Food Sensitivity Tests are all the rage these days. It seems like I can’t watch TV without seeing an Everly Well commercial with a lovely woman claiming all her health issues went away when she took almonds out of her diet. Usually I am yelling at the TV at this point haha.
The sad truth about food sensitivity testing is that they are not reliable or accurate. They also do not provide any root causal information.
Food sensitivity testing has been more harmful than helpful for my clients. These tests seem to create a false reality that the food is the root of the problem. The false promise is that once you remove problem foods–your symptoms will resolve (cue lovely Everly Well lady).
Most of my clients are already fearful of foods and food sensitivity tests typically promote more food fear. And to make matters worse these fears are rooted in testing that has shown to be inaccurate and non-reproducible.
To be clear, I do believe that food sensitivities and immune reactions to foods do exist. Removing triggering foods can be helpful. However, your time and energy is much better spent determining–“why am I reacting to these foods?” than trying to just focus on removing foods . Usually addressing root causes will resolve most food sensitivities.
Not to mention–when you remove foods from the diet, you can develop intolerances and sensitivities to removed foods. I see this all the time with my clients that get trigger happy with food removals. The more narrow the diet, the more reactive you become.
Plus the more narrow the diet, the higher likelihood of nutrient deficiencies. On the IBS Freedom, podcast Nikki and I have covered how deficiencies in nutrition can wreck havoc on gut function. Plus, many nutrients play a role in immune function and controlling inflammation. Cutting out too many foods could make your immune system more prone to sensitivities.
If you want to learn more about food sensitivity testing, please check out the latest podcast that my podcast co-host and I recorded recently. You can watch on youtube or listen via audio links below:
Here are the links to audio:
IBS Freedom Episode #65 Food Sensitivity Testing:
