Food Allergy

What is food allergy?

Food allergy is an immune system response to a food that the body mistakenly identifies as harmful. Once the immune system decides that a particular food is harmful, it produces specific antibodies to it. When the individual eats this food next time, the body releases a large amount of histamines to protect the body. The allergy can affect the respiratory system, gastrointestinal tract, cardiovascular system and skin.

What are the common foods that produce allergy?

Vegetables, fruits and meat could be allergic; there are foods which account for 90% of all food allergies. These are milk, egg, groundnut, tree nut (cashew, walnut etc.), shellfish, fish, Soya bean and wheat.

Approximately 30% of the world population is suffering from allergies.

Food allergy:

• Adults, approximately 1% to 2%

• Children, approximately 2% to 8%

• In adolescence they come down approximately to 2%

• Allergies of our breathing system together, approximately 20%

• Prescription drugs and over-the-counter drugs, approximately 10%
It is very important to know about the side effects of the medicines.

For further information please vide the book entitled ’The side effects of medicines’ by Dr. Kaniappan Padmanaban, www.aaronverlag.com).

What is gluten allergy?

Gluten is a protein consisting of a mixture of glentelin and gliadin, present in cereal grains, especially wheat, rye and barley. Gluten-sensitive enteropathy is an auto-immune disease of the intestine.

• Oats may be tolerated in small amount if the allergy is not very serious.

• Milk and dairy products are not tolerated by those persons who develop lactose intolerance frequently.

What are the foods recommended to a person who has gluten allergy?

The recommended foods include:

• Gluten free grains, breads, cereals, pastas

• Rice, corn, fermented soy, arrowroot, potato, and tapioca-containing products are all allowed.

• Breads may contain flour prepared from white or brown rice, potato, tapioca, arrowroot, pea, corn or bean.

• Cereals include those from corn meal, buckwheat, puffed rice and crisp rice.

• Pasta made of rice, corn and beans.

• Quinoa and Amaranth

• Malt or malt flavouring derived specifically from corn.

• Vegetables and Fruits

• Meats

Dairy Products:

• Aged hard cheeses pasteurized and processed cheeses including cottage cheese and cream cheese, and ice cream are free of gluten stabilizers. Most children tolerate little milk sugar containing milk and yogurt soon after starting a gluten-free diet.

Salad dressings, condiments and additives:

• Many salad dressings, condiments and additives are gluten-free, although there are a number that do contain gluten or wheat derivatives. Please read labels carefully. Apple, wine and rice vinegars are generally acceptable. If you are not sure do not eat it.

Drinks and Juices:

• Very few non-alcoholic drinks include gluten, do not drink unknown juices.

• Freshly brewed coffee, tea, chocolate made of powdered cocoa, carbonated drinks, and juices extracted from fresh fruits are preferred.

What foods must be avoided?

The foods not allowed include:

• Grains, Breads, Cereals, Pastas that contain a high proportion of gluten

• Anything made with wheat, barley, rye and oats. Breads or cereals containing wheat starch have small amount of gluten; as do cereals and crackers containing wheat and oat bran, graham and wheat germ. Cereals or breads containing malt flavouring of unspecified origin, regular spaghetti, macaroni, and wheat noodles contain gluten.

• Packed rice mixes contain gluten.

• Vegetables and Fruits – always find which one is good to you, avoid others

• Stay away from products containing thickening agents that utilize food starches and stabilizers with gluten. Thickening agents often contain wheat flour and are found in products like fruit pie fillings.

• Meats - prepared meats include luncheon meats, sausages, and canned meats containing grain and starch fillers with gluten.

• Even in freshly minced meat additives are used with gluten and it can be everywhere.

• Dairy Products:
cheese foods include spreads, soft cheeses, and dips often contain gluten.

• Some ice creams can contain gluten stabilizers. If there is no label or if you are not sure, avoid it.

• Salad dressings: These contain grain vinegars including distilled white vinegar if the type of vinegar is not stated. Some contain emulsifiers and stabilizers with gluten.

• Drinks and Juices:

Some brands of flavoured coffee, herbal tea, and instant cocoa mixes, including malted milk. Grain-derived drinks including ovaltine.

• Spices and additives

• Most soy sauces contain gluten

• Soups or broths containing bouillon, unspecified texturized or hydrolyzed vegetable protein, vegetable gum from oats and any other product containing an unspecified flour or cereal, barley malt, wheat starch and caramel candy may contain gluten.

Other potential harmful ingredients are as follows:

• Modified food starch
• Unidentified starch
• Hydrolyzed vegetable protein
• Texturized vegetable protein
• Binders, fillers and extenders
• Natural flavourings

What is the truth about gluten und medicines?

If a medicine is not declared ‘gluten free’ on its label, it can be dangerous.

In prescription and over-the-counter drugs, fillers or inactive ingredients or excipients are added to the active drug. These provide shape and bulk for tablets and capsules so that you think are worth for your money. They can be from any starch source such as potatoes, tapioca, wheat and corn.

What about bakery products?

If a bakery product is not declared ‘gluten free’, it is dangerous. Here also it is used to keep up the form of cakes and other baked biscuits. You must be careful always. It is not different in processed foods.

What are the symptoms of food allergy?

The common symptoms include:

• Swelling of the throat and tongue, difficulty in breathing
• Abdominal cramps
• Vomiting,
• Diarrhoea,
• Low blood pressure,
• Loss of consciousness and death.

The symptoms appear within minutes to two hours. But in extreme cases, it could be more than two hours.

What is the treatment for food allergy?

One must avoid these foods very strictly and eat no unknown food from any source.

Is there any medicine for food allergies?

