Food Sensitivity Testing - York Labs

[Pam]

I've copied this message from Linny from another thread, I thought it deserved one of its own so that it was easier to find by newcomers. Many thanks for posting the info Linny.

Linny said:

ok I've found the booklet!

Prices right as of March 2004.

You buy a testing kit from Yorktest.




Simply by pricking your finger and absorbing a drop of blood onto a matchstick-sized wand, our laboratory can perform an analysis and advise if you have raised levels of IgG antibodies.

Our initial Food Intolerance Indicator test will simply tell you whether you have a food intolerance or not. Once you have found out if you have a food intolerance you can upgrade to identify the specific foods that may be causing your problem.

Food Intolerance Indicator Test £19.99

There are two in-depth tests to choose from, the full test of 113 foods or a test featuring just 42 foods. To help you adjust your diet with ease we provide you with support and guidance to help you through the transition. If you take the Food Intlerance Indicator Test first, and choose to upgrade within 10 days a reduction of 10% will be applied to the cost of your upgrade test.

foodSCAN 113 Food Intolerance Test includes:

a comprehensive food intolerance guidebook - to assist you in changing your dietary habits

30 minutes of nutritional consultation with a fully qualified nutritionalist - to ensure that you maintain a balanced diet after you have excluded your problem foods

priority service for results - keeping your waiting time to a minimum

a credit card sized list of foods to avoid - for you to use whilst eating out.

foodSCAN 113 Food Intolerance Test £260.00


foodSCAN 42 Food Intolerance Test includes:

a comprehensive food intolerance guidebook - to assist you in changing your dietary habits

15 minutes of nutritional consultation with a fully qualified nutritionalist

a 10 day results service

foodSCAN 42 Food Intolerance Test £135.00



I thought that I'd copy their description as it's easier to understand than my waffle!!

I did the full 113 test and also got a free 1 year memebership with Allergy UK.

Contact details: website: www.yorktest.com (http://www.yorktest.com/)
email: info@yorktest.com
tel: 01904 410410
fax: 01904 422000


I never even thought I could be intolerant to dairy until I did this test. It's expensive but it's changed my life!!!!!!:) Hope this helps.

[Pam]

Thanks for the info Linny. Is the 15/30 minute consultation by telephone or do you have to travel to one of their places for that?

If I had a few hundred pounds to spare I would love to have the test so that I can be sure if I really have a problem with certain foods. Allergy UK promote these tests so they must believe that the tests are worthwhile and give good results. Why can't the NHS make this test more available, I'm sure it would sort out a lot of people's problems and would ultimately save the NHS money by not having all the various appointments which seem to draw blanks all the time. The NHS only seem to provide allergy testing and don't do much for food sensitivity or intolerance, we all know that it is a real problem, when are the medical professionals going to accept that it is? :rant:

Pam climbs down off her soapbox.

[rebecca c]

I've been thinkin about doing this test and cant make up my mind

[matt]

cautionary reminder to all. they test for ig antibodies. your body only produces these when you consume the affective foods. ie you have to be eating the stuff that makes you ill for a positive result. so to get an accurate result you need to eat dairy, wheat, eggs soya etc etc for a good week or so in normal quantities so that the antibodies can build up enough for them to get a result.

otherwise you'll get a false negative. gp does do some of these tests but i don't think will do the full spectrum. mine certainly did the wheat one for me. then i found out about the false negative......i hadn't been eating wheat for months before the test!

no point spending loads of cash if the result isn't going to tell you anything.

if you can trust yourself not to have psychosomatic reactions then the elimination diet works just aswell. don't dismiss them, (psychosomatic reactions) they exist and are just as strong as real ones. it's called the placebo effect. people can get better thinking they are being given a medication when they aren't!

[linny]

Firstly, Pam, the consultation is on the 'phone, you ring them and fix up a time and date for them to call you, so they pay for the call! I found this quite helpful as you have the consultation after you've eliminated the culprit for a while. I think you get about 2 months from the date of your test results. You get a guide book which includes a diary to monitor your symptoms after you've eaten certain foods.

