Over the years more and more people have convinced themselves that they are allergic or intolerant to some foods only because they accuse "abdominal swelling or poor digestibility". All of this could easily be attributed to a incorrect diet.
However, it is also true that the average consumer has to deal with non-specialist magazines (although sometimes even the specialized magazines rely on questionable characters) that can be purchased for a few euros, which ride the belief that unspecified intolerances can make you fat.
In reality, since intolerance is a non-immune-mediated disorder which involves the non-assimilation of some nutrients, it may not translate into a cause of weight gain. In other words, reactions to intolerances do not undergo that process of aggression by our immune system as happens for allergies.
The major scientific societies in the nutritional sector (ADI, ANDID, FNOMCeO, SID, SINU, SIO, SIAAIC, AAGO, SIAIP, SINUPE, AMD, AAIITO) have also drafted a handbook for managing food intolerances, which can be downloaded from the Ministry of Health website where, as specified in the first information, we read that "intolerances are not responsible for overweight or obesity".
Those who counter, stating «I have eliminated bread, pasta, wine, sugary drinks» shouldn't be too surprised, since these are the foods we consume most during the day and which we often and willingly abuse. We must also be honest with ourselves by saying that the condition we find ourselves in is not necessarily an internal factor, such as an intolerance, but something external, such as an incoherent diet, even if it is preferable since any feelings of guilt do not prevail.
It is perfectly human to apply tests that can finally find the source of our discomfort, especially after going through doctors and gastroenterologists who have not been able to find a cause, scanning dozens and dozens of foods in one go, sometimes with a some saliva, or with a test of a hair, or even on blood. Unfortunately, these tests are also advertised in pharmacies, and one would never think that useless tests could be done in pharmacies, yet that is exactly the case.
As stated in the FNOMCeO (Order of Doctors and Dentists) document “Food allergies and intolerances”, «the rapid execution in vitro tests represent a constantly expanding marketee are offered to the public under different and very captivating names, both in pharmacies and in private or sometimes affiliated laboratories [...] the price varies from 70 to 200 euros [...] the fact of being a "blood" test generates in user the belief that he has carried out a highly reliable and reproducible diagnostic test.". Some of these non-validated tests that we can find are: the vega-test, cytotoxic test, kinesiological test, IGg4 dosage, hair test and many others».
Un any test to prove valid must be reliable, or always giving the same answer by analyzing three samples from the same person, since otherwise they would only be random values (some of the tests mentioned cannot even reproduce the same result on the usual sample), and have clinical validity.
To date, unfortunately, there are no tests capable of mass screening to diagnose food intolerances. People feel hardships and don't understand why: they are a constantly growing and very vulnerable group of people. Healthcare professionals, including pharmacists, they should not encourage the use of these tests without any scientific validity, which besides costing a lot of money, risk eliminating foods that could lead to deficits and deficiencies easily avoidable and unnecessary.
So? Do these intolerances exist? Can you say you are intolerant to yeast or olive oil? Definitely no. There are few known intolerances, but it is still possible to have specific adverse reactions for some people. The tomato is possible that trigger reactions similar to intolerances, but this could be due to the fact that it contains salicylates and some people can react more severely. Is it an intolerance? I would say no, and there are no tests that can reveal this.
Currently you can check for yourself if there may be one possible intolerance by eliminating a certain food from the diet and then reintroducing it in a controlled manner. It's a test called the Oral Provocation Test (TPO). Genetic tests can also be found, but only in the case of celiac disease or lactose intolerance can they have value, since a particular mutation can be highlighted. However, for other generic intolerances, not even precisely defined, there can be no genetic test since it does not specify which molecules of the food are harmful, if not the food itself, and this cannot be true.
