My Food Sensitivity Report (BLOOD TESTS PART 2) | 63 of 90

Hey guys!

I’m excited to go over another blood test today! Today we will be looking at my food sensitivity. Lots to discuss before we look at the results.

Now, I am totally aware that a food sensitivity test is NOT a food allergy test nor is it a food intolerance test. So…what’s the diff?

Food allergy: You have a food allergy when your immune system reacts to the food which is detected as a harmful substance. Your immune system will make antibodies to fight it off. This could look like skin rashes and breathing problems. A blood test will measure for a protein called immunoglobulin E or IgE.

Food intolerance: You have a food intolerance when you have trouble digesting certain foods. You usually have an intolerance because you lack an enzyme to digest the food. You can still eat the food in small amounts, but if you have too much, your body will react.

Food sensitivity: There is no standard medical definition for this. Sometimes it is used to describe an umbrella of the above two words.

The food sensitivity test that I took measured my IgG and IgA levels. Here is what that means, according to WebMD:

Immunoglobulin A: IgA antibodies are found in the mucous membranes of the lungs, sinuses, stomach, and intestines. They’re also in fluids these membranes produce, like saliva and tears, as well as in the blood.

Immunoglobulin G: IgG is the most common type of antibody in your blood and other body fluids. These antibodies protect you against infection by “remembering” which germs you’ve been exposed to before.

Something important to note is that since my tests look for IgG and IgA antibodies (and not IgE), my results will not indicate allergies. Past or frequent exposure to a food may also cause IgG levels to be higher – not just the fact that I am sensitive to the food. I confirmed this with the incredible Dr. Cicerone of Spark Health, who I had the honor of meeting at Gabby Bernstein‘s book launch party last night. She said that some of my numbers may seem high because I eat too much of it, but it doesn’t mean it’s bad for me. It just means I need to have more variety in my diet in order to not overdo any one food.

So, with that in mind, let’s have an open minded look at these numbers. I will not take them as fact, but kind of as a loose guide should I choose to change my diet to best suit my needs. I’m going to pair this report with notes that I’ve taken in regards to my reactions after eating certain foods. Let’s see if they match up or make no sense at all!

FOOD SENSITIVITY TEST:

Things they say I should avoid:

Dairy
Ginger

Things they say I should eat in moderation:

Dairy
Oysters
Bananas
Pineapples
Kidney Beans
Chicken
Pecan
Garlic
Lima Beans

Now, let’s dive deeper to see how they got to these conclusions.

MEAT

The nurse practitioner at Next | Health said that any food I score a 10 or above in, I should try to eliminate. I am cautious with this advice because I know that IgG tests are not 100% straightforward. Dr. Cicerone said that IgG is a “memory” antibody, so anything that I’ve had a lot of in the past 6-9 months could also show up here. So my task now is to decipher which ones foods that I am eating too much of, and which foods are the ones that I should actually avoid.

Chicken – Honestly, I have never had a reaction to chicken. BUT! I do eat it A LOT. It is my main meat, so that is why my IgG levels are above a 10 here. I will try to reduce my chicken intake and replace this protein with more eggs and fish. I don’t typically eat pork, lamb, or beef.

SEAFISH

Codfish – Interesting that cod is up here. I’ve never had a reaction to cod, but at the same time, I don’t think I’ve eaten cod recently. I don’t know why I scored a 10 here.

Oyster – I scored a 12 here which is also interesting. I’ve never had a reaction to oyster, raw or cooked. I don’t eat it a lot anyway, so I think I am ok here.

DAIRY

Overall, I am lactose intolerant, as I already know. So, I will avoid dairy as much as I can and eat some lovely vegan cheese when presented with the choice! I love Daiya vegan cheese anyway – it is so good!

GRAINS

It doesn’t say that I am sensitive to any grains, gluten containing or gluten free. HOWEVER, I know that when I eat grains, I bloat almost immediately. So I have been avoiding them. I haven’t eaten any of the above (except maybe the corn from Chipotle) in the last 6-9 months, so that could be why my IgG levels are low here. Dr. Cicerone also said that the reason I bloat could also be because there could be a certain bacteria in the grain that is affecting my gut. That will be something else I can check for in the future.

