When is nutrition counselling recommended for food intolerance?

Food intolerance describes symptoms after eating a food or ingredient and is different from an immediate food allergy. A dietitian can review the timing and pattern of bloating, abdominal pain, diarrhoea or nausea, then help test a structured approach. The review also considers fibre, calcium, protein and other nutrients that may fall when foods are removed.

Keep a food-and-symptom diary that records ingredients, portions, timing and symptoms. Do not remove many foods at once, because this makes patterns harder to interpret and can narrow your diet unnecessarily. A clinician or dietitian may suggest a temporary elimination followed by planned reintroduction. Check labels carefully and ask how to manage meals at restaurants or with family.

Get urgent help for trouble breathing, swelling of the lips or tongue, widespread hives, faintness or repeated vomiting soon after eating; these may signal an allergic reaction. Arrange medical review for blood in stool, persistent vomiting, dehydration, fever, unexplained weight loss or symptoms that wake you at night. Nutrition counselling should complement, not delay, assessment of these warning signs.

Ask whether allergy, coeliac disease, infection or another digestive condition should be considered, how to test a suspected trigger, and what foods can replace removed items.