Adverse food reactions: a gastroenterologist's perspective

摘要

Adverse food reactions (allergy or intolerance) generally occur when a food interacts with a biologic amplification system, leading to inflammation and clinical signs. The most common gastrointestinal (GI) manifestations are vomiting and diarrhea. Many food sensitive animals with diarrhea have evidence of large-bowel dysfunction. In food-sensitive patients, clinical signs resolve after the responsible food is eliminated from the diet; these signs recrudesce when the patient is rechallenged with thefood. An initial elimination period of 2 to 4 weeks is sufficient for resolving GI signs in most food-sensitive patients. In patients with chronic relapsing conditions, the elimination period must be longer. In a recent Massey University study, the GI signs in all the cats with adverse reactions to foods resolved within 2 to 3 days of beginning an elimination food. As a general rule, the protein and carbohydrate sources for an elimination food should be selected based on the dietary history and shouldnot have made up a large part of the animal's diet in the previous 6 months. Commercially manufactured foods are effective elimination diets provided they are purchased from a reputable manufacturer and a careful dietary history is taken to ensure that the proteins in the elimination food are novel to the patient. Foods containing protein hydrolysates are also likely to be very effective elimination foods.