Question from our inbox:

I have been experiencing some stomach issues (gas and bloating) for the last six months and I can’t figure out what’s causing it.  I have eliminated different food groups in hopes that my symptoms would improve, but to my surprise I had no relief. Do you think I could have a food allergy, and if so what foods would you recommend I cut out of my diet. 

Melissa M.

Melissa, there are a number of things that could be causing your symptoms.  A food allergy is possible, but have you ever been tested for a food sensitivity? My partner, Stacy Paine RDN, LD is also a certified LEAP therapist. She is the only one in the area certified in the LEAP Program.  LEAP  (Lifestyle, Eating and Performance) is a program that utilizes Mediator Release Testing (MRT) to help individuals stop suffering from food sensitivities. 

LEAP is a custom-made eating plan and elimination diet based on one’s own unique food sensitivities determined by the MRT.  When our bodies are sensitive to certain foods, pro-inflammatory mediators are released, which cause a myriad of symptoms. Symptoms vary from person to person and can include diarrhea or IBS, migraine headaches, muscle and joint aches, digestive issues, weight imbalances, eczema, hives, and/or rashes, plus a wide range of other symptoms. 

Food sensitivities are different from food allergies, which are adverse immune responses to a food protein. To understand food sensitivities, think of your body as a loaded gun and think of the symptoms of food sensitivities as bullets. It’s our food sensitivities that cause the gun to fire the bullets, which creates the horrible aftermath of symptoms. In other words, MRT actually measures the types of bullets that the gun is firing, which determines which foods and chemicals are provoking the horrible aftermath of inflammatory symptoms throughout the body. 

People often suspect food as a culprit but have difficulty isolating the source or sources. Unlike food allergies, food sensitivities can be dose dependent, meaning that small exposure to the trigger food may be tolerable, but the same food in larger quantities can cause symptoms. In addition, symptoms may take up to 72 hours to appear, and considering that we eat a large variety of foods in that period of time, it becomes very challenging to identify the trigger foods without MRT. With a simple blood test, MRT takes the guesswork out and offers a scientific approach to detecting food sensitivities by identifying reactions to 150 different foods and chemical substances.  Chemical substances are those that are commonly eaten or ingested into our bodies like food pesticides, preservatives, toothpastes, lotions, mouthwashes, soaps, medications, etc.

The LEAP Program is generally a six-week program called the ImmonoCalm Diet Phase. It involves a detailed initial consultation, the MRT blood test, which is drawn at the Cardiology Care Clinic at Lake Oconee, and follow up visits. Once results are obtained, a custom made eating plan is developed starting with the safest foods for the first week and adding new foods each week for the next five weeks. The diet calms the mediated immune system responses (like bloating, diarrhea, weight gain) because reactive foods are not consumed. In most cases this leads to drastic reductions in overall inflammation, symptoms and the physical stresses that result from abnormal immune responses. Symptoms will be monitored before, during and after the six-week program. 

Stacy recently had a patient who believed that dairy and soy were contributing to her bloating and eczema. We eliminated these items and any derivatives from her diet. In place of cow’s milk she used rice or almond milk. Symptoms slightly improved the first week and then significantly worsened. We then conducted the MRT only to find out that she was highly reactive to almonds as well as dairy. We initiated the LEAP diet, which included eliminating all almond and dairy products from her diet. We also worked with her doctor to change one of her medications used to treat Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), which contained lactose; a sugar found in milk.  After the six week Immunocalm Diet Phase, her symptoms greatly improved and she even lost six pounds. 

Stacy and her partner Lisa Eisele, RD, CSO, LD own Oconee Nutrition Consultants, LLC. Both Stacy and Lisa have received Certificates of Training in Adult Weight Management. Contact the office at 706-473-5801 or email us at oconeenutrition@yahoo.com