As Matt said you have to have been eating the food for it to show up. I was on a normal diet when I took the test and then it showed I was intolerant to dairy products.

This test will only show up intolerances and not allergies, as far as I'm aware. My GP says you can have an allergy test on the NHS but they don't do intolerance tests.

Hope this helps.

Oh, you only have to prick your finger to give the blood, I've fainted a few times giving blood at the hospital and even I coped with this, I'm such a coward!!

[Pam]

Thanks for the info Linny. I think these tests are ideal for people who know that they have a problem with food but don't know which foods it might be. I would definitely have my blood tested with them if I had the money to do it.

[Copper]

I have two problems with this -

1) I could not go back on dairy for a day never mind a week. I would be so sick (we need a sick smilie)

2) I know that I am unable to prick my finger - tried in the past - failed - and had to get somebody else to do it.

[matt]

i'm with you copper, god help me if i ever became diabetic! testing blood sugar levels and injecting insulin.....i'd have a heck of a job. seen enough of my own blood thanks very much. don't want to see anymore.

[Lan]

I'm also with you Copper. I absolutely hate needles and get faint when I see them. I have deep veins and everytime I give blood, the nurse seems to have trouble finding them, so prods the needle around for a few minutes before taking it out and starting again.

Unfortunately, I have high cholestrol and have to have blood taken every year until it lowers. It was so high the last time I went every 6 months was recommended.

I think it stems from the fact that at 18 months old I had meningitis and was given a lumber puncture. Have never liked needles since then. Strange how you remember and associate things happening now, with childhood.

I'm just freaky I guess.

Take care.

Lan :D

[matt]

nothing to do with childhood, common sense to not like anyone sticking something sharp and metallic through your skin!!

that's not to say you aren't freaky though lan!:lol2:

[Pam]

Needles don't bother me, I was a blood donor until they brought in the new rules. I had a blood transfusion when I had my second son so am no longer allowed to donate - they think I might be a mad cow (little do they know).

My aunt is diabetic and injects daily, her needle once flew off the syringe and landed in my knee when I was little but it didn't put me off. I'm not sure how I would feel about injecting myself but I'm sure I'd get used to it. At least I don't have to look when someone else does it.

[lyndamc]

Needles don't worry me either, and I don't bother to even look away! The worst injections I've ever had were iron injections in the bum, now they hurt!
Don't think I'd be too worried about injecting myself, but I can't swallow tablets!

[linny]

I must confess, my husband did my finger prick test as I was about to have a panic attack about doing it!! I'm fine with needles if they're putting something into me, it's the ones that take blood out I have problems with! I think it stems from a blood test once when my blood stopped and she left the needle in my arm whilst getting help and then I fainted!!!! Nobody can find my veins either, they usually whack my arm until it's bruised to get a vein up. When I was pregnant and dehydrated the 3 nurses had to call the doctor to put the canula (drip thingy) into my hand. I'm the hospital's worst nightmare really!!:unsure:

[Pam]

I usually bruise badly when I have blood taken but I don't find it traumatic and I always used to wear my bruises with pride after donating a pint.

The most painful injection I ever had was the steroid one in my bum when my son was about to be born prematurely - it stung for hours. I'd have had the other two if I'd had time as it was for his benefit but they had to be 12 hours apart so I didn't get chance.

