Many of the symptoms caused by allergies are also similar to food poisoning. This is especially true of stomach upset, diarrhea, and unpleasant side-effects along those lines (see gluten allergy symptoms for some specific examples).
With the possibility of having identical symptoms, how do you know if you really have allergies, or if you are dealing with food poisoning?
First of all, the allergy symptoms are not identical to food poisoning symptoms in most cases. There are often other effects that are not the same as food poisoning.
In most cases, food poisoning is a one-off thing. Someone left the meat out of the fridge for too long. The food was contaminated during processing. One of the ingredients went bad, and was added to the dish unnoticed. There are many causes for food spoilage, but they are usually not consistent. In other words, don't expect that since you got food poisoning from the left-overs last week, that you will get sick every time you eat left-overs.
Indigestion
Food poisoning has become a way of life for those that enjoy the taste of new types of food. The good chances of getting indigestion do not prevent them from searching for exotic restaurants where they can devour large quantities of strange and delicious food. Until severe food poisoning occurs and a hospital stay is had, the experimental eater will continue playing roulette with new types of food.
The animals in the forest and the fish in the sea understand the meaning of food poisoning very well. There is a large variety of food in the forests and in the sea, it is much larger then the variety we have in our supermarkets, but animals and fish will eat only food that they are accustomed too. Nature has provided them with that wisdom, and few break nature's rules. If they do they will surely get sick or die. The only species that disobeys natures command to eat food that is customary is the human species. Is it any wonder that they often get indigestion and many times die?
Avoid Food Poisoning
Always wash your hands and everything else that comes in contact with food. This includes utensils, cutting boards, countertops, table ware, and cook ware. Wash hands with warm water for at least 20 seconds before handling food, after handling uncooked meat/produce and wash between preparing each type of food. Separate raw foods from other kinds of food and use a separate cutting board for meat and vegetables. Do not use the same utensils or dish ware with uncooked or other foods. Keep it out of the danger zone (40 F and 140F) by cooking it thoroughly. Check the internal temperature of meat with a clean thermometer and make sure it's at least 140 F. It is not good enough to just eye ball it to see if it's brown.
*Keep the area near the utensils food and food products clean.
*Wash the row food products properly before cooking.
*Don't keep the food at the room temperature for more than two hours.
*Cook the food properly.
*Temperature of freeze should be 0 to 4 degree Celsius.
*Light charcoal barbecues well in advance, making sure you use enough charcoal and waiting until it is glowing red (with a powdery grey surface) before starting cooking.
*Always wash your hands thoroughly - before preparing food and after touching raw meat and before eating.
*Keep pets away from food, dishes and preparation surfaces.
*Keep hot food hot and cold food cold after you serve it. Never leave food out at room temperature for more than two hours, and keep it protected with a clean cover at all times.
Frequently Asked Questions
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QUESTION:
Can you have food alergies to organic and naturall foods?
I have been feeding my daughter more organic and natural foods. She has been breaking out alot latley and I don't know if that is the reason. I took her to the doctor and I have to put her on Claritin for 7 days to see if it makes it any better. I thought the whole point of eating organic was to reduce food alergies?Does anyone know?-
ANSWER:
Yes it's possible to be allergic to organic and natural foods. I think it's the food itself and not the way the food is raised that the person is allergic to. I knew someone with a mild allergy to peanuts. They had the same reaction whether the peanuts were organic or not.Here are a few websites about food allergies:
http://health.yahoo.com/allergy-overview/food-allergies-topic-overview/healthwise--te7017.html
http://www.foodallergy.org/
http://kidshealth.org/kid/ill_injure/sick/food_allergies.html
http://www.food-allergy.org/
http://www.fda.gov/fdac/features/2001/401_food.html
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/foodallergy.html
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/foodallergy.html
http://www.emedicinehealth.com/food_allergy/article_em.htm
http://www.kidshealth.org/teen/food_fitness/nutrition/food_allergies.html
http://www.medicinenet.com/food_allergy/article.htm
http://www.webmd.com/allergies/guide/food-allergy-testing
http://www.webmd.com/allergies/food-allergy-intolerances
http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/common/allergies/basics/340.html
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QUESTION:
Food alergies?
