Allergy is diagnosed and treated by your GP or allergist, and nothing here changes that. Our naturopaths and nutritionists in Geelong and Drysdale work on the other half of the picture: the food intolerances that are not allergy at all, the gut symptoms that get mistaken for one, and the nutrition and gut work that sits alongside the treatment your doctor prescribes.
Because they are different things with different tests and different risks. A food allergy is an immune reaction, usually through IgE antibodies, that can be immediate and can be dangerous; it is diagnosed through your GP or an allergy specialist with skin-prick or blood tests, and it is never something to test at home. A food intolerance is a reaction without that immune mechanism: lactose, the fermentable carbohydrates known as FODMAPs, histamine, food chemicals or simply too much of something at once. It is uncomfortable rather than dangerous, and there is no reliable blood test for it [1].
Most people who come to us have been told they are allergic to something on the strength of a symptom, a diet, or a test that cannot show allergy. Some have a real allergy and want to eat well around it. Some have hay fever or eczema and want to know what food and gut have to do with it. All of them get the same start: a proper history, your GP’s or allergist’s results if you have them, and a symptom diary.
It is not “all in your head”, and it is not only about avoiding things. We will always listen.
We don’t diagnose or treat allergies; that stays with your GP or allergist. Our part is the nutritional, herbal and lifestyle work that sits alongside their care.
Working out what is actually reacting — a food and symptom diary, then a structured elimination and rechallenge, one food group at a time, is the reference standard for intolerance and the way to avoid cutting foods for nothing [1]. Where a test would genuinely change the plan, our food intolerance testing page explains what it can and cannot show.
Eating well around a confirmed allergy — when your allergist has confirmed an allergy, the diet has to exclude that food completely and still cover everything else. That is nutrition work, and it matters most in children.
Gut symptoms that look like allergy — bloating, pain and bowel changes after eating are far more often intolerance or irritable bowel than allergy. Our IBS page covers that work.
Hay fever and sinus — antihistamines, nasal sprays and, where your GP or allergist advises, immunotherapy are the treatments. Alongside them we work on sleep, the gut, and the food and lifestyle inputs that affect how you cope with the season.
Eczema and skin — food is one possible trigger among many, and removing foods from a child’s diet on a hunch does harm. Our article on foods that cause eczema in children and how to find out properly explains the approach; a confirmed allergy is your GP’s or allergist’s call.
Nutrient status — a restricted diet, whether chosen or forced, is the commonest way we see nutrients run low. Measured, not assumed, through your GP’s bloods.
Gut health — the gut is where most of the immune system lives, and long-standing gut symptoms are worked on in their own right.
What stays with your doctor — the diagnosis of allergy, allergy testing, adrenaline autoinjectors and action plans, immunotherapy, asthma, and any severe reaction.
Your GP or allergist diagnoses allergy, prescribes treatment, and manages anything severe. We work on intolerances, the diet around a confirmed allergy, gut symptoms and the nutrition side, and we keep them informed. We never suggest reducing or stopping antihistamines, asthma medication or anything else your doctor has prescribed, and we check anything we suggest against it first.
Depending on what we find, a plan can include:
A diary-led elimination and rechallenge for suspected intolerances, so decisions rest on your own results rather than a list.
A complete, balanced diet around a confirmed allergy, including for children.
Gut work where symptoms have been mistaken for allergy.
Sleep, stress and nutrition work through the hay fever season, alongside your GP’s treatment.
Reading your bloods with you, and a plan for anything that is low.
Herbal and nutritional support, chosen in consultation and checked against your medication. Nothing is prescribed from a list.
Keeping your GP or allergist in the loop, and sending you back to them where a reaction needs their tests.
We usually review at six to eight weeks, which is how long a proper elimination and rechallenge takes.
We are open 6 days per week, by appointment only. Book an appointment online via our online booking link.
Any reaction with swelling of the lips, tongue or throat, difficulty breathing, wheeze, dizziness or collapse is anaphylaxis: use an adrenaline autoinjector if one has been prescribed and call 000. Hives, vomiting or swelling within minutes of a food, a reaction in a baby or young child, or any suspected allergy needs your GP or an allergist for proper testing before anything is removed from the diet or reintroduced. Never test a suspected allergy at home by eating the food.
We don’t diagnose or treat allergies; allergy testing, action plans, immunotherapy and every medication decision sit with your GP or allergist. Seeing a naturopath is not a reason to stop antihistamines or asthma medication, or to remove foods from a child’s diet without medical advice. ASCIA, the Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy, and healthdirect set out the medical side plainly.
No. Allergy is diagnosed through your GP or an allergy specialist with skin-prick or IgE blood tests, and we will send you there. What we can do is help work out food intolerances, which are a different thing with no reliable blood test, through a diary and a structured elimination and rechallenge, and read any test with you alongside your GP’s results.
An allergy is an immune reaction, usually through IgE, that can be immediate and dangerous and is diagnosed by your GP or allergist. An intolerance is a reaction without that mechanism, such as lactose, FODMAPs or histamine, that is uncomfortable but not dangerous. The two need different tests and different care.
Not in place of treatment. Antihistamines, nasal sprays and, where advised, immunotherapy are what work for hay fever, and they stay with your GP or allergist. Alongside them, sleep, gut health and a good diet affect how you cope with the season, and that is the part we work on.
Alongside your GP, yes. A confirmed allergy is your GP’s or allergist’s diagnosis, and no food comes out of a child’s diet without medical advice, because restricted diets do children real harm. What we do is help find genuine triggers properly and keep the diet complete while you do.
Rarely as a first step, and never to diagnose allergy. The antibodies those tests measure are found in people who react to a food and people who do not, so a result on its own proves little. A diary and a structured elimination and rechallenge tell you more, and we suggest a test only where it would change the plan.
1. Turnbull JL, Adams HN, Gorard DA. Review article: the diagnosis and management of food allergy and food intolerances. Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2015;41(1):3-25. doi:10.1111/apt.12984
2. Stapel SO, Asero R, Ballmer-Weber BK, et al. Testing for IgG4 against foods is not recommended as a diagnostic tool: EAACI Task Force Report. Allergy. 2008;63(7):793-796. doi:10.1111/j.1398-9995.2008.01705.x
If you have been told you are “allergic” to half your diet and no one has checked, or you have a confirmed allergy and want to eat well around it, it is worth seeing someone who works with your GP or allergist rather than around them. Our naturopaths and nutritionists consult from Geelong CBD and Drysdale, in person or by telehealth, six days a week. Bring your results and we will start by listening.
We are open 6 days per week, by appointment only. Book an appointment online via our online booking link.
