Headaches,
migraines, tiredness, fatigue, weight problems, eczema,
psoriasis, asthma, catarrh, sinus congestion, IBS, digestive
disorders, anxiety, M.E. and depression.These, and
many other complaints may be due to food intolerance or
allergy.
Facts about
Allergy
• 1 in 3 people have an allergy
• Over 3 million people see their GPs because of allergy
related illnesses
• 5 million people in the UK have asthma
• 1 in 4 people in the UK have allergic rhinitis and hay
fever
• 6% of children under 3years and 4% of adults are affected
by food allergies
• Approximately 1 in 5 people have eczema and skin
allergy
• Allergic diseases can have a significant effect on
patients’ quality of life and wellbeing
• Many sufferers are not aware that their symptoms are due
to an allergy
• People with allergic conditions benefit from care by
allergy specialists
WHAT THE
DEVON ALLERGY CLINIC CAN DO TO HELP
Holistic overview of your condition rather then looking
at your symptoms in isolation.
Both
Allergy and Inloterances investigated with a view to
identifing potential problems.
Digestive disorders , chronic fatigue and skin conditions
are the Clinic`s areas of expertise.
Investigating the relationship between food, contact and
aero allergens.
The Devon Allergy Clinic is in a unique
position to intergrate orthodox and complementary medicine for
the benefit of the client.
I was pleased this week to discuss my blog on the Devon Allergy
Clinic this week with its lead clinician, Marlene.
It was refreshing to have a mature chat with someone leading a
complimentry clinic that didn`t just settle into a pointless
argument and I was impressed by her approaching me to discuss
it.
Her training and diploma in Allergy are entirely
mainstream.
The area of food intolerance is however an area where many people
who suffer do feel the need to go seeking help. I
do recognize that in medicine we are not well equipped
at all to advise or help people with food intolerances and that
we do not have the answer a lot of the time. (I worked in 1993 in
MartinStern`s Allergy Clinic in Leicester and
understood from that time some of the difficulties see MAARA and the older, pretty much out
of date site of his now, AAIR).
This is therefore an area where people will seek help in other
directions an I feel they must be careful in judging the
qualities of the alternative help they seek.
Food allergy
sufferers `worst served` by medicine
People who
suffer from food allergies get some of the worst service from
doctors due to misleading test results, wrong diagnoses and poor
quality research. ByNick
Collins
Published: 9:00AM BST 17 May 2010
A review of research into the
affliction found that up to three in ten people claim to have a
food allergy of some sort, but blind testing reveals that fewer
than ten percent actually has one.
People were found to be
avoiding certain foods because they incorrectly suspected they
were allergic to them, while many parents refused to give their
children certain foods even though most will overcome their
allergies as they grow older.
The research, published
in the Journal of the American Medical Association, is
the first step in a plan by the US National Institute of Allergy
and Infectious Diseases to set out criteria for the diagnosis and
treatment of patients next month.
The most common allergies are
responses to cow`s milk, egg, peanuts, fish and shellfish.
According to the review, 3.5
per cent of people claim to be allergic to cow`s milk, while
testing suggested the figure was just 0.9 per cent.
However, with peanut
allergies, the number who claimed to be allergic, 0,75 per cent,
was exactly the same proportion revealed by testing.
Results showed that part of
the problem was a lack of understanding of the difference between
a food allergy – a response to food by the immune system
– and a food intolerance, which may be caused by substances
within the food or by a psychological trigger.
Dr Pamela Ewan,consultant
allergist at Addenbrooke`s Hospital, Cambridge,told The
Independent: "The chaos is massive in the UK. Doctors
untrained in allergy are having to pick up cases in
gastroenterology clinics,asthma clinics, dermatology clinics.
"People get the wrong
advice because the tests are not understood. The key problem is
that we haven`t got enough people who understand allergy. There
are 30consultants nationwide and just 12 training posts, not even
enough to replace those who are leaving."
Recent Questions:
Hello Marlene. For some time my husband has been experiencing strange health problems. Total lethargy after eating, aching muscles and joints, dark circles under eyes, bloating, wind, diarrhoea to name but a few. Apart form a test for coeliac disease his gp refuses to acknowledge his symptoms may be caused by food and has diagnosed him as depressed. He is now on anti depressants. With no effect. There does seem to be a connection with food and his symptoms. Can you advise which of the tests would be most apt? Thank you
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