Did you know that food allergies are linked to eczema, a condition that might seem unrelated?
Here is what you need to know…
When you eat something your body is allergic to, your body then perceives that food(s) as a harmful invader and goes into attack mode. Blood flow increases in the intestines to fight off the food you are allergic to (or the allergen). Your intestinal tissue becomes temporarily inflamed and more permeable so the white blood cells called leukocytes can infiltrate that area and remove the invaders.
Now, you may be thinking ‘WOW, our body is so intuitive, it responds so quickly!’
Doesn’t sound so bad, right?
For the most part, yes.
But what if you didn’t know you were eating food allergens every day? That means your immune system has to constantly be in attack mode in order to protect you. What was meant to be a temporary, helpful response becomes chronic and then your immune system can’t remove the allergens quick enough before the next “invasion”.
This leads to hindered digestion, inability to produce certain enzymes that help digest carbs and fats, decreased integrity to intestinal tissues leading to leaky gut syndrome. All of this creates constant inflammation in your tissues and imbalance in your intestines.
Inflammation and imbalance are both used when describing the root cause of someone’s eczema. This inflammation and imbalance could be the cause of unknown and unaddressed food allergies/sensitivities. In many cases, it is such a mild response that we don’t even associate foods as potentially harmful. Neither does our medical system as many of the food sensitivity/allergy symptoms can be very broad. But your body is still hard at work fighting off these invaders.
Here are some common food allergy/sensitivity responses that you can look out for:
- hyperactivity, inability to concentrate
- bloating stomach, constipation, diarrhea, nausea
- brain fog, chronic tiredness
- moodiness
- mouth ucler (canker sores)
- fluid retention, chronic post nasal drip
- cravings
- yeast infections, athlete’s foot
- patchy coloured tongue
- temper tantrums
- severe headaches
If you are experiencing a handful of these now, your body may already be inflamed – whether you feel or see it right now. A good idea is to cut back on certain foods likes refined carbs (flours, sugars etc), fried foods, dairy products as you try to figure out what your body may be reacting to. While cutting back, try to keep a food journal to note what you eat and how you feel after that food or meal. A journal will let you see any patterns or narrow down what could be your food sensitivity/allergy.
Healthy foods to include during this process are whole grains, green vegetables, fatty fish like salmon and sardines, fruits, unrefined oils like flax seed oil.
Healing any skin disorder including eczema will begin in the gut. Your healing process can start by simply understanding your specific food sensitivities and allergies, reducing the inflammation and allow for healing to begin.
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