Do you have food allergies but don’t know it?
You may be suffering from food allergies and not even know it.
Food sensitivities are common, in fact, 20% of the world’s population is averse to a certain type of food. An elimination diet is a great way of understanding the effects that certain foods have on your body.
Apart from helping you identify the source of your food allergies, an elimination diet could also help you solve bloating, gas, diarrhea, constipation, and even acne breakouts.
How does an elimination diet work?
An elimination diet is practiced in two phases. The elimination phase and the reintroduction phase, with the entire process taking anywhere between three to eight weeks.
The first phase involves eliminating potential food triggers that you suspect might be causing your food sensitivities.
If you are not sure which foods to start eliminating, you might want to try commonly known foods that cause allergies such as nuts, soy, gluten, eggs, pork, and seafood.
During this phase, you’ll observe how your body reacts without these foods.
Are you still suffering from the same symptoms after 2 to 3 weeks? Then the eliminated foods might not be the trigger.
If you do notice a change, you can slowly (over a period of three days) introduce the food as you look for any symptoms like rashes, headaches, joint pain, bloating, and more.
If you don’t experience any symptoms of sensitivity, then that food should be safe to eat.
You can repeat this process for each of the food groups.
What are the best practices for food allergies?
An effective elimination diet is designed to be restrictive. The more restrictive it is, the better you can understand your food triggers.
That would mean eliminating as many foods as possible during the elimination phase and reintroducing them slowly to figure out how your body reacts to each.
Although you can practice an elimination diet at home, it is best done under the supervision of a professional dietician or health professional.
This professional will be able to tell you which foods to avoid and when to introduce them back into your diet.
Benefits of an elimination diet for food allergies
While we have spoken about the main benefit of this type of diet, there are other reasons why this will be great for your health.
- It will reduce the symptoms of IBS
- It may help reduce the symptoms of ADHD
- It can help people suffering from esophagitis
- It improves skin conditions like eczema
- It can help people suffering from chronic migraines
Risks of an elimination diet
The benefits of an elimination diet outweigh the risks. However, prolonged periods without certain foods can cause nutrient deficiencies. That is why this diet should not take more than 8 weeks.
It is also not advisable to take growing children through this diet since it could stunt their growth.
If you suspect that your child might be suffering from a food allergy or sensitivity, speak to their healthcare provider who can take them through this diet.
In Conclusion
Elimination diets are great at helping you identify your food allergies. But they only work if you follow the process.
Understanding what to cut out can be difficult and that is why it is recommended that you speak first to a nutritionist or qualified healthcare professional.
At Angel Longevity, we understand the effects that diets can have on your body. Before putting you on any diet, we first conduct thorough tests to identify what foods trigger different conditions in your body.
We also specialize in food allergy testing and support so you can accurately determine what your food allergies are and find treatments that work.
We go beyond an elimination diet. We get to the root cause without having you spend weeks to months trying to definitively identify triggers – and that is why we are so successful.
None of the statements on this blog have been evaluated by the FDA. Furthermore, none of the statements on this blog should be construed as dispensing medical advice nor making claims regarding the cure of diseases. You should consult a licensed health care professional before starting any supplement, dietary, or exercise program, especially if you are pregnant or have any pre-existing injuries or medical conditions. These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any diseases.
