Are all these food allergies real?

Yes, it is awful. The farmers around here don't even want to deal with the big M that tries to promote their company as such a family loving, environementally friendly, gag, gag, gag.............

The billboards around here make me sick.

I bet. I'm still bitter because I found out one of my county's locally based "organic" food companies pumped $500,000 into suppressing GMO food labeling. It's so frustrating because I just want information that should be available BY DEFAULT.

Oh yes. I know Whole Foods backed up Monsanto a whole lot in this mess.

I have also heard from others that live in California that it is possible that there was ballot tampering and that the measure might have actually passed.

I was praying for rop 37 to pass in California as a first so that it would spark and unite other states to join in also.

Of course Missouri would want no parts of it because they are big Monsanto lovers around these here parts.

Yes, it is awful. The farmers around here don't even want to deal with the big M that tries to promote their company as such a family loving, environementally friendly, gag, gag, gag.............

The billboards around here make me sick.

I bet. I'm still bitter because I found out one of my county's locally based "organic" food companies pumped $500,000 into suppressing GMO food labeling. It's so frustrating because I just want information that should be available BY DEFAULT.

Oh yes. I know Whole Foods backed up Monsanto a whole lot in this mess.

I have also heard from others that live in California that it is possible that there was ballot tampering and that the measure might have actually passed.

I was praying for rop 37 to pass in California as a first so that it would spark and unite other states to join in also.

Of course Missouri would want no parts of it because they are big Monsanto lovers around these here parts.

This is not true. I work for Whole Foods and I know they've been fighting for YEARS to have labeling in GMO foods. They have been the biggest backer of the Non-GMO Project since it's inception! We all wanted Prop 37 to pass as well. It was a company wide initiative. They got a bad rap because people pointed out that many of our foods have GMOs, but that is simply unfair because many of EVERYONE'S food in the US has GMOs. Nearly 80% of the food chain supply in the US has GMOs. That's the problem with Monsanto and others getting away with not labeling, plus there is the issue of cross-pollination and drift which makes it virtually impossible to avoid all GMOs. Trust me, everyone in this company wants GMO labeling. We have said this from the very beginning. Our message on this issue has never changed, we just got a whole bunch of bad press which marked us as somehow being different from every other natural retailer (and indeed every conventional retailer as well), but EVERY natural retailer has this problem. Whole Foods was targeted simply because it is the biggest. Do not for a second think that your natural retailer is any different just because it isn't Whole Foods. Every single part of the food chain is poisoned by Monsanto. They need to be stopped!

As far as allergies (to foods, medications, bee stings, what have you) go, developed countries have a much higher incidence than underdeveloped countries. The theory is that people in other countries are exposed to a lot of agents that we are not exposed to. Many parasites, bacteria and other microorganisms are commonly encountered there, but have been mostly eradicated from developed countries like the US. Because we are so sterile and rarely encounter foreign things, our immune systems are overly sensitive and often mount either an allergic or an autoimmune response to innocuous substances. People in underdeveloped countries rarely get allergies or autoimmune disorders, and this is why immunologists believe so.

However, most people who say they have food allergies are actually intolerant, not allergic. I don't really know the physiology behind that as well, but I do know that our bodies can produce antibodies to certain food products, or people can be deficient in certain enzymes needed to metabolize the products, hence the upset stomach, bloating etc. accompanying the food.

Edited to add: Bottom line is immunizations, antibiotics, better hygiene and a generally sterile environment in developed countries could be major contributing factors to the increase in allergies.

One of the things we are missing in thinking about developed countries vs undeveloped countries is how well are records being kept for medical care in countries were people don't see doctors regularly. If a kid has a life threatening allergy in a developing country and has no access to a doctor or hospital -- likelihood says the kid dies when exposed. If someone has celiacs disease in a developing country they just fail to thrive, lose weight, get sick and stay sick. Access to preventive medical care now compared to two generations ago, and in developed countries vs not developed countries is what makes the rate of incidence higher.

I do think some people say allergy, when they mean 'I want attention', but that doesn't mean better detection doesn't lead to more incidents of food allergies being found It also doesn't mean that food allergies shouldn't be taken very seriously.

Also we have the internet and more than regional TV now, so you hear about a might wider variety of stuff like gluten free, that you wouldn't have known about unless someone in your family or neighborhood had it.

We were having this same conversation the other day at work. My sister is allergic to peanuts, so much so that she only has to smell them on your breath and her throat starts to close over. I recently found out I am allergic to milk. I spent years thinking I was lactose intolerant but I was wrong.

What struck me as interesting about this is I asked my mother about when I was a baby and she replied that they had a terrible time with me, they tried to feed me all kinds of different formulas and milks but I was in constant pain, they called it colic. I think back then they just didn't consider allergies something to look into. Fussy babies didn’t have allergies or reflux, they had colic. I spent years feeling like a hypochondriac because of all the problems I was having, heart palpitations, headaches, sinus issues, rashes, reflux, joint pain, cough....ah the list goes on. It all came down to some allergy tests to determine that I am allergic to milk. Since I stopped consuming any dairy I feel like a new person.

But as you have said I have seen so many people give up gluten or dairy just because they have read something online and thought it would make them feel better, or lose weight. To truly find out if you have an allergy it requires testing and medical assistance, not some on line diagnosis. Especially with all those celebrity diet fads out there that people want to just jump on the bus with. There are also a lot of intolerances and sensitivities out there, once again you should be seeking medical advice before making those determinations on your own. People forget that the internet is full of misinformation and you cannot just diagnose yourself.

So it really is hard to say if it is a matter of better education medically on allergies than has been in the past, additives in foods, or just people self-diagnosing that have created this increase in allergies and sensitivities.

I decided against typing what I originally wrote. It was quite rude and probably would have been reported. The overly censored version is:

You probably shouldn't reject and insult an intolerance/allergy that you don't understand or are too ignorant to research. Perhaps some education into the physical effects of gluten intolerance and the autoimmune extreme, Celiac Disease, will lower your sense of superiority and provide you with a better understanding than anecdotal evidence.

My point is to educate yourself before you *kitten* on people.

I just think that when you are a kid, you don't know everything and if something is normal for you, you may not realize that it's really not part of a normal functioning body. I do not have an allergy but I do have an intolerance that I recognized as an adult. I spent my life up until age 25 think that stomach aches, bloating, and all the glory that follows on a DAILY basis was completely normal and that everyone experienced it on a daily basis. If something is a part of your life and it's never talked about, how is someone supposed to know it's not normal? Things like that were never discussed in my house when I was growing up. As an adult I started learning more about intolerances and allergies, but even then I never thought I had anything. Again, I thought stomach aches daily were normal and everyone experienced them. I thought that was just part of pooping. I think it was talking to my husband about something that led me to realize that I might have lactose intolerance. So I tested it. I stopped eating dairy. Wow...no stomach aches! Then I ate dairy...and stomach aches and bloating were back! Now I take lactaid with anything dairy and it helps. If I forget to take it, then I suffer. So if someone like an older relative says, "Well you never used to have a problem with dairy...", I can say, "Well, I used to think that stomach aches and bloating every day was normal...."

SO MY POINT IS: Many people may not realize that how their body is reacting is not normal until they hear about how their symptoms are actually not normal....and that may be well into adulthood. This goes for allergies and intolerances.