Food Sensitivity Testing

Could something you’re eating be contributing to your digestive or skin symptoms?

If you’re regularly experiencing bloating, digestive discomfort or troublesome skin and can’t work out why, it can be tempting to start cutting foods from your diet. But when you’re guessing, it’s very easy to end up avoiding more and more foods without actually getting to the bottom of what’s going on.

The FoodSensitivityMap 130 gives us another piece of information to work with, testing your IgG response to 130 food and drink antigens. More importantly, your test includes a 30-minute consultation with me, so you’re not simply left with a set of results and wondering what to do next.

£250 including your test, results and 30-minute nutritional therapy consultation.

Food sensitivities, your gut and your skin

Your gut and skin might seem like completely separate parts of the body, but they’re more closely connected than you might think. Your gut microbiome, intestinal barrier and immune system can all influence inflammatory signalling throughout the body, including the skin. This relationship is often referred to as the gut–skin axis.

That’s one of the reasons I particularly like considering food sensitivity testing when someone is experiencing persistent skin problems alongside digestive symptoms, or feels that certain foods may be contributing to flare-ups but can’t identify a clear pattern. A food sensitivity test can’t diagnose the cause of a skin condition, but it can give us useful information to consider alongside your symptoms, diet and wider health.

What does the test measure?

The FoodSensitivityMap 130 is an easy, at-home finger-prick blood test that measures food-specific IgG antibody reactions to 130 different food and drink antigens.

The foods tested cover a wide range of commonly eaten foods including dairy and eggs, meat, fish and seafood, cereals and seeds, fruit and vegetables, nuts, legumes, spices and drinks.

Your sample is analysed by an accredited laboratory and your results show your individual levels of IgG reactivity.

But for me, your results are the starting point, not the end result.

Your £250 test includes

• Food sensitivity testing for 130 food and drink antigens
• Easy finger-prick blood collection kit sent to your home
• Pre-paid return postage to the laboratory
• Laboratory analysis of your food-specific IgG reactions
• Your individual test results
• 30-minute consultation with me to interpret your results
• Personalised guidance on what changes may be appropriate for you

What happens after you order?

Your testing kit will be posted directly to your home with everything you need to collect a small finger-prick blood sample. Full instructions and a pre-paid return envelope are included.

Once your results are ready, I’ll send you a link to book your 30-minute consultation.

This is the part I think really matters. Rather than simply receiving a list of foods and cutting them all out, we’ll look at your results alongside your symptoms, current diet and health history.

We’ll decide which results are actually relevant to you, what changes are worth making and how to keep your diet varied and nutritionally balanced while you do so. The aim isn’t to give you a longer list of foods you “can’t eat”. It’s to give you better information and a clear plan for what to do next.

Could food sensitivity testing be right for me?

You might consider testing if you’re experiencing:

• persistent bloating or digestive discomfort
• digestive symptoms that seem to change depending on what you eat
• troublesome skin or recurring skin flare-ups
• digestive and skin symptoms occurring together
• suspected food reactions that you’ve struggled to pinpoint
• an increasingly restricted diet because you’re unsure which foods are causing problems

It may also be useful if you’ve already tried removing different foods but haven’t found a clear pattern and would like a more structured approach.

Is a food sensitivity the same as a food allergy?

No. Food sensitivity testing is not food allergy testing.

This test measures food-specific IgG antibodies. It does not diagnose an IgE-mediated food allergy, coeliac disease or specific intolerances such as lactose intolerance.

If you experience symptoms suggestive of a food allergy – particularly swelling, difficulty breathing or a rapid reaction after eating – you should seek appropriate medical assessment rather than using this test.

Why test with HillStart?

You can buy food sensitivity tests online. What you don’t always get is someone to help you understand what the results actually mean for you.

I don’t believe in removing foods unnecessarily, particularly when this can reduce the diversity and nutritional quality of your diet. Your test therefore includes a consultation with me, a qualified nutritional therapist, where we’ll interpret your results in the context of your symptoms and decide on a practical way forward.

FoodSensitivityMap 130 + 30-minute nutritional therapy consultation: £250.