There are several different types of allergies including food and
airborne allergies, and though they are increasing worldwide there is a
lot we still don't know about them. We do know that an allergic
reaction is triggered when the immune system mistakenly identifies an
allergen as harmful. An allergen is a substance like mold, pollen or
some substance in food that upon entering our body causes our immune
system to release certain chemicals to attack the invader.
Allergy
symptoms can cause naval passages to close, eyes and nose to water,
skin to develop rashes and also cause problems in the digestive system.
They can range from mild to very severe, and can also be
life-threatening. It is always been thought that allergies are an issue
that begins in childhood and stays with us into our adult years, but
that's not always the case.
There are adult-onset allergies that
can hit at any time, and this too is unclear why. But it is interesting
to note that most of these allergies that develop in our adult years are
in our twenties through forties rather than in later years. It is
thought that when we enter our later years are immune system actually
weakens, and as a result the attack on the foreign invader also weakens.
But this is yet only theory, as again the experts don't really know for
sure.
One theory states that food allergies are on the increase
because our food has less contamination than years ago. This cleaner
food has fewer bacteria, making our food safer from contamination. But
that also means that our immune system hasn't had to do enough, so when
it finally does get something foreign it tends to overreact to the
allergens. Then with the increase of pesticides in our food production
system and genetically engineered foods our immune system becomes
overwhelmed. In other words the experts don't really know so there is a
lot of guessing going on.
Food allergies are in fact the most
dangerous and they must be taken very seriously. This should not be
confused with food intolerance, which is an entirely different subject.
But certainly knowing foods that set off allergic reactions and avoiding
those foods will relieve a person's system of a lot of stress. Likewise
it would probably not be wise to just leave it at that.
Understanding
the necessity to maintain a healthy gut flora is certainly going to
help in meeting any challenges for overall health, and this certainly
includes our immune system. Overuse of antibiotics, high consumption of
unhealthy fats and anything that kills the healthy bacteria that fights
disease are things that will cause havoc with our gut flora. This in
turn makes us susceptible to outside attack.
Processed foods,
chlorinated tap water, grains, sugar and agricultural herbicides are all
things we consume on a regular basis that kill these important gut
bacteria. Even though there is still a lot we still must learn about the
causes of allergies, we do know the importance healthy gut flora has in
staving off food allergies.
