Nausea. Dizziness. Abdominal cramps. Vomitting. It's the life-threatening reaction that Haley Kish, a senior in strategic communications at Ohio State, will have if she consumes milk or any milk by-product.
"I'm very sensitive to milk products," Kish said. "Always have been."
However, what Kish suffers from isn't lactose intolerance - it's food hypersensitivity.
Much like an allergic reaction, food hypersensitivity is an adverse reaction to a food from the body's immune system because of the body's inability to digest it.
Cod fish, tree nuts and cashews are the more common causes of hypersensitive reactions, said Dr. Coleman, an allergist at Columbus Allergy Physicians, Inc.
Students who suffer from food hypersensitivities on campus find eating at university cafeterias or local restaurants difficult.
"Ingredient lists aren't readily available at most campus food locations or restaurants, so it's difficult to know what's safe." Kish said.
The symptoms of food hypersensitivity can range from vertigo and vomiting to mental dullness and asthma, according to NetNuitritionist.com.
Asking campus cafeteria workers about a certain ingredient in a food isn't always reliable either, Kish said, because "workers don't prepare the food themselves."
Amy Graff, a junior in communications and political science, suffers from a food hypersensitivity to citrus and preservatives such as MSG and sodium benzoate.
"The preservatives sometimes make eating on campus difficult," Graff said. "I avoid processed foods and meat and usually opt for salads."
Some people might suffer from food hypersensitivity without even realizing it.
According to the NetNutritionist Web site, only 2 percent of Americans suffer from true clinically diagnosed food allergies, however, many suffer from undiagnosed food sensitivities or intolerances.
Some experts suspect that certain foods will trigger or aggravate the symptoms of painful illnesses, such as irritable bowel syndrome or chronic migraines, as well.
"There's evidence of this, certainly," Coleman said. "Foods that we might call comfort foods … cookies, chocolate, cake … would likely be foods that trigger IBS."
Cheese and chocolate are thought to aggravate migraines, while sodas and sweets can worsen depression.
The bottom line is that those who suspect they suffer from food hypersensitivity can easily get it diagnosed.
"RAST tests [a blood test to determine allergies] are most often used to test for hypersensitivities," Coleman said. "They're easy, quick and common."
The proper treatment for those who do discover they have food sensitivity? Avoidance.
"That's the only recommendation doctors can give," Coleman said. "We don't have medication that negates or makes void the allergic response … not yet, anyway."
In the meantime, those who do avoid campus cafeterias and foods like the plague can only hope for a quick cure.
Samantha Steiner can be reached at steiner.128@osu.edu.
