Advanced Laboratory Food Intolerance Blood Assessment Test

At-Home Sample Collection & 286-Antigen Report

Do you experience bloating, abdominal discomfort, changes in bowel habits or other symptoms that you feel may be associated with the foods you eat?

Our Advanced Laboratory Food Intolerance Blood Assessment Test provides a detailed laboratory report covering 286 food antigens, giving you information that can be discussed with a healthcare professional or registered dietitian alongside your symptoms, dietary history and other relevant health information.

At a glance

Sample Blood

Collection:Self-collected sample using the supplied kit

Food antigens assessed:286

Estimated turnaround:3 to 5 working days.

A food intolerance describes a situation where a person has difficulty tolerating or digesting a particular food or food ingredient. It is different from a food allergy.

Food intolerance can be associated with symptoms such as bloating, abdominal discomfort, diarrhoea, constipation, nausea and excess wind. Symptoms may occur several hours after eating a particular food and can sometimes last for hours or days.

Food intolerance can have many different causes. For example, lactose intolerance occurs when the body has difficulty digesting lactose, the sugar found naturally in milk and dairy products.

It is important to remember that symptoms sometimes attributed to food intolerance can have other causes, including gastrointestinal conditions. Persistent or recurring symptoms should therefore be discussed with a healthcare professional.

This assessment analyses a blood sample against a panel of 286 food antigens.,Covering everything from everyday grains, dairy, meats, and fresh seafood to complex spices, novel ingredients, coffee, and edible mushrooms.

The laboratory report provides information about the immune-reactivity measurements included in the panel. The results can help you identify areas that may warrant further discussion about your diet and symptoms.

However, a laboratory finding should not automatically be interpreted as proof that a particular food is causing your symptoms.

Results from food-related testing should be considered alongside your symptoms, medical history, dietary pattern and other clinical information.

A healthcare professional may use the information as one part of a broader discussion about possible food triggers and whether further assessment is appropriate.

For suspected food intolerance, healthcare professionals may also recommend keeping a food and symptom diary and, where appropriate, structured elimination and reintroduction of foods. The NHS notes that some commercially available home tests claiming to diagnose food intolerance are not recommended because evidence for their accuracy is limited.

It is therefore important not to interpret a positive result in isolation or automatically remove numerous foods from your diet.

This assessment may be of interest if you:

• Experience recurring digestive symptoms after eating
• Notice that certain foods appear to trigger symptoms
• Want a broader assessment of food-related immune-reactivity measurements
• Would like information to discuss with a healthcare professional or dietitian
• Want to keep a more structured record of potential food-related triggers

However, this test is not a substitute for medical assessment.

If you have persistent digestive symptoms, unexplained weight loss, blood in your stool, severe abdominal pain or other concerning symptoms, speak with your GP or another healthcare professional.

It is also important to distinguish food allergy from food intolerance. Food allergy can cause symptoms such as hives, swelling, wheezing or breathing difficulties and can sometimes result in a life-threatening reaction.

Preparation and collection

Your sample is self-collected at home using the supplied collection kit.

Before collecting your sample:

1. Read all collection instructions supplied with your kit.
2. Make sure you have everything required for the sample collection.
3. Follow the instructions carefully to obtain the required blood sample.
4. Ensure the sample is correctly labelled and packaged according to the kit instructions.
5. Complete the required information before returning your sample.

Important return instructions

Return the sample on the same day it is collected.

Do not post your sample over weekends or bank holidays.

Returning the sample promptly helps minimise delays in laboratory processing.

Your report will provide your individual results for the food antigens included in the assessment.

It is important to understand that a result indicating reactivity to a food does not necessarily mean that eating that food is responsible for your symptoms.

Conversely, a result that does not show significant reactivity does not necessarily rule out every possible food-related problem.

This is because food-related symptoms can arise through different mechanisms, and not every form of food intolerance can be identified through a blood test.

NHS specialist guidance also highlights that IgG food testing should not be regarded as a validated diagnostic method for food intolerance.

Your results are therefore best viewed as information to discuss with an appropriately qualified healthcare professional, rather than as a diagnosis.

Once your report is available, review your findings alongside the foods you regularly eat and any symptoms you experience.

You may wish to:

1. Keep a food and symptom diary

Record what you eat, when you eat it and any symptoms that follow. This can help identify patterns that may not be obvious from a single test.

2. Discuss your results

If you have concerns about your results, speak with your GP, healthcare professional or registered dietitian.

3. Avoid unnecessary dietary restrictions

Do not remove large numbers of foods from your diet simply because they appear on a report.

Removing multiple foods without appropriate guidance can make it difficult to maintain a balanced diet. The NHS recommends seeking advice from a GP or food and nutrition specialist before significantly restricting your diet.

4. Consider further investigation if symptoms persist

Your healthcare professional may consider whether another condition could be responsible for your symptoms and whether additional testing is appropriate.

Food intolerance is not the same as food allergy

Understanding the difference is important.

Food intolerance commonly involves digestive symptoms such as bloating, abdominal discomfort, diarrhoea or excess wind.

Food allergy involves an immune response and can cause symptoms such as itching, hives, swelling, vomiting, wheezing or difficulty breathing. Some allergic reactions can be severe.

If you have experienced a reaction involving breathing difficulties, throat swelling, significant facial or lip swelling, dizziness or collapse after eating a food, do not rely on a home food-intolerance test. Seek appropriate medical assessment.

Limitations

The result is a snapshot from one sample. It cannot diagnose a condition on its own; values inside or outside a reference range require clinical context.Food-related symptoms can have many different causes, and laboratory testing cannot identify every type of food intolerance.Do not make major or long-term dietary changes solely on the basis of this test without appropriate professional advice.

When to get medical help

Do not wait for a home-test result if you feel seriously unwell.

Call 999 for a life-threatening emergency, or use NHS 111 when you need urgent advice and are unsure what to do.

Seek urgent medical attention if you develop symptoms suggestive of a serious allergic reaction, such as sudden swelling of the lips, mouth, throat or tongue, difficulty breathing, severe wheezing, difficulty swallowing, fainting or significant dizziness.