ALCAT Results

So, want to know something super interesting? I am allergic to over 61 foods. By allergic, I don't mean I break out in hives everytime I eat something or that I pull a "Hitch" and my face is all of a sudden distorted when I touch shell fish. No. About three weeks ago, my parents and I had our blood tested for something called the ALCAT test. Basically, this test is based on recent scientific discoveries which have revealed increasingly deeper levels of understanding of how food interacts with our immunie system affecting metabolism in ways that can be either beneficial or detrimental. Chronic activiation of the immune system and the chronic inflammation that it produces is not only the common feature of modern diseases of aging, but also its major inderlying cause. So, when I eat the "wrong" food, although it may be "healthful" for most people, will induce inflammation. (That sounds really awkward... but keep reading. It gets interesting.) The immune system aims to damge the food, which it mistakes as a harmful invader, such as a bacteria, parasite or virus, but also ends up damaging our own body, ie: allergic reaction of some kind. Long-term exposure can even trigger auto-immunity, where the immune system actively attacks our own tissues and bodily structures.

It has been known for ages that food can be either the best medicine or a strong poison. Did you know that? The ancient Greeks like (Hippocrates and Lucretius) expressed this clearly in their writings,"Let thy food be thy medicine and thy medicine thy food," and "One man's meat is another man's poison."

So basically, what I am trying to say is that the ALCAT test can tell you which food is your 'meat' and which is your 'poison.'

I'm not sure if anyone has heard of the book, "Your Hidden Food Allergies Are Making You Fat?" Well, there is such a book. It is based on the fact that we eat foods every day -- foods that, as explained above, can be one man's food and another man's poison. For example: after reading my results, I found out that I have a severe intolerance for baker's yeast. HA! What contains baker's yeast? Pretty much everything... bread, pasta, crackers, cake...whatever we hold to be beautiful, delicious or of good report... yes, we seek after these things. BUT, the thing we don't realize is that eating those 'poisons' is what is playing a huge part in our chronic fatigue, inability to lose weight, horrible acne and a number of other 'diseases' we have come to consider normal. We just think it is how we are, not what we are eating. I know when I eat certain foods, my energy levels and even my attitude are affected. The thing with these allergies, they aren't going to show up immediately. They can show up a few days or even a week later. It takes time for the immune system to react and defend.

A few other things that I have intolerances toward: cherries, lemons, duck (not that I eat it very often,) broccoli (ahhh, darn it,) turkey (WHAT THE!?,) vanilla, artichoke, beet sugar, cane sugar, fructose (so, basically anything with sugar... great,) chicken (may I repeat, WHAT THE?!,) garlic (my future husband won't mind that,) strawberrys (freak... this is getting lamer by the second...) and a few other things that aren't as important: navy beans (I don't think I have even heard of those,) sage, sardines (ewwww,) millet...(I don't even know what that is.)

So, now my responsibility is to work on keeping the severe intolerances out of my diet for six months, my moderate intolerances out of my diet for three to six months and mild intolerances can be rotated in and out of my diet every four to five days.

I hope this doesn't sound like I am this picky eater now who is super allergic to everything. No. I love eating. I eat pretty much everything. But, I want to be healthy. I want to have the optimal energy levels that my body should have -- so, I am choosing to take better watch of what I eat. And that's that.