It is estimated that a quarter of the population will have a bad reaction to food, including allergic reactions, during their lifetime. Mostly in infancy or childhood as the developing immune system is not able to handle the onslaught that is our environment. We now have special lunch tables and EpiPens that need to be ready at a moment’s notice due to the potential life-threatening reaction some people can have. Food intolerances can be just as damaging over the long term of a person’s life.
Food intolerances to things like gluten, corn (looks like wheat to the body), milk, and soy products cause all sorts of symptoms. These have been linked to chronic pain, arthritis, asthma, anxiety/depression, insomnia, and cognitive disorders. So you can see how over a lifetime the hidden problem we call food intolerances mount up to many chronic illnesses. The common issues with all this chronic illness is inflammation! And that inflammation starts in our gut.
It is now known that most of our chronic health issues are due to lifestyle factors. The foods we eat is just one of those. Some of the other main factors are the over-prescribing of antibiotics that kill the beneficial bacteria in the gut. This leaves us open to infections that wreck havoc on our digestive tract and eventually our immune system. Having even just 2 rounds of antibiotics has been linked to many inflammatory diseases like asthma and allergies. Eating a diet that is not organic is also a cause. The pesticides used, especially Round-Up, act as an antibiotic when you eat it. This repeated attack on the digestive tract is like taking a round of antibiotics every day of your life.
The obvious treatment for food allergies and intolerance is to avoid the foods that cause a reaction by the body. This avoidance is good but does not address the underlying cause: a gut that is not healthy. Other things that are beneficial to avoid would be sugar, milk, any artificial flavorings, gluten, and anything that is sprayed with pesticides.
Healing up a gut that is unhealthy is a great way to decrease the body’s response to food. Beginning with an elimination diet is a great place to start – eating real organic food that nature made is essential. Follow that up with some digestive support of stomach acid, digestive enzymes, and gallbladder support to ensure your food is completely broken down. If food is not broken down and is absorbed in larger junks, your body could see that as something it will want to attack creating more allergies/intolerances.
After supporting the digestive process I like to start healing up the gut lining and closing any of the “leaks” that have sprung open. Using specific nutrients like L-glutamine, collagen, and colostrum are beneficial to healing up the lining. Zinc is a great nutrient that I use as well. As the healing process in the gut is going on, I will repopulate the digestive system with beneficial bacteria to make sure the foods we eat are being used for good. One thing I like to tell my patients is that good bacteria eat our food and poop nutrients, while bad bacteria eat our food and poop toxins which makes us sick.
The gut is where it all started in the first place – without a healthy gut, you cannot have a healthy person. In the fight against food allergies, healing the gut is crucial.
-Dr. Brian Opp
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