Can a Food Allergy be Stalling Weight Loss?

I know a little something about food allergies. My son is allergic to both wheat and all dairy. If my son gets anything containing either wheat or dairy or derived from wheat or dairy, he'll either vomit or break out in a rash.

So, I found this following article by a holistic nutritionist extremely fascinating: http://www.bodaweightloss.com/blog/food-allergy-and-weight-gain/

Apparently, a food allergy can be a reason why weight loss is so difficult for you. If you are allergic to something, such as milk, gluten, eggs, soy or nuts, you may not experience anything as dramatic as an anaphylactic reaction or vomiting, but it can cause puffiness and water retention.

Even more interesting, we tend to crave the very foods we are allergic as well, which leads to even more weight gain.

Here's what the author had to say:

"Now I know there are a couple of potential culprits, one of which is food allergy. When you eat a food to which you are allergic, partially digested bits of it seep through your intestinal lining and into the bloodstream and eventually to the tissues. This causes inflammation. In an attempt to dilute this irritating material, your body produces water. The fat cells also bloat up
to create a buffer. And voila – water retention and puffiness.
Interestingly, food allergies can also lead to food addiction, which in turn leads to more weight gain. When you eat a food you’re allergic to, the resulting biochemical reactions create a feeling of being high. I’m always suspicious when a client
says “I LOOOOVE cheese!” or “If I could never have bread again I would be really bummed!”. Obviously, if you are addicted to a food, you’ll consume a lot of it, creating more and more toxic reactions in your body. The allergic reaction itself can result in a drastic reduction in blood sugar which then causes weakness, hunger and irritability. And allergic hunger isn’t like normal hunger: you stay hungry until you eat the offending food!

Early on in my weight loss journey, I stopped consuming dairy for a while. I've always been a bit of a "cheese addict," but it was recommended that I go off dairy to lose weight and to clear up a persistent post-nasal drip.

Viola!! Within weeks off stopping dairy consumption weight started to come off finally. And, not only did my post-nasal drip clear up, but the constant bloating and gas I had been experiencing for years as well.

Maybe I too have a dairy allergy? And, maybe you're allergic to something as well that's hampering your weight loss efforts. The only way to find out is to do what I did. Just stop eating something for a while and see what happens.

The author recommends seeing a nutritionist, and while that's always a good idea, the nutritionist will probably just advise you to cut out any food you feel you may be allergic to, or maybe put you on an elimination diet.

I still indulge in dairy foods from time to time, but I now know it can't be an integral part of my daily diet as it once was.