I keep seeing articles pointing out that many food allergies are not “real” allergies – and, as a result, that people are putting themselves in “real” danger by avoiding food groups without a diagnosis. I’ve even read a headline today that said you can end up with a serious illness if you avoid a food group unnecessarily.

Seems to me that people are as busy over-reacting to the news that allergy testing can result in false positives. Just because someone does not have a food “allergy” (as defined by either a diagnosis of allergy or a positive allergy test) doesn’t mean that a particular food isn’t a problem.

Have people forgotten that food intolerance is also a possibility?

Allergy specialist Dr Carina Venter says that it only takes a few years of excluding a whole food group to have a longer term impact. But she doesn’t say what that impact could be. Venter also points out the social implications of food restrictions, where people are unable to eat because they aren’t sure of what is on their plate.

Seems to me that this is the reality that many people live with every day for a wide variety of conditions. If you are diabetic, it’s sugar. If you have high cholesterol, it’s cheese and high fat dairy foods. If you are allergic, it’s your allergen. And whether you suffer socially or not depends on both your social skills and the friends that you have.

I never suffered socially because of food intolerance. We simply socialized in a smart way.

For that matter, given the contents of our food (including undeclared GMO ingredients and problematic additives of all sorts) it seems to me that any sane person should be avoiding food unless they know exactly what is in it!

Meanwhile, allergists stir up fears that people are excluding dairy without a firm diagnosis. However, shouldn’t the same allergists be more worried that people do not eat enough of other sources of calcium? I seem to know a whole generation of kids who have never had collards, romaine lettuce, kale, chard or other vegetables that also provide calcium to the diet. Seems to me that the lost nutrition of not eating a varied diet is much more serious than the impact of one lost food group.

There are the derogatory remarks from the experts too – that food restrictions are “fashionable”. This may be true: trends happen in every area of life. When I was a kid, every family on the block ate casseroles. When was the last time you ate a casserole?

It seems to me that before our experts start believing that they have a one-size-fits-all diet that is imperative for every person’s health, they should actually do a little research into the variety of diets that are eaten all over the world – and realize that health comes in a variety of diets, including those that exclude whole food groups.