Food allergy test may help skin, GI issues

WARSAW, Poland, June 25 (UPI) -- Italian researchers report a U.S. food intolerance test helped treat patients with digestive or skin problems.

The only therapy for the patients in the study was avoiding foods shown to cause inappropriate immune activation through the use of the intolerance/sensitivity test, the researchers said.

At the annual Congress of the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology in Warsaw, Poland, the researchers of the University of Pavia Polyclinic San Mateo in Italy reported "significant improvement" in 54 percent of patients with gastrointestinal problems and in 86 percent having skin disorders such as dermatitis.

The blood test -- called the ALCAT -- is manufactured by Cell Science Systems, a life-sciences company in Deerfield Beach, Fla. Those at the company describe the results of the ALCAT as specific to each individual and based on unique biochemical and genetic makeup.

Using the test results, patients can avoid foods that cause chronic inflammatory and allergy-like problems, the study said.