[linny]

They do hurt! I've had one in my spine, one in my shoulder and one into my blood stream. I was awake for 24 hours with the one in the shoulder! They did help the arthritis and tendonitis pain though!;)

[Walki]

Hi I just had a look at this thread for the York Test, I have been suffering with my poor tum (IBS & severe bloating) for some time now so I decided to have the York 113 foods Test done. The 'prick' with the needle was simple & painless, I'm so glad I had it done as I would have never been able to pinpoint the foods I was intollerant to, I dabbled in the past with cutting out Wheat and only drinking Soya milk but still ate cheese and had the odd nibble of crust but since I had my results and have a bad intollerance to Egg White & Yolk (would have never have guessed this one - & don't even eat them that often) Cows Milk, Yeast Cranberries, Kiwi Fruit, Lentils, Brazil Nuts, Sunflower Seeds and have to rotate Wheat, Garlic and Cashews (avoiding them at the moment) I have been on my exclusion diet for nearly 2 weeks and although it's pretty hard going I'm getting on ok.

[Copper]

It is nice to know that these tests work. I might think about having them done one day. I am not sure that I really want to find any more foods that I can't eat as I have a list already :(

[linny]

Hi Walki. I'm so glad you found the test okay and although not good news being intolerant to all these things, at least you know what is upsetting your stomach and you can do something about it. I never dreamed that I could be intolerant to cow's milk until I did the York test. I have eliminated it completely from my diet for over a year now, and although it's tough at first you do get used to what you can and can't eat. Keep going and good luck!:thumbsup:

[sandyc]

I have just done the York test and the pinprick test was fine, I have a strong reaction to milk & yeast and medium to wheat, gluten, oats, sunflower seed, brazils, cashews, egg white vanilla & chilli pepper. I feel very positive now I could never have found these identified these things without the test.

I have had to totally replan my eating habits and so far its fine (Ive only been doing it for three days though)

[sandyc]

I have just done the York Test and have a strong reaction to cows milk and yeast, and medium reaction to gluten, oats,wheat, egg white ,brazil ,cashew, chilli pepper, vanilla and sunflower seeds.

I could nerver have discovered this any other way and feel really positive now that I can cut these things out of my diet, It will be difficult though.

[cnc]

Hi, welcome to the site, how you stay around and share info/ keep us all updated on how you're getting on.

[Broxine]

Hi and welcome! :bwelcome:

Have you found there has been any improvement in your symptoms in the 2 weeks you have been on the exclusion diet?

[linny]

Hi Sandyc! I found out about my intolerance with a York Test. Good luck on the diet hope all is going well. It gets easier!

[Pam]

Hi Sandy, welcome to the site. Those are a lot of things to cut out of your diet, maybe you could start with the ones that cause a strongest reaction and just try to cut down on all the others. I find it hard enough just cutting out milk. Stick around and tell us more about yourself and your symptoms, how you discovered you had a problem etc.

[rebecca c]

Hi Sandy and good luck with your new regime, my diet is fairly restrictive too. Let us know how you get on.

[Lan]

Hi Sandy,

Welcome to the site. If you have any questions, please let us know.

I myself am allergic to caffeine, citrus and lactose intolerant which came on me when I was 19.

Good luck and keep us posted.

Lan. :D

[sandyc]

Thank you for all your welcomes, I have psoratic arthritis, and developed IBS with really bad bloating, I thought it was my arthritis medication causing it but then I have taken them for over ten years it seemed unlikely, the only way to find out was to do the tests, the hospital dont like you playing around with your medication. I cant wait to see if my skin gets better, the arthritis has damaged my joints over the years but it might help with the pain now I have cut out the things that my body did not like.

I will let you know how I get on, before I took the tests I started using lactose redused milk as York dont test for lactose ( I asked in case I needed to re-introduce it before the tests) I noticed a big difference in the bloating just by reducing lactose.

[Pam]

I think someone else here has psoratic arthritis but I can't remember who it is, Linny maybe? I hope you see some improvements in your symptoms now that you have identified your problems.

