Food Intolerances can affect daily living for patients and can cause troublesome symptoms. Accurate testing is vital to highlight which foods the patient is intolerant to. Many blood tests may be administered to detect and analyze food intolerances.
Sometimes, certain foods can cause you to experience unpleasant symptoms, even if they may be deemed ‘healthy’ food options.
Symptoms of Food Intolerance
Specific foods could trigger several food intolerance symptoms. These food intolerance symptoms could include:
- Nausea
- Stomach pain
- Gas, cramps or bloating
- Vomiting
- Heartburn
- Diarrhoea
- Headaches
- Irritability or nervousness
What is the difference between an allergy, a sensitivity and an intolerance?
Three terms are frequently used for food reactions: food allergy, food sensitivity and food intolerance.
A ‘food allergy’ is usually explicitly reserved for foods that cause a life-threatening reaction involving your immune system’s immunoglobulin E (IgE) antibodies. These reactions are considered true food allergies and can result in responses like anaphylaxis.
Conversely, food sensitivities and intolerances tend not to be life-threatening but can cause the unpleasant symptoms listed above.
Why have a food intolerance blood test?
It can be hard to identify which exact foods or ingredients are responsible for your reaction, especially as reactions can often happen hours after the triggering food was consumed.
To help identify which foods are causing the adverse reactions, some medical professionals may recommend a food intolerance blood test.
There are a few types of food intolerance blood tests available, such as:
- An Immunoglobulin E (IgE) IgE blood test. An IgE blood test measures your immune system’s reaction to specific foods by measuring the immunoglobulin E antibody. IgG is a protein in the blood that functions as an antibody.
- An Antigen Leukocyte Cellular Antibody blood test (ALCAT). Similar to the MRT blood test, the ALCAT assesses which foods may cause a reaction by measuring the changes in your white blood cells. However, this test measures the difference in the size of your white blood cells when exposed to individual food antigens.
- A Mediator Release Test (MRT) blood test. Should your white blood cells shrink when exposed to a specific food antigen when having an MRT blood test conducted, it changes the white blood cells to plasma ratio in your blood sample. This is measured to determine your reactivity to the food. When your white cells shrink upon exposure to these specific foods, they have released chemical mediators, such as histamine and leukotrienes, that could cause these symptoms in your body.
What happens on the day of the test?
Like a typical blood test, food intolerance blood tests are simple. Your doctor or nurse will take a small blood sample and collect it into a test tube or vial.
This usually takes around five minutes.
As each test is different, some dietary preparations may be recommended before each test.
To find out more about our various food intolerance blood tests, please contact us via our contact form, or give us a call.
* Blood tests are ordered by the doctor as needed, based on the patient’s symptoms and concerns. Occasionally alternate or additional tests may be required for accurate diagnosis.
