New research shows that there is a definite difference in rates of food sensitivity: countries varied in the number of people who were sensitive to at least one food. In fact, while about 1 in 4 people in Portland had a food sensitivity, less than 1 in 10 had the same problem in Reykjavik, Iceland.

However, even though rates of sensitivity were different from place to place, there were similarities in which foods triggered a problem.

The study looked at antibodies to food as an indicator of sensitivity. Antibodies show that there has been an immune reaction to a food. While antibodies do not prove an individual has had full blown allergic symptoms, it does prove that the food causes an immune response.

Of 13 developed countries represented in the research, US, Germany, Italy and Norway showed the highest rates of sensitivity with an average of 22 per cent nationally. Lowest rates were seen in Iceland, Spain, France and the UK.

The foods most likely to cause sensitivity were hazelnuts, peaches, shrimp, wheat and apples. Interestingly, these trigger foods were relatively consistent across countries in the study. .

Source: Reuters