Food intolerance testing from hair.

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My daughter had a similar problem a few years ago , she did the hair test thing. It didn't flag up gluten but Sugar intolerance. She saw a kinesiology lady in the end , she was really good, flagged up gluten and citrus. Daughter avoids both now and is loads better

Anyone with advice/opinions on the food/ allergy intolerance tests you are able to purchase from companys.I suspect my husband has an intolerance which he ignores and refuses to see GP about.His diet tends to be unhealthy and lacking in vitamins, although I have tried to keep a food diary its very difficult as he is so stubborn in his reasoning.Has anyone had a successful diagnosis using the home test route.

I kept a food diary and eventually found I have an intolerance to garlic. And its supposed to be so good for you! Strangely, onions are fine.

Along the way I also found that supermarket bread which has usually had enzymes added to speed the rising process and sponges and muffins etc where extra rising agents have been added also caused problems. Keeping a food diary as instructed by the dietician, certainly helped me more than anything else.

Google FODMAP. It has a list of all foods to avoid and foods which are tolerated. Like you can have cherry tomatoes but not big ones, oranges not satsumas etc. It looks restrictive but it depends how bad you are and it does work. The main things to avoid for IBS always come up as onions, garlic, caffeine and fruit with stones in. And obviously anything full of preservatives.

IBS is a generic term - it is the underlying cause which should be diagnosed so that whatever needs to be done to alleviate it can be done.
For a GP to just say 'You have IBS' means they don't know.

But your gut bacteria may well have changed.

My sister has diverticulitis and has found that drinking raw milk has reduced her symptoms to almost nothing. Many of her friends with IBS have found it also helpful. (Symptoms and pain disappearing.) It is thought that this is because the milk is not pasteurised thus retaining beneficial bacteria in a balanced mix.

Farmers who produce and sell raw milk are subject to very stringent controls, to ensure the milk is safe.

Another thing you might explore is A1 milk and A2 milk. Being A1 or A2 is a genetic quality of the cow. A1 cows produce A1 milk. A2 cows produce A2 milk. A1/A2 cows produce A1/A2 milk.
A protein called beta-casein has a slightly different chemical structure in A1 and A2 cows' milk. The A1 kind can be very difficult to digest. Waitrose have A2 milk if you want to try it.

I'm not sure whether cheese is affected.

General info:
a2milk.co.uk/lactose-intolerance/
Theresearch study:
a2milk.co.uk/health-professionals/the-evidence/three-cities-study/

I agree with Jalima it seems that IBS is caused by all kinds of things. I have just been reading that there has been research into the lack of Vitamin D and IBS, as I have had far fewer symptoms since taking a couple of tablets each day I guess that could well have been my problem. I know it was hormonal as well.

I suffered from terrible IBS in my 30’s and 40’s but all my symptoms disappeared when I got past 50. So for me it was hormonal rather than food related as my diet hadn’t really changed.

STRESS can cause IBS.
Ì had a very stressful job and after I retired it took 12 months for my bowel to recover ! Good Luck to your daughter.

Perhaps a GP would correct me, but I have my doubts as to its existence.
A term to cover a multitude of problems which the GP may not immediately be able to diagnose.

If you begin experiencing digestive problems you have never experienced before and not eating anything different to what you normally eat then it could be stress related.Rule out anything serious only after you have been given a thorough investigation ie endoscopy colonoscopy and blood tests.IBS is a disease of the 21C.

My d is gluten intolerant and lactose intolerant she had a test at the hospital to check her stomach and was told to keep a diary of what she ate.
She is also a vegetarian. She found a a book on amazon of recipes called clean and lean, finds it very helpful,

The NHS is strapped for cash and anything out of the ordinary is not pursued. Individuals do not really matter any more, it is all about trying to cut incidences of particular cancers, and trying to get minor ops out of the way. I have had a particular weight problem for two or three years and been trying to talk with my GPs about this in terms of it being a metabolic issue caused by the cocktail of medication I need to take. None of them has listened. So I got one of them to refer me privately to an endocrinologist and he has found the problem immediately, and it is entirely to do with a compromised metabolism. Sure this man has cost money and the treatment he is prescribing is also something I have to pay for - this should of course have been possible on the NHS, after all there's lots of money spent by the NHS on people with certain types of cancer caused by smoking - I know this will not be a popular comment, but I do feel very strongly, that someone who is ill through a genetic defect (my case) who is then medicated in a way that has side effects, can't actually have those side effects considered sensibly by a GP because it's considered to be too esoteric and resource consuming, when someone who has no genetic defect but smokes 60 a day for 40 years and then presents with lung cancer gets fully-funded tax-payer paid treatment.

