My email inbox has been full of articles lately about food allergies and the up-and-coming causes that doctors need to know about. Things like alpha-gal syndrome and systemic nickel sensitivity. Seems there are enough of us out here struggling with food reactivity issues to get us a little more attention.
And it's about time!
Here's my one concern…medicine is great at creating hard-and-fast rules and applying them to everyone who fits a certain definition. Everyone diagnosed with diabetes is treated with the same education and medications. Those with high blood pressure or irritable bowel syndrome are told the same things to do as the 35 other folks with those same symptoms that day.
I've talked before about how medicine seems to have forgotten we are each unique and what works for others may not work for you (or me). You haven't done anything wrong. Actually, just the opposite - you're doing it all exactly right.
Because you're listening to your body and advocating for yourself and what your body says is right or wrong for you.
That is the Golden Rule of healing your food sensitivities - listen to your body above all else.
And if that means your journey looks completely different than anyone else you know, embrace it! Doesn't mean it's easy, right? But you're honoring your body and your story…and you can't go wrong.
This is where genetics and epigenetics play a huge role in figuring out your food sensitivity puzzle.
When you know your genetics, you know your body's baseline capacity for dealing with histamine, inflammation, different food triggers and overall detoxification processes.
And when you know your genetics, you can also learn the lifestyle changes to make that will support your body, minimize your symptoms and allow healing. That's called epigenetics. Epigenetics includes all of the stuff you do and are exposed to in a day, a month or a lifetime - exercise, sleep, stress, chemicals and even food choices.
This is simply another way to learn more about your body and biochemistry so you can listen and respond to your body in the best possible way. It's not more rules…because rules just cause issues in this world. It's information, insight and wisdom.
And that's where healing begins!
(If it sounds difficult and overwhelming - no worries! That's why you have me!)
Sixty-second Self-care Tip…
Let's do a quick little informal assessment. Just two questions…
What has a healthcare provider, internet search or well-meaning friend told you to do for your food sensitivities and histamine intolerance that you tried and it actually made things worse?
How did you recognize it wasn't serving you well and how did you fix it?
If you're struggling with food intolerances, I am pretty confident you've had at least one of these situations pop up along the way. And if you did all the problem-solving to fix what didn't work, you're already doing a great job with self-care and self-advocacy!
Is there one trouble spot really causing problems for you? Email it to me! I'll send you 2-3 different things to try to smooth things out and get you feeling better ASAP! (Here's my super-secret, my-eyes-only email: melissa@melissaoverman.com!)