88 Diet Wise
Many people experience symptoms that are quite
indicative of an allergy or intolerance, without
realizing it. Patients sometimes say that peeling
potatoes makes their hands sting; but it never
occurred to them that swallowing the vegetable
might do internal harm.
Some people are sensitive to lemon and limes
and get brown itchy patches on the skin of the hands
after handling these fruits. It is usually made worse
by exposure to sunlight. Eating figs and celery can
produce the photosensitizing effect too.
In fact we can use skin inflammation as a test
for allergies, when someone is too ill or too tiny to
cooperate (as with a small baby). If you slice a food
and apply the raw surface to the skin for just a few
minutes, you can often see a significant reddening,
which would indicate it is an irritant and therefore
should not be swallowed.
This works especially well with fruits.
If you are aware of any reaction to a food that
is out of the ordinary, be sure to include it in the
self-inventory.The number one question
Over the years, I learned that one magic question, more than all the others
I will share with you in this chapter, gave the strongest pointer to allergy
and intolerance.
Do your symptoms come and go frequently?
Healthy one day, ill the next, then well again a couple of days
later is a huge waving banner, which gives away the whole story to an alert
physician!
An allergy or intolerance reaction, to food or to other substances, is
almost the only pathological mechanism which will give rise to this quickly
shifting pattern. Think about it. Infection with micro-organisms will not
come and go in this manner: if you have an infection it will take at least a
week or more to clear, however brilliant your immune system. Parasites and
certain stealth viruses may not declare themselves at all but are certainly not