[Walki]

Hi, I'm on week10 of my exclusion diet after having the York Test, I have done pretty well, cutting out dairy, wheat all the other things listed in my first posting above, my tum has been a lot better (and I've lost a few pounds - not that I was overweight anyway - but I did like theside effect)! The one thing that I must hold my hand up to is WINE I'm afraid I just had to have it a few times even though it has yeast in it - I just missed it and vodka & lemonades, although nice, just dosen't hit the spot in the same way. I do enviously eye my hubby in the morning as he has a poached egg on toast.....mmmmmm but never mind I'm getting there, I'm off to see my daughter in Leeds tomorrow then going up to Inverness to see one of my sons so I'm hoping I don't fall off the wagon too much Pam

[sandyc]

Thank you, I have Psoratic Arthritis, and IBS with bloating, I have got used to the skin and my joints are damaged after 10 years with arthritis but the bloating was new and I could not cope with it, thats what forced me to pay for the tests. I was not sure if it was my medication or food. Its difficult watching the rest of the family eat. I am determined to stick with it.

[sandyc]

Yes I miss the wine only after a few days, I had to look away in Sainsburys, going on holiday in a few weeks a place we always go to which is a wine growing village, they celebrate the grape harvest, I think I will give in a little.

[Pam]

I've been taking tablets to help me sleep and I'm not allowed to drink with them, it's killing me! I either sleep like a log on tablets or have a drink and wake at 3 am then 5am - I've been spending too much time in Matt's company I think, he is our resident insomniac.

I'm not far from Leeds, Walki and CNC is from that area too when she's not at Uni. Have fun in Inverness and remember that a moment on the lips = all night on the loo/poorly all next day.

[matt]

welcome as has been said ask away and someone will have the answer. yep i'm the resident nutter/insomniac 3am every day yippee!!!

if the occasional sin doesn't cause too many probs then stick with it. life's too short to cut out all treats.

still not convinced about york tests.....everyone seems to get told the same things. i'm not saying it's a con but how much of the results from the exclusion diet are real and how many are psychosomatic? impossible to tell. but if you feel better what does it matter!

[Walki]

I know the jury's out on the York Test, when I attended the Allergy Show Seminars Patrick Holford was all for it, he used the test on those wayward boys that we on the Trev McDonught special on TV, on the other hand when we went to Professor ? (forgotton name) seminar who is a leading gastreoentolgist he said there was no known (or proven) test to test for food intolerances - allergies yes but not intolerances but he did believe that food intolerances existed, he was very good as was Patrick. Who knows, they reckon that half (or more) of the population has a food intolerance at some time in their lives. I can only speak for myself and my tum is a lot better, I still get occasional swelling. I can't get used to the different milks though, I am currently trying Vance's potato milk which you make up from a powder (bought from show), I find soya milk in tea tastes like you've poured evaporated milk in! it's ok on cereals, Rice milk curdles, again ok in cereals, potato milk just about flavours the tea - ok in cereals - I'm yet to find Tiger milk in the shops, if anyone knows where to get it (apart from mail order which is expensive if you just want to try it withough buying huge quantities) please let me know - Pam:D

[Copper]

I know that Tesco sell Tiger white. It comes in large cartons though and freezing it is not a good idea. I tried it and when I thawed it out it was curdled and didn't look good in my coffee. I did ask a helpful man via their website if they were considering smaller cartons and he said no. He did suggest freezing so I told him about my experience, he tried too and had to admit it didn't work too well. If I get to the stage where I need to cut out the lactolite I will use Tiger White but I will be unhappy that I will end up throwing half a carton away.

My large Tesco sell Tiger White on the organic/Free from shelves.

[Lan]

Hi Copper/All,

I use Provamel milk and find it great. It is so versatile and I use it for white/cheese sauces, in decaf tea etcetera etcetera. It also tastes creamy and is totally dairy and cholestrol free.

