Food intolerances

Food intolerances.nnMany foods are touted as healthy with a new 'super food' coming along almost every week. The reality of the situation is that there is no such thing as a healthy food in absolute terms, but more that certain foods are healthy for your body and these may vary from you to the next person. This is the key basis of metabolic typing.nnFood intolerances are an individual issue. A metabolic typing test can reveal the exact foods that your body chemistry needs. Within these results however certain foods that may be good for your body in theory are not helpful in practise.nnA food intolerance can be thought of as any food that produces an irritation to the body from its consumption. These symptoms can include excess weight, bloating, sneezing, runny nose, itching skin, dry skin, breathing problems, frequent illness, low energy, digestive problems, exacerbation of medical issues and much more. A food intolerance is different to a food allergy though many of the symptoms are similar in nature. They can occur for a number of reasons with nutritional deficiencies within the cells being a major reason.nnAny food that is consumed in excess or great regularity will be the most likely to become a food intolerance / allergy. Certain foods are also more likely than others to cause difficulty to the body. Some of the most common intolerances include:nnDairy - Pasteurized dairy is heated to ensure that all bacteria in the product is dead. This extends shelf life but removes the very things that help to digest the food. This results in so many people having difficulty processing dairy products and as a result many of the intolerant symptoms can arise.nnWheat - The most common food in today's society with many people having wheat for breakfast (cereal), lunch (bread) and dinner (pasta). This combined with some difficult to process qualities of wheat makes it perhaps the most common intolerance in our society.nnCaffeine - Many people consume vast amounts of caffeine within tea, coffee and soft drinks like coke and Pepsi. The result is that body can display intolerant reactions from its consumption.nnOther specific foods - Any food can become intolerant to your body for a variety of reasons. These can be 'healthy' foods such as Bananas, fruit, fish, nuts etc. The key is to identify how you feel after each meal and look for negative signs.nnSpotting intolerances and handling them.nnThe best way to spot a food intolerance is to remove the most likely candidates for a period of seven days. This gives a chance for the body to recover from the food. On reintroduction to the diet you should be able to notice a return of the negative symptoms associated with the foods. This will tell you what is causing problems to your body.nnLong term the safest way to stop a food intolerance is to continue a regular food rotation process. For example do not have wheat each meal or every day. Ensure you have different breakfast's and lunch rather than sticking to what you know best.nnOnce you are regularly rotating the foods it is vital you discover which foods to be emphasising in your diet. This will allow you to become as healthy as possible which greatly reduces the chances of developing and having food intolerances. To discover your metabolic type read about my course.nnnBen WIlson BSc (Hons) CSCS NSCA-CPT CMTA DipnOne2one nutritionnRugby fitness training.comnn