Gut: The Inside Story of Our Body’s Most Underrated Organ

by Giulia Enders

ONE THEORY ABOUT the origin of allergies begins with the digestive processes in the small intestine. If we fail to break down a protein into its constituent amino acids, tiny bits of it will remain. Under normal circumstances, those tiny particles simply don’t make it into our bloodstream and there is no problem. However, hidden power often lies in the most inconspicuous places—in this case, in the lymphatic system. Those tiny particles can enter the lymphatic system, embedded in fat droplets, and once there, they attract the attention of ever-vigilant immune cells. When the immune cells discover a tiny particle of peanut in the lymphatic fluid, for example, they naturally attack it as a foreign body.