Amanda Turbill, Food Allergies and Food Intolerance Gold Coast Dietitian

As a Food intolerance dietitian and having three allergic and food intolerant children myself, I understand the challenges people face in every environment and situation I still find shopping and cooking for my family to be one of the biggest challenges and delights I have yet faced as a Dieititian

While mouth ulcers, nausea, colic, irritable bowel, headaches, fatigue, irritability, sinus, asthma, hives and eczema can be attributed to a spectrum of causes, food intolerance can sometimes be the underlying factor. Often overused as an explanation without correct investigation, or mislabelled as a food allergy, food intolerance can be a real problem if not pinpointed and managed correctly.

Although some may see this specification between food intolerance and food allergy as petty, for those suffering from either condition, the correct diagnosis and dietary modification can have a huge impact on their quality of life.

While food allergy is an immune reaction to specific proteins, food intolerance is a little more ambiguous, does not involve our immune system and can manifest as a large variety of symptoms. The treatment of food allergy is pretty clear cut, avoid the offending protein sources, whereas food intolerance requires a more flexible approach.

A bit about me…

I was born and partially raised in Zimbabwe before moving to Australia. I completed my Master of Dietetics at Griffith University in 1999 and spent 15 years working in hospitals in a range of dietetic specialties before settling on food intolerances and food allergies. I was fortunate to be able to work with leading Australian allergists in Sydney before moving back to the Gold Coast for the beautiful outdoors lifestyle. Managing food intolerances is both an art and science and it is only through over a decade of working with clients and my own children that I have been able to develop tried and tested approaches that are simple to incorporate into busy lives. I am am allergy and intolerance Gold Coast Dietitian but can provide consultations via telephone and videoconference for those who live further away

Some of the ways I can help:

  • Identification of possible food chemical intolerances

  • Provide practical tips and strategies for managing elimination diets where they are recommended

  • Quickly identify the most likely food or chemical causing your symptoms to avoid wasting precious time and energy on unnecessary restrictions or diets

  • Challenge and increase tolerance for your trigger foods and food chemicals

A note about..

Food allergy and intolerance testing

Skin prick testing is the most convenient method of allergy testing and has been shown in clinical studies to improve the diagnosis of allergy. Skin prick testing should only be performed by a health professional who has been trained in the procedure and who knows how to select the allergens, interpret the results and deal with any generalised allergic reaction that might very rarely occur. Medicare rebates may be available for this test when provided by a registered health professional.

Allergyfirst offers skin prick testing and is conveniently located in Mudgeeraba which is very close to our clinic and offer an all-in-one appointment system: consultation, testing and results. Consultations are bulk-billed and  Medicare rebates are available on skin prick tests.

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