If the pain is bad and rarely goes away she must go back to her GP. I have suffered with "ibs" for over 40 years and tried every test and diet under the sun. I knew I had intolerances to things in my environment and while I was not allergic in the true sense, I knew some foods and medicines were problematic. When things have become bad I have cut out salicylates which helped, other times gluten, and dairy. Sugar is the worst for irritating the bowel, that should be the first to go. It's not good to cut out whole food groups for long unless there is a proven allergy to them. I use the FODMAP diet now and I think it helps but who knows? In recent years I was diagnosed with EDS hypermobility so my "ibs" would be associated with that. A doctor has spoken to me about Mast Cell Activation disorder and it shows the same symptoms as IBS. There is no test for it yet but it is known, It's like an allergy and controlling the diet is the best way to deal with it. Another tip is eating only fresh foods, nothing reheated, nothing that has been cooked and around a few hours, no processed foods, sugars and following the advice on the FODMAP diet.

When my son was a child he had a constant runny nose and was always getting coughs. I took him to a homeopathic doctor who tested for allergies and found he was allergic to cows milk and dairy. For a long while I used to buy goats milk, which back in the mid-1980s was really difficult to source. After a while the homeopath prescribed drops to desensitise his allergy - and it worked. From then on he was able to eat all dairy with no reactions at all. I think rather than go down the route of allergy testing in the way OP describes, a visit to a Homeopath is far more reliable.

Gp is unlikely to refer her to an allergist as they are expensive. Ask for her to be referred to a dietician or see one privately, this is what I did and it has been a great help or try the FODMAP diet, it's not easy but can really help anyone with IBS. I have a gastric disorder (diagnosed) and have to follow FODMAP and low residue diets, between them it's very restrictive but certainly makes life less painful.

Allergy testing today with a highly trained therapist using Naet approach is 100% They take a 5 year training course and very vigorous exams .
So allergy testing by a Naet Therapist is highly recommended. The Neat Therapist can then remove the allergy permanently .
Best Wishes
Joseph Grennell
Child Psychotherapist . Nurse. ABA Therapist

If you go on an elimination diet you will find out if you have any intolerances. Costs nothing but takes a bit of effort
Do it properly. Dr. John Mansfield has great guidelines, get his book.

My family have a history of allergy, eczema and asthma and I will add my voice to those recommending a food diary, followed by an elimination diet of suspected items - one item at a time. The problem can be the least suspected item. My daughter suffered frequent tummy pains and vomiting during her schooldays in the 1970s and 1980s. She had all the symptoms of appendicitis and was even admitted to hospital. Neither the doc or hosp found a cause. Neither of them would even consider food intolerances when I floated the idea. I kept a food diary and did careful double checks- the culprit was oranges in all their guises (they are now the base of strawberry and other fruit smoothies which she found out the hard way). I have since met others with this unusual intolerance of oranges. We have also found that tomatoes and British bread can cause discomforts and reactions too. I recommend plain LIVE yogurt eg Yeo Valley brand as it has a good effect on tums if you dont have dairy intolerance. I sincerely hope you can find an early remedy

Wow! Thank you all so much for the replies. I think I will show the whole thread to DD. There are plenty of options to consider!

What about mustard? It's added to many things now where it might not be expected. I had an egg mayonnaise baguette in London recently, very heavy on the mustard so I had to leave it because I know what mustard does to me, except in very tiny amounts. Also red, green and yellow peppers, onions, leeks, courgettes, aubergines and garlic and tea and coffee can also cause problems. I appear to have IBS as other more serious conditions have been ruled out.