Allergies are common! According to ACAAI (American College of Allergy, Asthma, & Immunology), between 40 and 50 million Americans suffer from them on a regular basis. The term ‘allergies’ covers a broad spectrum of symptoms, and are caused by an even wider array of dietary, lifestyle or environmental factors. Symptoms, such as fatigue, joint pain, bloating, gas, skin irritation, and sinus infections are only a fraction of the issues that one may experience when exposed to allergens. When these allergies are left untreated, however, these complications can escalate rather quickly.
How Functional Medicine Can Help
Functional medicine methods for allergy relief involves getting to the root cause of the allergy itself – not simply treating the reaction. In contrast, modern medical doctors simply treat the external symptoms of allergies and neglect to look for the answers to what might be CAUSING them. This disconnect leaves patients without answers and sometimes in even worse condition than they were prior to seeking help.
A few of the most common food-related allergies include peanuts, tree nuts, shellfish, dairy products, and eggs. Gluten, corn, and yeast are popular offenders as well, and that’s without mentioning environmental allergens such as pollen, mold, dust, or animal dander allergens. Anything can be an allergen if your body doesn’t know how to recognize or protect itself from it!
We are also coming to realize that many allergies are being misdiagnosed altogether. In fact, many dietary allergies, in particular, are more accurately described as food ‘sensitivities’, as they do not produce the official allergic reaction, but instead, provide adverse reactions to certain compounds within the food. These findings have strengthened our understanding of how gut health is a strong factor in immune function.
Addressing gut health can be done by a variety of means, including things such as trying elimination diets, increasing fiber intake, taking probiotics, and much more.Functional medicine offers ways to establish positive digestive health in efforts to combat digestive dysfunction and in turn, allergies.
Each person experiences allergy issues differently. We believe everyone deserves to be aware of the cause of their health issues in order to receive the personalized treatment they deserve!
One thing you can do right away to get to work combatting your allergies is to start experimenting with elimination diets !Elimination diets work by eliminating questionable foods for at least a two week time period in order to observe the effects they have on your body.
Some of the foods most commonly eliminated include:
- Dairy
- Gluten
- Eggs
- Soy
- Red Meat
- Caffeine
Improvements you can expect to experience include:
- Energy Levels
- Allergy Symptoms
- Overall Mood
- Digestion Function
What are you waiting for? Call us for help!
