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Food Intolerances

Definition- Food intolerance, or food sensitivity, occurs when your digestive system has difficulty processing foods or additives in foods.  This is different than a food allergy that involves the immune system and severe or life-threatening swelling and anaphylaxis.  Sensitivity sets off a cascade of reactions that may appear soon after eating a certain food or may start up to 2 days later depending on your unique enzyme deficiencies, digestion and absorption processes, and metabolism.  Offending foods and symptoms differ in everybody.

Symptoms- sudden or gradual, differ in all people

  • Sinus inflammation and congestion

  • Body inflammation

  • Joint pain

  • Nausea or vomiting

  • Gas and bloating

  • Diarrhea

  • Skin rashes, eczema

  • Headache

  • Fatigue

Functional Medicine Approach

  • You will have a full assessment of your current lifestyle, nutrition, stress level and management, and sleep health and hygiene.

  • Individualized plans of care will be created by the practitioner and patient. 

  •  Symptom tracking and elimination diet is helpful.  Specialized testing of a stool sample that has 86 markers gives us a lot of valuable information not available with traditional lab testing, showing specific imbalances.  Food intolerance testing and toxin profiles may be helpful for stubborn cases. Depending on your specific symptoms, there may be more targeted assessment and testing of blood for anemia, inflammatory markers, and deficiencies of nutrients.  

  • After finding the root cause of illness, plans may be revised.  Solutions can be multi-layered and take time.  We may need to integrate care with a specialist after referral.

  • Planning proper nutrient intake is imperative to ensure that your whole body can heal.  All your systems are connected.  The efficiency of 1 system affects all other systems.

  • Detox plans are gentle and supervised if necessary.

Goals of Treatment

Results vary and depend on the stage of your disease process and your commitment to treatment.

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  • Decreased diarrhea and bathroom emergencies

  • Decreased rectal pain and hemorrhoids

  • Decreased anxiety about outings and travel and meals

  • Decreased abdominal painDecreased joint pain

  • Decreased visits to the doctor’s office

  • Decreased money spent on medicationReturn to normal weight

  • Increased ability to eat a variety of foods

  • Increased energy for friends, family, and activities

  • Increased suppleness of hair, skin, and nails

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Commitment to treatment will improve outcomes.

We will support you every step of the way! 

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