylaxis, a life-threatening reaction.
Celiac is a very serious autoimmune disorder triggered by protein in wheat and some other grains, known as gluten. There is also a true wheat allergy that triggers allergic reactions such as those listed above. Also, there is Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity, which is basically difficulty digesting one of more components of wheat, similar to lactose intolerance.
Then there are people who will say they are allergic to cucumbers or bell peppers because when they eat those things they burp a lot or may get heartburn. These are adverse reactions, not allergies. I have even known people to claim allergies to any and every food that they do not like the taste or texture of, or otherwise think is gross or disgusting.
The big reason I think it is important to know the difference between food allergies and all the other adverse reactions to food is that true food allergies can be deadly. Even very serious non-allergic food reactions like celiac will not kill a person within minutes of ingesting a food the way an allergy can. My observation is that the more we throw around that “allergy” word when what we really mean is adverse reaction to or a distaste for a food, the less seriously everyone takes true food allergies. An allergic reaction can be real life-and-death situation.
One final truth bomb related to this topic: Dairy refers to things that originate in a cow’s udders. Despite the fact that eggs are generally sold in the dairy case of the store, they come from chickens, not cows, so are not subject to a dairy allergy. And despite the fact that mayonnaise and Miracle Whip look white and creamy like some dairy products, no part of them comes from a cow so they, also, are not subject to a dairy allergy. Knowledge is power!