Food Allergies? 75% Are Bogus

Food allergies are on the rise, but faulty tests are behind much of that increase, the Los Angeles Times reports. Eating controlled amounts of a certain food under medical supervision is the only way of knowing whether you’re allergic to it, but primary-care doctors are more likely to employ less-accurate blood testing, resulting in a proliferation of misdiagnoses.

"Only about 25% of people who think they have a food allergy will actually have one,” an allergist says, while in one study, researchers found that 90% of allergies were misdiagnosed. Often, those who think they have allergies are just intolerant of a given food, which demands different treatment. "People are so happy and appreciative when they can get more foods in," another allergist says. "Even just one food allergy changes your life."
(More food allergies stories.)