140 Diet Wise
If you suspect this difficulty, you may be able to detect it by a
charcoal tablet test. Swallow six or eight charcoal tablets, which are obtainable
from the pharmacist. Then time how long it takes before the charcoal first
appears in your stools and also when it last disappears.
The record at my office so far is three weeks (slowest) and ninety
minutes (fastest).
Individuals with below average transit time should add another
week or more to the trial period, before deciding that the test diet has not
been effective.
Testing the banned foods
Just because you feel no better on the elimination step does not mean that
you cannot be intolerant to any of the banned foods. This is an important
point.
Recovery may be denied you because of foods you are still eating.
The list of allowed foods is really only playing the odds: they are the most
likely offenders. That’s all. It is perfectly possible to be allergic to meat, fish,
fruit or any of the allowed foods. They are permitted because this is not so
common, that is all.
If you remove one or two foods that you react to but continue to
eat others which are a problem, there may be no apparent change in how
you feel. So never assume that the banned foods must be safe, just because
you do not feel better avoiding them.
But how can we test these foods by challenge testing, if you have
not eliminated your symptoms? There is a problem. You can tackle it one of
two ways, depending on your temperament and determination.
The tougher alternative would be to give up even more foods, to see
if you can get to a point of fewer or no symptoms. Then proceed as before.
An easier alternative is to go ahead anyway, challenging the banned foods, in
the hope that symptoms will show up among those already present. Existing
symptoms may worsen or fresh symptoms will appear at the time of testing.
After many years, I can tell you that it does sometimes work this way.
A positive reaction is, after all, still positive. It is only when you are
vague or feel no different that a food which shouldn’t can slip through the
net. The thing to do is to mark your notebook to that effect so that you can
always come back to the food in question and test it again, supposing that
we arrive at a stage where symptoms are either reduced or have disappeared
completely.