What is the difference between food allergies, sensitivities, and intolerances? {Video}

I find that most of us have a pretty firm understanding of food allergies; what they are, and that their symptoms can range in severity. Food allergies reactions can range from a rash to anaphylactic shock, and we often think of peanuts or shellfish when we hear about food allergies.

But, if I say “food sensitivity” do you know what I am talking about? It wasn’t until my early 20’s until I started to learn about food sensitivities and what that might mean for me and how I felt day-to-day. Food sensitivities have a wide range of symptoms and they are often much more difficult to identify because symptoms can be delayed up to three days after eating the food. Also, while food sensitives aren’t life-threatening like food allergies, they can still have a major influence on how we feel from one day to the next. Often, people with food sensitives don’t even know they have food sensitivities and think living with the symptoms as a normal part of life, unaware that they could feel so much better. Also, people are largely unaware of what a food sensitivity is and how it is different from an allergy. Below, I have a video where I clear up the difference between a food allergy, sensitivity, and intolerance, and discuss steps you might want to take if you suspect you have a food sensitivity.