There are ways to heal your food allergies that may be much simpler than you thought, and they are at your fingertips. Since food allergies and sensitivities are becoming an epidemic.
It is estimated that 1 in 5 people in the US alone have some type of food allergy.
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What could be causing these food allergies?
Well, there are many theories – from the infiltration of genetically modified foods, to our obsession with all things antibacterial in an effort to sterilize the environment – but everyone agrees on one thing: Until about 50 years ago. allergies were rare, and now they are out of control.
Inside our intestines, where the digestion of food mainly takes place, small organisms called good bacteria help us digest and absorb food. We want these benign bacteria, we need them.
Many things can cause our intestinal flora to be out of balance. Stress, illness, a sterile environment, prescription of medications, antibiotics, and even eating a Standard American Diet (SAD), including genetically modified foods (GMOs), can reduce the number of healthy gut bacteria.
It’s probably safe to say that life in 2013 means we all have a digestive system out of whack.
The wide variety of symptoms associated with food allergies or sensitivities are:
Stomach problems.
- Gluten intolerance.
- IBS, Crohn’s disease.
- Gas, bloating, cramp.
- Diarrhea, constipation.
- Indigestion, heartburn.
Neurological problems.
- Headaches.
- Joint pain and stiffness.
- Fibromyalgia.
- Autism.
- Speech or developmental delay.
Immunological issues.
- Frequent colds and flu.
- Nasal and ear congestion.
- Seasonal allergies.
- Autoimmune disorders.
- Acne.
- Eczema.
- Psoriasis.
As crazy as it may seem that food allergies are causing all of this, we must first understand how the body reacts when a food is interpreted as a foreign harmful substance.
What is happening to my stomach?
Have you ever wondered why you have food allergies? To understand how this happened, you must first understand dysbiosis, or what is also known as “leaky gut syndrome.” Simply put, at some point, your body’s gut flora and wall were compromised. Stress, illness, a sterile environment, prescription drugs, antibiotics, and genetically modified foods all reduce good bacteria and break down the wall in our intestinal tract. Essentially, you have developed a “leaky gut.”
A leaky gut is not good. Why? Because our food was not meant to be absorbed into our bloodstream until it has been broken down into the correct nutrients. If a particle of food, like for example from that sandwich you ate, gets sucked into the bloodstream at the wrong time, all hell breaks loose. Basically, what happens is that your body cannot recognize that food particle, it is seen as a foreign substance and now your immune system has labeled it as “bad”. The next time you eat that food, your body raises the red flag and attacks.
Did you know that Nexium and Peracid are the 2nd and 3rd main drugs prescribed in 2012?
Many people had their stomach knotted. Time to get off the meds and heal that gut.
Avoiding food cannot heal allergies.
There is an erroneous belief in modern medicine that if a person is allergic or sensitive to a food, then that person should avoid that food until they are no longer allergic. The theory is based on the process of elimination. The sad thing is, simply avoiding that food will not magically make the body heal. Symptoms can be relieved, but restriction will be more difficult to live with.
3 ways to heal your food allergies.
But do not worry. There are 3 surprising ways to heal your gut and get rid of food allergies/sensitivities.
1. Eat fermented foods and drinks to heal allergies.
“In the normal scheme of things, we would never have to think twice about replenishing the bacteria that allow us to digest food. But since we are living with antibiotics and chlorinated water and antibacterial soap and all these factors in our contemporary lives that I would group as ‘war on bacteria’, if we are not able to replenish the good bacteria, we will not effectively get the nutrients in the food we eat.”
Our ancestors were smarter. They knew that fermented foods are the key to intestinal health and therefore a healthy body. Fermented foods and drinks date back to 4000 years BC. The fermentation process keeps the food for longer, allowing it to sustain itself during the winter. Bread, cheese, pickles, yogurt – these were all properly fermented prior to food industrialization.
When we stopped home canning and started buying canned goods at the store, we lost the art of lacto-fermentation.
Our ancestors had jars of sauerkraut and lacto-fermented cucumber pickles stored in the basement. Today the store-bought versions that do not carry beneficial bacteria in the quantities of before. Today (and especially in America due to a lack of culturally specific foods), we simply don’t have enough beneficial bacteria in our guts.
While yogurt helps improve digestion, consuming commercial is not optimal. Your body needs two things: prebiotics and probiotics. Without these foods, your body cannot carry out efficient digestion.
Probiotics help colonize the gut with essential bacteria. Prebiotics help feed that good bacteria. Together they will help to have a superhero system.
Good sources of probiotic to heal your food allergies
- Organic Natural Yeast Bread/Sourdough.
- Raw cured cheese.
- Milk yogurt and milk kefir.
- Kombucha.
- Water kefir.
- Fermented vegetables.
- Fermented seasonings, such as lacto-fermented ketchup.
- Probiotic supplements (try to be of very good quality).
More sources of prebiotics.
- Jicama.
- Chicory.
- Endive and green leaves of Dandelion.
- Artichoke.
- Onions.
- Asparagus.
- Garlic.
Wheat, properly prepared (fermented).
2. Rest the necessary hours can heal your allergies.
Did you know that our body can withstand years of poor nutrition, but if we have been without sleep for more than 11 days, our body will die? It is true. People who have tried to set a world record for more than 11 days have actually died.
Sleep deprivation is so harmful to the body that it is used in war as a form of torture! Isn’t it amazing that we spend so much time analyzing our diet, but we forget about the quantity and quality of our sleep? Are you torturing your body at night, but waiting for it to work miracles during the day? Remember, to heal your body from allergies you must sleep the necessary hours.
How much sleep should you be getting? Experts agree that 8-9 hours of sleep is optimal, and the rule of going to bed early and getting up early is especially important.
3. Eat gelatinous foods.
If you are not a vegetarian and consider this an option, always use free-range animal products that are hormone-free and have a painless sacrifice.
Along with including home-made probiotic and prebiotic foods in your diet that can heal your food allergies, it is equally important to include gelatin from free range animals.
Gelatin heals and seals the lining of the lining of the intestinal tract, and aids in the assimilation of nutrients. Gelatin is the same collagen found in bone, skin, and cartilage. Gelatin is an easily digestible protein and works as an anti-inflammatory as well.
Gelatin is a good option to heal a damaged intestine. With this you will be giving your body a good way to counteract food allergies.
The benefits of having a super digestive system.
- Symptoms of a leaky gut resolve.
- The body is able to digest sugars, proteins, minerals, and fats with ease. Resolution of digestive problems aka bloating, gas, diarrhea, constipation.
- Strong intestinal lining to help block pathogens, allergens, and toxins.
- Strong immune system.
- It weakens the growth of bad bacteria and certain microorganisms such as candida.
Should I avoid my food allergies while healing?
The answer to this question really depends on your body. Allergies can be very small to very exaggerated depending on the person.