Here’s a helpful shopping resource for those with food allergies and sensitivities

With apologies to Jeff Foxworthy…

You might have a food allergy if you struggle with chronic headaches.

You might have a food allergy if you’re getting enough sleep, but you still feel rundown.

You might have a food allergy if constipation is a recurring problem.

In an e-Alert I sent you last week (“Making the Cut” 5/7/09), I told you about research that suggests that as much as 70 percent of the general population suffers from food sensitivity symptoms that may not appear until several days after the food has been eaten.

This is known as “delayed food allergy,” which can be diagnosed with an ALCAT test (see the e-Alert for details).

Those who find they do have a food allergy will probably be frustrated by their first adventures in carefully reading nutrition panels. A sensitivity to wheat gluten or high fructose corn syrup might have you wondering if you can eat anything at all.

That’s the dilemma that prompted a mom who’s son had multiple food allergies to create Navan Foods – an online allergy-free food store.

At Navan Foods, shoppers can follow the cues provided by very specific icons that indicate “made without” – for those who need to avoid dairy, soy, shellfish, etc.

Other icons offer guidance for special diets, such as diabetic-friendly, vegan, organic, kosher, sugar-free, sodium-free, etc.

Navan Foods even investigates the manufacturing environment of food producers to make sure processing equipment and processing rooms are “dedicated” to specific foods that won’t trigger sensitivity reactions.

You can visit Navan Foods at navanfoods.com