Food Allergies

Abstract

Food allergy refers to an immune response caused by the ingestion of food. It is often wrongly invoked by patients to explain digestive discomforts that do not necessarily involve an immunological reaction (e.g., symptoms of lactose intolerance) or that have no causal link with the suspected offending food (e.g., digestive intolerances of irritable bowel syndrome). In adults, true food allergy is relatively rare (and most often easily identifiable); in children, however, it is an essential condition to recognize.