I had my cholestrol reading back the end of last week and it has gone up from 5.8 to 6.2, so seems I will be on tablets for the rest of my life. I only got it tested as my mum and her three sisters are all on tablets for life. Doctor advised all children get tested. They tested me every year, 6 months and then 3 months. Hell everything is going wrong. I seem to have some sort of food poisoning today.;)

Kind Regards,


Lan. :D

[hazel]

Hi I've just taken the York test too. 2 years ago I took the QXCI bio-resonance test for food intolerances, it showed a high intolerance to gluten. Two years later still suffering although I put it down to sometimes having to eat something at conferences etc... I decided to seek a different opinion so hence the York test to my complete surprise it came back with a Cows milk positive, as well as a few other non major items. But nothing about Gluten, I rang the helpline and was told that was due to the fact on the whole I had been elimating this from my diet for the past two years and the minimal amount I was eating wouldn't be enough to show up. So now after wanting to confirm the Gluten I've ended up with another major intolerance to cope with. Your the first web site I've viewed regarding a diary free diet and have been really impressed with the threads that are posted. only on day 4 of my new Gluten and Diary free diet so early days to see if my symptons disappear. I am hoping that I may be able to sit down for more than 10 minutes without falling asleep!!

[Copper]

Hmm I am always tired so maybe I should have some tests done. If I found that I was allergic or intolerant to something that is not on my list of allergens I would have to shoot myself :(

[hazel]

How have you discovered your list of allergens?

[cnc]

I'm yet to find Tiger milk in the shops, if anyone knows where to get it (apart from mail order which is expensive if you just want to try it withough buying huge quantities) please let me know - Pam:D

Have you tried the Tiger White website (http://www.tigerwhitedrinks.com/index.php?fuseaction=home.shops)
(Wasn't sure if we were allowed to post links to websites or not, can remove it if its a problem :) )

[Pam]

Hi Hazel, welcome to the site. You will notice that our conversations tend to drift a little, so if you need a question answering just start a new thread and we should pick it up.

Matt is probably your best bet for dairy and wheat free products as he avoids both. I keep toying with the idea of dropping wheat as I'm sure it isn't doing me much good, but it plays such a huge part in my diet that I would really struggle without it.

[rebecca c]

Hi Hazel - fatigue must be tough, I had it when I was pregnant every time I lay down horizontal I fell asleep. When I am ill at the moment I do get very tired. Stick with your new diet and see how it goes. I havent done any allergy testing but keep a detailed diary of symptoms laid out clearly on a chart and try to monitor reactions. This is often difficult as there can be may things sometimes and obviously things like stress play there part. Good luck. I'm gluten free but because of my other allergies I also have to avoid many of the alternatives. When I do get a chance to do baking I use rice flour which I find good.

[Copper]

I had a pretty good idea which food was making me ill. I eliminated it from my diet for a good two weeks - felt great - then put it back into my diet - then very ill! I just seem to have a new allergen now and again.

[alexx]

I'm new here, but thought I'd chip in and say that I found out my dairy intolerance through the yorktest - I've been diagnosed as having a v strong reaction to milk and a milder one to kidney beans. I've cut out dairy for 3 weeks now and my skin and IBS are much improved, it was also noticeable after accidental dairy consumption my symptoms "spiked" again, so it does seem that this may be valid for me. Thought I'd share in case anyone was considering whether to take it.

[Pam]

Hi and welcome to the site. It must be a relief to know what was causing your symptoms and you probably feel better for cutting the bad foods out. At least when you have had accidental dairy intake it has proved the point so that you know you are doing the right thing now.

If you have any questions, just ask, someone is bound to know the answer.

[alexx]

thanks - will do! :)

[PinkyPrincess]

I'm due my chat with the nutritionist at York Labs this Weds - if anyone has any questions you need answering please let me know and I will ask them.

My main question will be: 'how the hell am I expected to eliminate all of those things from my diet and still stay alive!'

My bf is being a bit of a pain; he's not completely cynical but he thinks that if I just cut out a couple of foods it's better than nothing, and that it's too hard to eliminate all of them and I should just 'do my best'. He doesn't understand that that really isn't good enough, and I feel like I CAN'T risk having any banned foods because of the reaction, and the fact that I want to get rid of my IBS symptoms...

(I'm not eating gluten, wheat, dairy, corn, oats, yeast, carrot, garlic, and rotating vanilla and egg whites)