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Article: Sorry, I'm allergic to it. (what is food allergy and what causes it)
- Article from:
- Medical Update
- Article date:
- September 1, 1993
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1993 Benjamin Franklin Literary & Medical Society, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Are you really? Surveys show that about one-third of us think we're allergic to some kind of food, yet true food allergy probably affects less than 2 percent of the population. In the first years of life, the percentage is doubtless higher--as much as 5 percent perhaps--but much of this allergy is eventually outgrown.
What we often call food allergy is really only intolerance to certain foods (i.e., those that don't agree with us for reasons other than an allergic response). True allergy involves the body's immune system. In allergic individuals, it reacts against certain food components, producing antibodies against them to rid the body of what it mistakenly ...