Understanding Intolerances. Why does everyone react differently?
‘I think I’m allergic to mornings’ - Snoopy.
Have you ever wondered why some people are more sensitive or allergic to certain things than others?
Why does my husband get hay fever & I don’t? Why do my children get eczema when they eat gluten & I don’t? Why do some of us react to food groups, pollens, dusts, cleaning products, metals or creams when the next person doesn’t?
Is it in our genes or just bad luck? And what can we do about it other than giving in to a life of antihistamines, steroid creams & food avoidance?
Short term relief can be found by simply avoiding triggers, or applying a cream or taking a pill to mask the symptom, however this isn’t truly addressing the underlying problem. But what IS the underlying problem?
The truth is, intolerances are a sign that your body isn’t functioning as well as it should be and if we want long term relief from our symptoms, we need to peel back the layers of the onion & address these intolerances or allergies at a functional level.
We all know that the systems & functions in your body are intricately connected. One area, or body part, cannot function independently of another. A dysfunction in one area, for example the gut, may seem completely unrelated to a different area like the brain, skin or the liver, but it simply can’t be, which means that any dysfunction will affect all the other systems in your body, one way or another.
This is the basis of functional & holistic healthcare – looking at how the WHOLE body functions together & consequently treating the body as a WHOLE.
It is definitely becoming more widely recognized that allergies, including hay fever, skin rashes, migraines & other reactions often point to a dysfunction in the gut. The health of the gut is crucial for the healthy function of practically every part of your body! But the gut is still only one piece of the puzzle.
Here are a few key areas to consider & support when questioning intolerances or allergies.
TRIGGERS
Identifying triggers can be easy if the response is immediate (in acute allergies the response is usually within 30 minutes). But if the response is slower, it can be tricky to know exactly what the trigger was as they can occur hours or even days after exposure. For example, a migraine sufferer may have no idea that they are actually dealing with the result of something they ate a few days ago.
In this kind of situation you can work with a practitioner to help identify what the triggers are as they can often pick up clues or help you to identify patterns. It’s also important to ensure you’re eating a varied and colourful healthy diet, as the body is dependant on a diverse range of nutrients to function at its best. Avoiding foods for fear of intolerances or in case of a flare up, is best done with the guidance and support of a practitioner.
ENZYMES
We produce enzymes to work all over our body allowing every part of you to do its job. The ones in our gut help to break down our food. For example, lactase is an enzyme we produce to help break down the sugar lactose. If we do not have great lactase production, we are left with a whole lot of lactose in our guts that our bodies don’t know what to do with & this becomes an extra burden for our bodies to have to detox. This can lead to symptoms like bloating, stomach cramps and diarrhoea etc.
Often taking recommended digestive or systemic enzymes could help your allergies.
GUT BACTERIA
Who here has heard me talk about your gut bacteria? I’m pretty sure kombucha is the new buzz word around town. Those little bacteria are SO important.
Our gut is home to millions of bacteria, the good, the bad & the ugly. The healthy functioning of our WHOLE body is dependent on a diverse range of healthy gut bacteria. As well as breaking down food & producing important nutrients, our gut bacteria actually “educate” our immune system. They contribute to digestion, gut strength, immunity & even our mood.
When our microbiome (gut bacteria) is out of balance, our immune system becomes compromised which in turn leads to abnormal & unenjoyable reactions. (Cue headaches, bloating, mood swings, pain etc.)
There are dietary changes and supplementation that can help keep your microbiome happy. Start embracing fermented foods like sauerkraut or kombucha and ask your practitioner which probiotic is right for you.
MEMBRANES
Your membranes are the barriers like your skin, sinuses, gut lining and urinary tract. These are your bodies first line of defense, to filter out any unwanted heebie jeebies from entering each part of your body.
If you suffer recurrent rashes, sinus or lung irritation, gut aches or UTI’s your barriers may not be performing at 100%.
Our membranes like to be covered in bacteria, and so the soaps or perfumes we use on our skin, the air we breath through our nose, or the food and drink we let enter our mouth and even the type of washing detergents we use on our clothes, can imbalance our membrane health (yes, our gut health). Our membranes enjoy a diet filled with the goodness of vegetables and fruit, minimal sugar intake & plenty of pure water! Adding bone broth to your diet everyday will also help to strengthen barriers.
IMMUNE STRENGTH
Simply put, an intolerance or allergy is an inappropriate immune response to a commonly harmless thing. The best way to strengthen your immune system is to minimize how much ‘inflammation’ you are creating.
Inflammation is at the root of ALMOST EVERY body complaint, especially allergies. So, get plenty of sunshine, go outside with bare feet to earth yourself, work on your diet to get your gut healthy and strong & supplement according to what your individual body needs (with appropriate guidance of course).
And last but not least, the basic premise of Chiropractic;
THE NERVOUS SYSTEM
Every part of the body needs the nervous system to send messages back and forth to the brain. Without these messages being passed along then no amount of probiotics can help your immune response. Your body needs freely flowing feedback from your brain to know what to do with them!
This is why regular Chiropractic care is a vitally important part of supporting you to overcome intolerance and allergies. Calming the nervous system with specific adjustments can very often calm an irritated sinus, bladder or gut due to the relationship between the chiropractic adjustment and the parasympathetic nervous system.
Our body systems are so wonderfully intertwined. They are intricate and brilliantly intelligent. They know exactly what to do to keep themselves well. Healing comes from within! All we need to do is support our body systems in a way that assists & encourages their natural processes, and try to lessen the harmful effects of our modern, stressful, lifestyles, for which we were not really designed to cope with.
Most importantly, we need to look at and support the body as a whole. This is true healthcare.
If you’d like to chat to us about how we may be able to support you to get to the bottom of your allergies or intolerances, give us a call on 03 2653129. Or hop on over to our online booking page & secure yourself an initial consultation.