Allergies,

Food Intolerances and Chemical Sensitivities

The above problems are often lumped together under the general term “allergies”, but this is not strictly correct. True allergic reactions are caused when a substance activates the body’s immune system, causing the release of a particular type of antibody, immunoglobulin IgE. The anti­bodies attack the “intruder”, causing increased temperature, inflammation or both. Food intolerances and chemical sensitivities do not involve the immune system, but can nevertheless cause unpleasant symptoms.

Allergies cause hundreds of different symptoms; mental, emotional and physical. These can include eczema, arthritis, IBS, asthma, digestive problems, hyperactivity, panic attacks, depression, dizziness, catarrh, fatigue, palpitations, tinnitus, weight gain, oedema and high blood pressure.

Causes

Weak and/or overstressed adrenal glands

The adrenal glands are connected with the stress response. It is much less well known that these glands are also responsible for the production of corticosteroids, the body’s own anti-inflammatory agents, which protect against allergies.

When stress occurs, adrenaline is released to initiate the “fight or flight” response. Over-stimulation of this function will eventually exhaust the adrenal glands, reducing cortico­steroid production. Overconsumption of stimulants such as caffeine has the same effect, as do sugars, refined carbohydrates and alcohol.

The modern high refined carbohydrate diet is a major cause of increased allergic reactions.

Vaccines and other drugs

T-cells are produced by the thymus gland. These cells help to suppress the formation of excess antibodies, and thus reduce allergic reactions. They  can be destroyed by many vaccines, antibiotics and some drugs. Chemical exposure and viral infections can have the same effect.

Incorrect weaning

Three groups of foods – milk-based products, eggs and grains containing gluten cause problems for many people. Many people inherit an inability to digest milk sugar. When this problem is present, milk sugar passes undigested into the lower intestine, where it ferments, producing gas, bloating and pain.

Where an intolerance to gluten exists, irritation is set up in the walls of the duodenum, and the villi, where most absorption of nutrients takes place, are worn away. This decreases nutrient absorption, and also causes the intestinal walls to become more permeable to toxins, which can get into the blood and set up problems all over the body.

A large part of the problem with these foods is caused by incorrect weaning. If “foreign” proteins are introduced too early, they can penetrate into the bloodstream and set up a lifelong tendency to allergies.

The ideal is for breastfeeding to continue for 9-12 months, and for milk, eggs and solid foods to be introduced gradually. Goats’ milk is closer in composition to mother’s milk than is cows’ milk, and this would be better. Amylase, the enzyme used for digestion of starches, is not present for the first four to six months of life, so milk sugar and the starches in grains cannot be digested.

The factors mentioned above have been a major cause of allergies for a long time, but over the last fifty years or so, three new factors have appeared:

A greatly increased consumption of sugars and refined carbohydrates

Sugars reduce effectiveness of the immune system and many other functions of the body. They have been stripped of the nutrients that are normally supplied by wholefoods and that are needed for many metabolic functions.

Chemicals in food

More and more chemicals are getting into the food chain, from the fields to the factories. Artificial fertilisers and pesticides are sprayed onto the plants, animals and poultry are fed antibiotics and growth hormones, and preservatives, colours and flavour enhancers are added in the factories. This influx of chemicals has been too fast for evolution to adjust to.

Candidiasis,

an overgrowth of a fungus called Candida Albicans, has reached epidemic proportions over the last twenty years. This is a fungus that is resident in the intestines of most people, but doesn’t cause a problem because it is kept in check by the intestines’ normal population of beneficial bacteria, which prevent multiplication of the fungus by occupying its potential living space.

In an increasing number of people, these unpleasant organisms are no longer under control. This is because of two main factors:

Indiscriminate use of antibiotics and steroids, such as cortisone

Antibiotics kill bacteria. The problem is that they don’t know the difference between the beneficial and harmful bacteria. Continual use of antibiotics will eventually kill off most beneficial bacteria, causing the population of candida yeast and other pathogens to explode. The most guilty in this respect are the broad-spectrum antibiotics used for purely cosmetic purposes such as treating acne.

Steroids,

the modern “miracle” drugs, boost the growth of various pathogens to quite a large degree.

Treatment

Diet

Eliminate for a period the most common problem foods; milk, wheat, eggs, chemicals, sugar and caffeine.

In severe cases use only organically produced foods; this will reduce the toxic load enormously.

Kill Candida

Questionnaires are available that will indicate fairly reliably whether candidiasis is present. We can then advise.

Supplements

¨      Vitamin A and zinc; useful for the condition of all membranes, inside & out.

¨      Vitamin B5 (Pantothenic Acid) and vitamin C; the two main nutrients for adrenal function.

¨      B Complex; aids vitamins B5 and C.

¨      Magnesium and calcium; have anti-spasmodic effects.

¨      Selenium; anti-inflammatory.

¨      Essential fatty acids (starflower and linseed oils); strong anti-inflammatories.

Herbals

¨      Scutellaria (Scullcap); particularly effective for the breathing passages and eyes.

¨      Pine bark and grapeseed extracts; because of their powerful antioxidant effects, can improve the condition of tissues so much that they are resistant to allergens.

Cats claw; has been shown to have good anti-allergy effects in many cases.

To buy any of these products, click this link: www.NationalNutrition.co.uk