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Being unable to tolerate a food can be very aggravating. A food allergy, by contrast, is easy to spot, as you will react very quickly after ingestion. But an intolerance takes longer to become evident, and the person who has it might not even realize the cause. Or you can go out of your way to eliminate certain foods, and still not discover what the culprit is. So, a food intolerance test can determine the culprit a lot better than food elimination.

Many people think that being intolerant to a certain food is the same as being allergic to it. This is a myth. Having a food intolerance is very different from having a food allergy. Food allergies cause problems that are very severe and occur very quickly, while food intolerance results in symptoms that are less serious, and may not appear for as long as 72 hours. You can quickly learn which foods are giving you problems by taking a food intolerance test.

When you have a food allergy, you have an allergic reaction to a particular food, and your immune system fights back much the same as it does if you have an allergy to pollen. Food intolerance is different in that the immune system is not involved in the body's reaction.

Your body won't recognize that fact that it has been invaded by an outside substance. However, the places that usually work to eliminate food, like your stomach and intestines, are intolerant to certain parts of the food so will have an adverse reaction to those ingredients.

If your body stops producing or doesn't produce specific enzymes needed to breakdown a certain food then an intolerance will occur. As we grow and our bodies change this can sometimes happen to us. For example, many people become lactose intolerant because the chemical needed to suitably digest lactose decreases as we age. It can take several years for the unpleasant intolerance symptoms to show up.

You can find out what foods you cannot tolerate in a number of ways. You can do this by reducing your food intake to a small number of foods that it is known cause the smallest number of problems. It is common to begin with such foods as lamb, water and brown rice. If you eat only these foods for about three weeks, then you can begin to reintroduce other foods one at a time, every few days. You should keep a detailed diary and record any reaction you have. After 6 or 9 months you will probably have an clearer idea of which foods you cannot tolerate.

Taking the ELISA IgG blood test to check for food intolerance is another means of figuring out which foods your body will not tolerate. Over 200 foods are tested using only a couple drops of blood. You will notice that you sleep more soundly, your digestion will improve, and you will feel more energetic when you are no longer consuming foods that you are intolerant to. Weight loss also occurs at an accelerated rate, which many people find pleasing.