Food Intolerance Tests?

m00glem0g

I have a lot of problems with gas, bloating, cramping, headaches, nausea, etc. etc... And I have been receiving treatment from a naturopath for a little while. He is boosting my digestion with enzymes and things, but so far no progress at all.

My question is, has anyone tried a food intolerance test? The ones that I know of are the York Test (http://www.yorktest.ca/) and the Hemocode Test (http://hemocode.com/) and I am very curious if anyone has PERSONAL experience with a test like these. I have read plenty of reviews, praise, criticism, academic papers, etc. So please don't send me any links to those. I am looking for stories of whether people have been tested, what did they find, what kind of changes did they make and what results were achieved... What shortfalls? Frustrations? Etc.

Thanks so much! I am just trying to justify the $400-500 cost involved...

hdlb

I don't know about the two tests you posted, but have you tried a simple elimination test already? Take ouf the most common irritants (gluten/wheat, corn, dairy, soy, eggs etc) and try putting them back in, one at a time, a few weeks later to see if there is a change?

Sorry if you already did that, but it will save a ton of money if you haven't.

alaskaang

I'm not familiar with the tests you mentioned but did have the IGg/IGe food specific antibody testing done. It's one where blood samples are sent into the lab (US Biotek was who did mine) for analysis and testing against a bunch of foods. A sample of what the report can be seen here: http://ibstreatmentcenter.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/b11.pdf

You still need to do an elimination diet and then trial based on results, but it at least gives a good starting point. I found my results to be very accurate with the exception of one or two things. The tests were around $150 when I had them done, but that was five years ago.

trudijoy

yup. when i was 13 i developed puberty onset food allergies. went for a test, discovered it was dairy and nightshades, cut them for a year, then reintroduced them once the puberty crap was over, never had an issue since.

fayevera

I had a lot of the same symptoms and all the test came back negative, except for the lactose tolerance test. That was a few years ago, and i felt better, but then, even dairy free, the symptoms came back. Finally, i tried, on my own, b/c my doctor had no idea what to do next, eliminating wheat/gluten, and guess what...less than 2 weeks later i was a new person, and about 2 pounds lighter. the gas, bloating and cramping is gone, as are my mood swings and the weird tingling in my feet. It's a little work but it's worth it. Keep trying, you'll figure it out!! Good luck.

sweetzoejane

It sounds like possibly a gluten or dairy intolerance. Seems cheaper to just eliminate one and see what happens first, and then if the symptoms don't resolve in a couple of weeks, eliminate the other instead for a couple of weeks. I thought I was lactose intolerant for a while, and my symptoms were similar to yours and got progressively worse over time, even when I eliminated dairy. Someone mentioned to me that it might be gluten instead, and once I stopped eating gluten my symptoms went away within a few days.

m00glem0g

Thanks everybody! I appreciate your suggestions! I am going to try cutting out gluten for a couple of weeks and see what happens (or rather, what doesn't)!