After eating, does your stomach rumble, do you feel bloated, get diarrhea, or even headaches? The reason for this might be a food intolerance. We have summarized the most important information for you, including symptoms and how to recognize an intolerance.
Food Intolerance or Food Allergy?
In medicine, a distinction is made between food intolerance and food allergy, because the body reacts completely differently in both cases:
In the case of a food allergy, the body perceives certain components in food as dangerous. To combat these, the immune system is activated. Typically, an allergy leads to symptoms such as itching, skin rashes, a runny nose, or swelling of the palate or tongue. Food allergies to nuts, such as hazelnuts or walnuts, are particularly common in Germany. On the ingredient list of foods, the note "may contain traces of nuts" is often found. The reason for this: Even the smallest amounts can trigger a strong allergic reaction in the case of a food allergy. In severe allergies, this can even be life-threatening.
Food intolerances have different causes: Here, the body can only poorly or not at all digest or absorb individual components in food. It is therefore not a reaction of the immune system. Rather, certain transport or digestive processes in the intestine do not function properly. This can cause many different complaints and problems that negatively affect the health and well-being of those affected. Unlike an allergy, people with a food intolerance can often consume an individual amount of the food before the first symptoms appear.
Symptoms: How does the body react to intolerances?
If you have a food intolerance, typical symptoms become noticeable shortly after eating. Possible indications of an intolerance are digestive problems such as:
- cramping abdominal pain
- bloating
- feelings of fullness
- abdominal sounds
- diarrhea or constipation
- nausea
Less obvious, however, are symptoms such as headaches, dizziness, extreme fatigue, and sleep disturbances. Even psychological changes such as listlessness or depression can be the result of a food intolerance.
The problem: We often don't attribute these symptoms to our diet first.
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What are the most common food intolerances?
An intolerance to certain foods is a widespread phenomenon in Germany and other industrialized countries. At least one in five people is affected by a food intolerance. Germans particularly often suffer from lactose, fructose, or gluten intolerance. Other intolerances are directed against sorbitol or histamine.
They can arise for various reasons. For example, excessive consumption of fructose, but also congenital or acquired enzyme defects.
Lactose Intolerance
Lactose, also known as milk sugar, is a disaccharide. In the small intestine, it is broken down by the enzyme lactase into two monosaccharides: galactose and glucose. These are then transported into the blood via the intestinal lining and serve as important energy suppliers. In lactose intolerance, the body cannot produce lactase or produces only very little. Therefore, the milk sugar reaches the large intestine undigested. There, the lactose is broken down by the resident bacteria. This produces gases and organic fatty acids, which can cause symptoms such as abdominal pain, bloating, and diarrhea.
Approximately 15 percent of people in Germany are affected by lactose intolerance. However, our diet includes many foods that contain lactose. For example, dairy products such as quark, cream, milk, and cream cheese. But lactose can also be found in pastries, ready-made sauces, sweets, or medicines.
Fructose Intolerance (Fructose Malabsorption)
Fructose is fruit sugar. As the name suggests, fructose is particularly found in fruits, especially stone and pome fruits such as apples or peaches. In addition, many processed foods, sweets, honey, and some vegetables also contain fructose. Furthermore, sugar alternatives such as sorbitol, maltitol, or birch sugar can cause problems. Caution is advised here, as these are used in many foods.
If the body reacts with an intolerance to fruit sugar, the following happens: Normally, fructose is transported from the small intestine into the blood by a transport protein. However, this transport function can be disturbed. Then the body no longer absorbs the fruit sugar properly. This is why it is also referred to as malabsorption. The fructose enters the large intestine, where it is converted by bacteria into gases and short-chain fatty acids. Typical symptoms are then digestive problems such as bloating, abdominal pain, diarrhea, and feelings of fullness.
Gluten Intolerance (Celiac Disease)
Celiac disease is neither an allergy nor an intolerance in the conventional sense, but an autoimmune disease. The immune system of those affected reacts to the protein gluten. This occurs in many types of grain such as wheat, spelt, rye, or barley. Bread, pasta, and many other foods therefore contain gluten. The problematic aspect of celiac disease is that the immune reaction not only attacks gluten but also the intestinal lining, which becomes inflamed. People with celiac disease therefore often suffer from symptoms such as abdominal cramps and abdominal pain. In addition, the inflamed tissue absorbs fewer nutrients, which can quickly lead to a nutrient deficiency in the body. It is therefore important for affected individuals to consistently avoid foods that contain gluten.
Recognizing Food Intolerance: But How?
Do you suspect you are affected by a food intolerance? Then you should consult your doctor. Although there are typical symptoms, a reliable diagnosis can only be obtained from a specialist. Sometimes, serious illnesses such as inflammatory bowel disease can hide behind these symptoms. Therefore, you should have a test performed by an expert. For suspected lactose or fructose intolerance, a breath test is often used. For the diagnosis of gluten intolerance in adults, a laboratory examination, a small bowel biopsy, and possibly a genetic examination are necessary.
A professional diagnosis is not only important to rule out other causes for your symptoms, but it also saves you from unnecessarily giving up certain foods. This can promote a deficiency of valuable nutrients.
What to do for food intolerances?
Once you have received your diagnosis, a sensible next step is to change your eating habits with medical support or with the help of professional nutritional counseling.
The goal: To banish foods that don't agree with you from your diet. At the same time, your diet should be balanced and varied so that you can go through everyday life more carefree.
All our articles are written by nutritionists and checked for content quality by expert professionals.
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