Table 1 Proposed terminology
From: Debates in allergy medicine: food intolerance does exist
• Hypersensitivity: a reaction to an ingested food, whatever the mechanism causing the symptoms |
• Food allergy: a reaction to a food that can be explained by an immune mediated mechanisms, IgE-mediated or non-IgE mediated |
• Intolerance: a reaction to a food that is caused by a deficiency of a disaccharidase |
• Food related symptom: any symptom that is/seems caused by a food but for which no causing mechanism can be indicated |