food sensitivity testing

[quietserena]

I've seen a few people mention that they got tested for food allergies and the test wasn't the regular doc administered prick test.

Can someone point me in a direction of a place that'll do a test like this? I've kicked gluten out but there's something else in my diet that's upsetting and I can't quite figure out what and I don't want to start an elimination diet, I'm not eating enough as it is...

[Rachel J.]

Check over in the allergies forum. I'm guessing they'd have some suggestions. Hope you can figure it out. I'm starting a rotation diet because of similar issues (and the fear of becoming sensitive to even more foods, if I lose coconut I'm done for).

[lil_miss_understood]

You'll usually still need a doctor of some kind to order the test, and there are a few different kinds.
One is ELISA which tests for IgG reactions, known in allergy circles as intolerances.. some ELISAs test for IgE or "true" allergies also.
There are RAST tests, SPT (the kind you're talking about, Skin Prick Test), ALCAT and I believe there's one other but I can't think of it.
Feel free to post over in the allergy forum. The mamas there are very knowledgeable about the different tests and what they entail as well as giving advice as to how to find a doctor/practitioner who will order the test for you.
Just did a search over there and this thread may be helpful.
HTH.

[pampered_mom]

My dad had the blood spot IgG - Serum 90 done through his naturopath and found it extremely helpful. It was eye opening the number of food sensitivities he had. Since dropping those foods and embarking on a rotation diet his seasonal allergies and other issues have disappeared.

My mom didn't have the testing done, but dropped the same foods as my dad and has noticed improvements in her health as well and discovered lettuce was not a good food for her!

You can buy the same test yourself from Direct Labs. Someday I'm hoping to have the IgG 30 bloodspot done for dh since I figure it will likely identify his issue and it's cheaper than visiting the naturopath directly.

[WuWei]

"blood spot allergy testing"
Anybody heard of this "blood spot allergy testing"? This is a simple finger-prick blood spot test that detects allergies to foods. I found two versions which appear to test for 30 or 96 common "hidden" food allergens with IgG sensitivity. IgG antibodies are associated with non-atopic or "delayed" food reactions.

The research indicates that IgE "blood spot" yields virtually identical results to IgE serum testing for airborne sensitivities.
http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/j...TRY=1&SRETRY=0

http://www.forresthealth.com/store/p...roductid=16340 (only tests 30 foods)

Tests 96 foods: http://www.vrp.com/ProductPage.aspx?ProdID=9840
another 96 foods, seems to include environmental allergens: http://www.vrp.com/ProductPage.aspx?ProdID=98401

ALCAT testing info: http://www.foodallergytest.org/ (200 foods, venipuncture)

Multi-lab testing options, saliva, yeast, foods, heavy metals, adrenals, etc. http://www.lavalleinstitute.com/inde...d=54&Itemid=40

PubMed re: "Spot Test": http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7...?dopt=Abstract

I found this abstract from American Journal of Human Biology.

Abstract:Elevated circulating levels of total immunoglobulin E (IgE) are associated with both allergic disease and repeated macro-parasitic infections. Population-based research on IgE has been limited by the logistical constraints associated with obtaining and processing venipuncture blood samples. In this short report, we present an enzyme immunoassay protocol for quantifying circulating total IgE levels in capillary whole blood, collected from a finger prick and dried on filter paper. The assay demonstrated acceptable levels of accuracy, precision, and reliability. IgE remained stable at room temperature for only 2-4 days and degraded rapidly at higher temperatures suggesting that samples should be refrigerated or frozen within 1-2 days of collection. It is hoped that the relative ease of blood spot collection will expand opportunities for population-based research on IgE. Am. J. Hum. Biol. 19:440-442, 2007. © 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/j...08420/abstract

[Also found this "blood spot testing" for vit D deficiency. http://www.oasisadvancedwellness.com...spot-test.html ]

Here is a home test kit for airborne allergies: http://www.checkmyhealth.com/site/57...CMH-IT-MAT-001


This is all new to me and a bit confusing about the different IgG and IgE whole blood finger stick testing. Anyone have additional info or links?


Thanks, Pat

[Junegoddess]

I'm seriously taking notes on all this... I went to that other thread and looked around in the Allergies forum a bit. I have been thinking about getting some sort of comprehensive testing done on myself. I think I'd want IgG testing, since that's the kind of reaction I seem to have. My main problem seems to be leaky gut. But I do get skin rashes from dairy, it seems, so that's an IgE thing, right?

If I'm going to spend a huge gob of money, I want to know the tests are reliable (to some degree, I understand there are false positives and false negatives), comprehensive, and will point me in a good direction. My recent foray into hair mineral analysis just left me confused. I don't want to spend even more money and end up more confused.

[tanyalynn]

But I do get skin rashes from dairy, it seems, so that's an IgE thing, right?

I _think_ some skin rashes can be IgG. My son gets rashes around his mouth from 2 foods, but we don't have any of the stuff that seems to go with IgE allergies so I think all our stuff is IgG (my best guess since I've identified and eliminated all the problematic foods, so I don't want to test). But the Allergies folks know so much more, I lurk over there just to pick up bits and pieces from them.

[pampered_mom]

As to the blodspot part...I don't know what the difference between those results and a blood draw, but I do know the state mandated metabolic testing for babies in our state is a bloodspot test so I wouldn't think it'd be that out there.

[Panserbjorne]

Originally Posted by Junegoddess

I'm seriously taking notes on all this... I went to that other thread and looked around in the Allergies forum a bit. I have been thinking about getting some sort of comprehensive testing done on myself. I think I'd want IgG testing, since that's the kind of reaction I seem to have. My main problem seems to be leaky gut. But I do get skin rashes from dairy, it seems, so that's an IgE thing, right?

If I'm going to spend a huge gob of money, I want to know the tests are reliable (to some degree, I understand there are false positives and false negatives), comprehensive, and will point me in a good direction. My recent foray into hair mineral analysis just left me confused. I don't want to spend even more money and end up more confused.

that can be IgG and generally is. Hives are different than an eczema like rash which is more indicative of a stressed liver caused by a leaky gut.

Was it a dietary hair mineral analysis or a heavy metal hair mineral analysis? That can be confusing, but as with hair testing there are reliable labs and unreliable labs so know who you are dealing with.

Know too that many of the tests are run differently. For instance ELISA looks for antibodies whereas ALCAT looks for white cell reaction. What you are experiencing to some extent will determine the proper testing for you.