Healthy Food Info - Food Allergies VS Food Sensitivities And What May Be Causing Them

A valuable resource I have tapped into regarding healthy eating is the Feingold Association started by Dr. Benjamin Feingold. This organization is dedicated to the investigation between what we eat and how we feel after we eat it. The Feingold Association makes it possible to go to a centralized location where we can seek information, treatment, and support.

On of the key things I learned researching this site is there is a significant difference between an actual "food allergy" and having sensitivities to certain foods. This is especially important when working with an autistic child. An allergy is pretty obvious and most times requires some type of medical treatment. Food sensitivities, on the other hand, are less obvious and generally not acknowledged or taken seriously by medical professionals.

Food is fuel for the body after all and if we are not ingesting the right foods or foods we are sensitive to then we are in effect putting diesel fuel into a gasoline engine (sorry my green friends....we are putting gasoline into our ethanol tanks!!! Ha! Ha!).

One of the worst culprits in this covert attack on our bodies is synthetic dyes (food colorings).

Synthetic dyes date back to 1856 when the color "mauve" was 1st invented from coaltar oil. The new color hues quickly replaced fruit, vegetable, and mineral colorings that had previously been used.

In 1960, Congress directed the FDA to prove the these food dyes were safe. The agency was given 2 1/2 years to complete the task. Meanwhile, the dyes then in use were given a "provisional" status permitting their continued use while the testing was being conducted. After the initial time period was up and the testing was still not complete, it was determined that the provisional status would be extended pending test results. Amazingly, this provisional status has been extended several times over several decades with no results from the tests ever being completed.

And we wonder why we need to be careful about what we ingest today? I hope this post was helpful and informative and will cause you to research further into what you are purchasing for you and your family to eat.

For more detailed information on this issue, read my next post on the Feingold Association findings on Red Dye #3. For more info, please check out http://www.feingold.org/ for a treasure of healthy information.

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