A Healthy Diet Could Make You Ill !
This statement is not just a publicity slogan but an every day reality for most of us.
According to most media and the guide to Canadian Nutritional news, we are very conscious that a healthy diet means the daily consumption of a minimum of 7 to 10 portions of fruit and vegetables., for adolescents and adults alike. Furthermore as a result of studies and world renown books written by Dr. Beliveau we have come to understand that “ Our best ally is neither the pharmacy nor the natural food counters but rather the supermarket”.Dr. David Servan is also leaning in the same direction. Scientific literature tells us more and more that eating well is not only beneficial in the prevention of getting cancer but also many other forms of chronic illnesses. We know now that a diet rich with fruit and vegetables are extremely important to our health, it stimulates our metabolism as a whole, our immune system, our hormonal system as well as our nervous system.
Then how is it possible that such a healthy diet could be the cause for so many of our ills?
It all started with the research and observations by Dr. Jean Seignalet who demonstrated in his book entitled “l’alimentation ou la 3ème medecine (nutrition the 3rd medicine)” that some types of food and the way they are cooked can be the root cause of many illnesses. To my knowledge he was the first scientist who demonstrated that even though we erroneously believe that our diet is a healthy one, in reality it is strongly altered by the repeated frequent intake of chemical molecules such as antibiotics, prescription drugs, and various nutritional additives or even by cooking food at high temperatures.
This nutritional diet renders our digestive track porous and thus very permeable to a variety of molecules in our diet. From then on these molecules as well as those produced by bacterial pathogens in our digestive track penetrate into our organism and are identified as foreign intruders by our immune system which in turn produces antigens in order to neutralize them as they would any bacteria or virus The passage of these foreign molecules triggers a chronic inflammatory process as well as an immune response which depending on the terrain can result in an immune auto disease or other pathologies. Consequently in the event that the intestinal wall has been compromised and thus permeable it is understandable that we will find a variety of undigested food molecules such as apple, broccoli, barley and/ or oat cheese etc…
This is why from here on we should not only take into account the nutritional values (reference to food guides) or even the therapeutic ones (reference to the examples from Dr. R Beliveau’s findings)but as well the interaction between our diet and our immune system .This is what we call ‘’ immunonutrition.
Immunonutrition allows us to study the potential tolerance level of an individual towards various food elements and the means of increasing this level of tolerances. As a result one can maintain control of chronic inflammation processes by eating according to their specific immune system. In doing so we increase, our well being, our psychological, intellectual and physical and performances, .we control our weight, we optimize the aging process and we contribute as well to the healing of pathologies such as rheumatism, cardiovascular conditions, digestive troubles and many more
How can we maintain control over chronic inflammations? Simply by examining the presence of antibodies created against the absorption of certain food we .ingested
This analysis is done in our laboratory by way of a technique which is known as ELISA. When antibodies called IgG are detected in the blood we then define them as type III allergies. These must be distinguished from type I allergies. Succinctly, type III food allergies are delayed allergies (IgG) which means that they can manifest t themselves from a few hours after eating up to a few days later (up to 3 days) and their intensity of reaction is relatively mild. On the other hand, type I allergies (IgE) are instantaneous more virulent and can even reach an anaphylactic condition as soon as the allergen has been ingested.
In conclusion we know now that we must always eat healthy, but we also know that that this must be done in synergy with a personal characteristic which is our immune system.
An apple may be healthy for most of us but it might be the source of an inflammation for all others!!!
C. LINARD PhD, DEPD, CSPQ
Clinical biochemist
Professor
Three -Rivers University
