<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>>

 
Thanks to everyone who sent information about food allergies.
 
Several people recommended testing by Enterolabs. The web site is
www.enterolab.com <http://www.enterolab.com/> 
 
A traditional test is the elimination diet. A recommended site is
www.drcranton.com/elimination_diet.htm
 
Here are some of the comments:
 
I've read that 50% of celiacs are allergic to milk proteins. Soy may the
next most common. I used Meridian Valley labs, went through a local
Nurse Practitioner who believes in allergy testing for inflamation.
 
I have heard that Enterolabs is great. I asked my GI doc about this and
he said there was no medical merit to back up enterolabs so he wouldn't
recommend it.
 
The web site http://glutenfreegoddess.blogspot.com
<http://glutenfreegoddess.blogspot.com/>   for recipes that avoid
allergens.
 
The elimination diet is fine for simple foods. It doesn't work for
things like yeasts or molds. Many food allergies follow seasonal
allergies also. Mellons are a member of the ragweed family. So if you
have an allergy to ragweed, that can be tested for, you should also stay
away from cantaloupes. Molds can be tested for, this would be cheeses,
anything in the refridge for too long, sour creams, raisins,  chocolate,
teas, etc. Other things that can be tested for include tree allergies.
 
Way back in 2001, I got allergy tested by blood test. They took four
vials of blood, one for grains, one for veggies/fruit and one for meat.
I don't know if this is how most people get tested, but it seemed pretty
standard then.
 
You can get tested through www.alcat.com <http://www.alcat.com/>  or
8-US-ALCAT. They tell you which lab is closest to your home to have the
blood drawn and the lab ships it overnight to their lab in Florida. They
send you the results and you can call them and they go over them. I was
surprised at the things that give me a problem.
 
About Meridian Valley Laboratory. My friend said she is going to
withhold judgment on this lab as two others in our group came up with
the exact same food reactions on their diagnosis sheets. Dr. Peter Green
told me that food allergy testing was useless as the body just reacts to
what it is eating all the time. He said we should do a food rotation
diet and Dr. Tamura advises that, too.  You might try emailing Ron
Hoggan, co-author of "Dangerous Grains". [log in to unmask]
http://gluten-free.org/hoggan/ is the url of some of his articles.
 
Try removing foods one by one. If symptoms resolve do a food challenge
about four weeks later. If symptoms resume that was the food to avoid.
 
I'm surprised to hear that doctors have told you that an elimination
diet is the only way to identify food intolerances. We have a book by an
allergy specialist who says NONE of the various tests are much good for
food allergies, but in practice it seems the drs want to sell you a
test. In my dad's case, they did an Elisa test. He showed reactions to
29 foods.  The one way to check for food sensitivities is AK testing,
also called muscle testing. It's rather an art form but there are people
who do it.
 
When you have damage to the gut it allows partially digested protein
that should be absorbed to leak into the blood stream. The immune system
has to clean them up and secondary food allergies result. It's possible
some of these allergies may go away after the gut is healthy and enough
time has passed for serum antibody levels to decrease. Keeping a
detailed food diary is the best way to develop a safe list. 
 
I completed a food sensitivity (not allergy) test from Immunolabs. It
cost a bit but I got back a book and wallet card telling me which foods
I was reacting to and how strong the reaction was. For allergens you
have to avoid the food indefinitely but for sensitivities, you stay off
it for a time and then reintroduce it slowly and intermittently and your
body probably won't have the antibody reaction (but it could).
 
There is a lab in FL www.betterhealthusa.com
<http://www.betterhealthusa.com/>  that does blood testing for food
allergies. I have been using them for ten years and they literally saved
my life.
 
I have read that for celiacs, the standard skin scratch allergy tests
are not accurate and that was our experience. We spent probably $5K on
tests 10 years ago that didn't turn up anything but mold. There is a
book by Dr. Coca, written in the 50's called  The Pulse Test. It is
still in print. You can test for reactions to foods based on an elevated
pulse after you injest them.
 
I like Eat Right for Your Type by Peter D'Adamo. Gives lists of foods
that don't work w/immune systems for various blood types. Food is
divided into 16 groups and only the grain group that has gluten needs to
be avoided. A four day rotation diet can also help.
 
 
 
 
 
 

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