Generally when we eat something and it makes us feel sick or break out in hives we say "I am allergic to that".

Food allergies produce specific reactions. The immune system releases chemicals to fight what it perceives as something bad.

Food intolerance on the other hand can make you bloated or gassy. This is one of the symptoms of IBS or Irritable Bowel Syndrome. Every thing you eat is going to change your stool to some extent. However, if you have a change in consistency or frequency or mucus in the stool you probably have a food intolerance.

The most common causes of food intolerance are dairy and wheat.

To make it a littler harder on you, as we age, we become more intolerant of foods. Taking a degestive enzyme is almost as necessary as the daily vitamin for older folks.

To complicate the situation you might have a yeast infection aggravated by too much sugar intake. Yeast infections can invade the entire body. This is too complicated to go into very much here. But suffice it to say that high-fructose corn syrup is in almost every product you buy at the grocery store. Your body does not process HFCS as it does sugar. HFCS does not trigger the release of leptin which tells you that you are full. Processed sugar does trigger leptin.

An easy answer for the IBS symptoms is taking a probiotic every day. This will ensure that the bowel is in balance with good bacteria. That good bacteria will prevent the leaky gut that pours toxins into your blood stream.

One thing is sure - food allergy or food intolerance - if something you eat makes you feel bloated, sleepy, itchy or shaky - don't eat it any more.

Sometimes after a meal you don't know which of the food items is the culprit.

Answer for that is green tea. Green tea has catechins which can block the release of histamine in the stomach which would help if the food is causing an allergic reaction. Yes another reason to drink green tea.

Sharon Owen publishing Answers For Your Health. Get daily tips by blog - Natural Health Blog

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