Adrenaline is the medicine of choice to control the reaction and thereby the symptoms. There are no medicines to cure food allergies currently. As told, strict avoidance is the only way to prevent food allergies. You must go for a counselling to know healthy foods for you. It is possible to manage your life as usual. Antihistaminic drugs are also here useful.

Is it possible to find food allergies in blood?

Yes, it is possible to find the allergic food by conducting the blood test.

Is it possible to have allergy-free diet?

It is easy to find out but very time consuming. Food can stay in body for a period of maximum four days. So eat some of your favourite food and wait for four days and if there are no symptoms, this food is good. During this time you should not eat any known allergic food. Like this you can test all your food and have a big collection of allergy-free food. It takes time, but improves your life quality.

Everything is possible if you have the will.

Read Dr. K. Padmanaban’s “Food and our Health – Facts and Misconceptions”. www.aaronverlag.com

Menstrual problems and food

Menstrual problems may also be a reason for infertility in women and it is better to know about it clearly. The role of food in menstruation is explained here.

What are the menstrual problems?

At first, a few words about everything, the ovaries produce the two main female sex hormones, estrogens and progesterone. A large quantity of estrogens is produced when a girl reaches puberty, about 9-13 years old. This enables her to develop quickly into a normal young woman with the child bearing capacity. In this reproductive phase of her life, the menstruation plays a vital role.

The common problems relating her menstrual flow are:

• Pre-menstrual tension
• Painful menstruation and
• Excessive menstruation.

If there is a problem which you cannot manage alone, report and consult your doctor as early as possible.


What are the pre-menstrual tension symptoms?

Some women few days before menstruation become irritable and nervous and may also suffer from fullness in the breasts, headache, insomnia, swelling in the legs and even depression. Acne, bloating, backache, constipation, diarrhoea, abdominal cramp, difficulty in concentrating and difficulty in handling stress can be also the other symptoms.

These are mainly because of hormonal imbalance and these symptoms disappear within a day of the start of the menstrual flow.

What is a painful menstruation?

Painful menstruation is a very common problem and this symptom can appear immediately before or during the menstrual flow. Some women have this pain two or three days before the flow. Here also the reason is hormonal imbalance.

What is the excessive menstrual flow?

This is common in women, some diseases like fibroids or the hormones play a role here. The excessive menstrual flow is a risk factor for anaemia.

If the menstruation stops, what are the reasons?

It is only abnormal when a woman is not pregnant or at the menopause. The main causes of menstrual stoppage are anaemia, serious emotional disturbances such as grief, worry and fear. Malformation or displacement of the womb can also be the reason. It may also happen during some sickness or after an illness. Jetlag is also one of the reasons for disturbed menstruation in air hostesses.

Does food play a role here?

There are many foods which may help here, to tell a few, calcium, manganese, fat and cholesterol.

What is the role of calcium here?

Foods rich in calcium like a glass of skimmed milk every day apart from your normal meal may help to prevent and cure mood changes and physical pain before or during your period. At the same time all other health aspects must also be considered taking more calcium and an optimum amount could be found out with the help of your dietician.

What about manganese?

The problem here is with heavy menstrual flow, just imagine the flow is almost the double amount than normal, the body loses more manganese, iron, copper, zinc and other essential elements because of increased blood loss. The cause for the heavy flow is not known. Fruits, especially pineapple, vegetables, whole grains products, nuts and seeds contain many essential elements we need including manganese.

Black or green tea has also high manganese content.

What is the role of cholesterol here?

One of the greatest threats to menstruation and reproduction is a deficiency of cholesterol in the diet as well as in your body. Even LDL or bad cholesterol is important to menstruate normally. Women who want to be slim or thin try fanatically with exercises and with diet to reduce the amount of fat in their body, thus wrecking their menstrual cycle which may even lead to temporary infertility. These women are also susceptible to fragile bones and osteoporosis in later years.

It is possible with correct food, enough exercises and with normal menstrual cycle you can be slim, the simple thing to achieve this is, you must know only how to do that.

Are carbohydrates, including sugar and chocolates a cure or cause for pre-menstrual symptoms?

Many women feel less depression, confusion, fatigue, tension and anger and it may be because carbohydrates produce higher amount of serotonin, a neurotransmitter which can elevate the mood. The main reason is relaxation. So do not deny a craving for carbohydrates including chocolates, sweets and desserts during your period. This is also good to reduce cramp and sluggishness.

Small portion, but often, in two to three hours can do well, but try to find out which is good for you to get relief from your suffering.

What about coffee?

If you have pre-menstrual symptoms which upset your life, give up coffee and other beverages with caffeine for few months to see whether it helps you. But, one to two cups a day may not bring problems and if you drink more, reduce it to one cup. Here the information from the women is very contradictory, sometimes it helps and sometimes, it does not.

What about smoking?

Stop it immediately, it helps you surely. Even in India 2.6% of the women do smoke.

What about alcohol?

It is advisable not to drink alcohol because pain, headache and cramp are not in a line with alcohol consumption. It may help in small amount in postmenopausal women only.

What about processed foods?

It is better to avoid all the processed foods.

What about having an ‘all fruits day’ in a week?

It is generally good for your health which can also have influence in your menstrual cycle, do not forget to eat bananas because you need calories to do your normal work.

Are there home remedies for this problem?

There are several home remedies for this problem as follows:

Sesame seeds
Coriander seeds
Ginger
Parsley
Papaya
Bengal gram
Banana flower
Mango bark
Ashoka tree bark
Indian barberry

These may help in menstruation problems, try slowly to find out the correct one and the amount needed for your problems or consult your doctor or dietician.

In my own experience many women in the child bearing age drink less water. It is a must to drink, three to four litre water per day. If they sweat more, they have to drink more. 70% of the fluid intake must be pure drinking water and it does always good.