TREE NUTS

Almond – Interesting that I scored a 10 in almond. However, I think that is because I cooked with almond flour and ate a lot of Thai chili almonds within the past several months.

Pecan – I don’t even like pecans and I don’t eat them. However, when I have had them, I’ve had no reactions.

Everything looks good here.

Garlic – I’ve never had a reaction to garlic and I do sauteé with it when I make cauli rice!

Lima bean – Don’t really eat these.

Ginger – So weird that this scored a 29! My only bad reaction to ginger is that I HATE how it tastes. I don’t eat very much of it anyway.

Banana – I’ve never had a bad reaction to a banana.

Pineapple – My throat and tongue get itchy after eating a few chunks of pineapple.

Nothing interesting to note here.

CONCLUSION:

Going into this test, this is what I knew:

Grains bloat me
Milk makes me break out and it hurts my stomach
Excess sugar makes me break out

Coming out of this test, my lactose intolerance was confirmed (but I already knew that) and I found that I’m not really too sensitive to anything. I don’t count the weird chicken and ginger call outs because I’ve never noticed any bad reactions from consuming them.

So, is this test worth it?

No.

It did not teach me anything new. I think it’s better for you to try an elimination diet like Whole30 to really understand what’s going on. That’s how I found out milk was giving me acne.

When I had originally asked Next | Health about my hesitations about being measured for IgG and IgA (instead of IgE) they assured me it was accurate and to move forward with the test. Then when I got my 2 hour sit down with the nurse practitioner, he told me to avoid all those things I listed above. I don’t think this is very responsible, as people could end up eliminating things that are totally fine and healthy for them. These numbers don’t tell the whole story, as Dr. Cicerone pointed out, but no one at Next | Health had explained it to me in that way.

Obviously, I should have done more research before paying for this test…but when you’re talking to a health professional and they’re telling you it’s fine, it’s really hard to fight back against that – especially when you’re a patient, not a person who’s a trained medical professional!

Oh well! At least I spent the money so you don’t have to! As a reminder, it was $1600 for 4 tests and we still have 2 more to go through.

Yesterday’s Recap:

Yesterday was a special day! Sir George made 2 new friends!

That is Princess Chiyo the Pomeranian and The Fat Fluffy Bunny!

The mommies all went to a heels dance class together while the babies played! Meet Brittany and Michaela who you might end up seeing in a future project…just sayin! No more hints for you!!!

Then after heels, I got to meet the incredible Gabby Bernstein at her private book launch party at Gracias Madre (one of my fave vegan spots) in West Hollywood.

Guys, I’m so proud to tell you that Gabby has been doing Blogilates videos for years now. I’m literally dying cuz that’s so cool!!! She’s such a force in the life coaching, self love, manifestation, and spirituality space and you should def check her out and grab her latest book Super Attractor.

Now, for my Fit Journal entry.

LUNCH:

34% carbs, 35% fat, 31% protein

427 calories

Mahi mahi with chanterelle mushrooms over cauli rice. Sriracha overload. The best.

SNACKS:

57% carbs, 38% fat, 5% protein

391 calories

Post lunch kombucha.

Umm. OMG. These toasted coconut chips are too addictive. Found this at Costco. Guys, be careful – you can eat them forever. THEY ARE THAT GOOD!!!!

Gotta have my pumpkin pie hummus. YASSSS.

DINNER:

43% carbs, 42% fat, 14% protein

857 calories

This was our dinner menu. Gracias Madre is a vegan restaurant with literally one of the best ambiences ever. I love this place.

I started off with some bell peppers and guac.

Then I had some corn and cauliflower with vegan cheese on top.

Some arugula salad. Not exactly sure what was in this but it was good and the arugula did not taste as bitter as usual to me!

A vegan crab cake. Yum.

Potato taco. I just had the inside which had fried onions, potatoes, and cole slaw.

When I got home, I was still hungry so I made a cauliflower flatbread with an egg on top!

Yesterday I came in at 1,676 calories 194g carbs (44%), 76g fat (39%), and 72g protein (17%). Def did not hit my protein requirement, but also, I had a vegan dinner. So, whatcha gonna do!!??

 

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