Lately my stomach has been acting up. I accidentally ate ice cream even though I was full, and I felt sick afterwards. I was like, "Oh, I overate tonight!" The next night I had one slice of pizza and felt sick. I ate this cheesy pasta that my brother and I made, and I felt sick. I ate dinner at Outback, and I felt sick. (I hate half a baked potato with everything but bacon, like 5 bites of prime rib, some of a side salad and two sips of this coconut-berry smoothie. Not much, and I felt like I ate for 10). Finally, my stomach was slightly off after eating 2 buttermilk pancakes at iHop. I thought that I was allergic to milk, but now I've been eating frozen yogurt and a little bit of cheese and feel good. Am I allergic to something? Or is the non-interest in food and then problems with food due to the hot weather? It's like all of a sudden I lose my appetite! I also have this cough that won' t go away. So what is this, hot weather, allergie, or am I sick?
Cereal with milk also upset my stomach. It seems that foods with a lot of dairy, or foods that are really really rich make me feel sick. My mom says that I'm crazy because it doesn't always happen. But it keeps happening! =[-
ANSWER:
You sound like you are lactose intolerant. This is where your body lacks the enzyme needed to break down the sugar in dairy (Lactase) Cut dairy out of your diet for a week, then have a glass of water and see what happens. If you are sick, then most likely this is your problem. There are lactose pills you can buy at the drug store. They will help somewhat, but depending how bad your situation is, you can't rely on them to fix the problem. Your best bet is to avoid dairy.
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QUESTION:
food alergies?
hi i was wanting to know how many other people out there have kids with food allergies like my son he is 3 1/2 and he is lactose intolerant and soy intolerant and now also gluten intolerant he was diagnosed as lactose intolerant at 6 mouths old soy at 1 to 1 1/2
and gluten about 1 month ago
my son has had the celics blood test which come back neg but the doc has sent home to a specialist because for 2 years he sat on 12 kg and once i put him onto a glutin free diet he started gaining weight-
ANSWER:
You might find as you get him on gluten free diet that some of his other issues may straighten out. There are a number of gluten free cookbooks available and Whole Foods has a number of products available too. But sounds like the best thing at the moment would be fresh fruit and vegetables and non processed- nothing added fresh meat. Stay clear of sauces and soups until you learn how to read the labels and all the hidden gluten things.
For the lactose intolerance, is he old enough to take Lactaid which allows people to digest lactose. My wife uses it and it has helped her a lot.
Good on your doctor to test for celiac and then try the gluten free approach anyway. Hopefully it will help. Try the references below for support and if you have more questions try one of the support groups you can find in the websites or email me.
Good luck
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QUESTION:
Food Alergies.........?
For years I have got extremely bad headaches when I have eaten certain foods (I'm 20 now), lately I’ve noticed the headaches coming on more sudden, My mum thinks I’m being “dramatic” so I’ve continued to eat some of the foods thinking it’s just a coincidence...is it possible to have an allergic reaction but with only a head ache symptom- Some of the foods which causes the Headaches are- Garlic, Sausage meat, pork, egg...a lot more but there the main ones-
ANSWER:
To stop food alergy & headache there ar good medicines available in Homeopath.
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QUESTION:
Is Blepharitis caused by food alergies or any other kind of allergies?
My son for the past 5 months has been getting really bad blepharitis on-and-off on just his right eye. It's usually the upper eyelid but right now it's the bottom. He washes his face and eyes daily but still manages to get it. We are all starting to wonder if this is a food allergy or if this is an allergy from pollution or someting outside like flowers. Anyone know? Thanks.-
ANSWER:
Blepharitis is usually caused by a bacterial infection, rosacea, dermatitis and malfunctioning oil glands, AS WELL AS allergies. So, you could be right.
Try using a baby shampoo to wash his eyelids and eyelashes several times a day, as this is the usual treatment and maybe have your doctor do an allergy test to determine if he has allergies to certain things. If you think he has obvious allergies, then maybe treatment is necessary.
Hope this was helpful.
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QUESTION:
Rashes from food alergies. How can I tell what the food was?
I get this red blotchy rash when I eat something I am alergic to acording to my doctor. How can I determine what the food is?Sometimes it is the only new food I've eaten, so I just eliminate it. But sometimes I've tried lots of new things, and I can't determine what it is from. Any advice?-
ANSWER:
Like the others have said, going on a diet (not a losing weight diet, but a food diet) will help clear your body of the particular allergy. Introduce one new food that could be a cause (gluten, nuts, yeast, dairy) and wait and see. some allergies can take up to 72 hours especially if it is a rash you are getting.
Other best bet is to get an actual allergy test (prick test) to find out. I am going through the same thing right now
--- i have been reading that some allergies (to yeast) can also be due to some medications, such as birth control. you might want to look into that as well.
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