| Word |
Pronunciation |
Meaning |
| Abdominal |
abb-dom-in-ull |
In the belly |
| Adrenalin, Adrenaline |
add-REN-a-lin |
Naturally occurring hormone that causes stimulation or excitement. Used to alleviate life-threatening symptoms of allergic reaction. |
| Allergen |
|
Particular protein or other substance known to cause allergic reaction. |
| Anal |
ay-null |
Pertaining to the anus |
| Anaphylactic (adjective) |
anna-fill-actic |
Hypersensitive to the point of being life-threatening. eg. A second or subsequent response to allergen where tissues of the throat swell up dramatically and quickly, requiring emergency intervention to maintain breathing. |
| Anaphylaxis (noun) |
anna-fill-axis |
A life-threatening hypersensitive second or subsequent reaction to a particular allergen. |
| Anemia, Anaemia |
ann-eem-ea |
Deficiency of iron-carrying ability of the red blood cells. |
| Asthma |
ass-mah |
Spontaneous occlusion of the respiratory airways leading to breathlessness and coughing fits. |
| Autoimmune |
Auto-immune |
Caused by the production of antibodies by the immune system – essentially a ‘misreading’ of a protein as an enemy invader. |
| Biopsy |
by-op-see |
Small surgical operation to take a tiny piece of tissue for testing. The biopsy for Celiac Disease is done in the small intestine. |
| Bloating |
|
Excessive swelling in the gut caused by abnormal production of gases during digestion. |
| Bronchitis |
bron-ky-tis |
Inflammation of the mucous membrane of the lungs and accompanying accumulation of fluids. |
| Candida |
can-deed-a |
A single celled yeast organism that lives on skin and the mucous membranes of the body. Members of the Candida yeast family of organisms multiply where the immune system is threatened eg. a course of antibiotics, stress or the contraceptive pill. |
| Candidiasis |
can-did-I-aysis |
An overpopulation of Candida -normally kept in check by beneficial bacteria in the gut. Symptoms vary widely from headache, respiratory and skin problems to gastro-intestinal, neurological and muscular symptoms. |
| Candidosis |
can-did-O-sys |
Alternative name for Candidiasis |
| Casein |
kay-seen |
Protein component of milk, the basis of cheese |
| Celiac, Coeliac |
see-lee-ack |
Also known as Gluten-sensitive Enteropathy, Celiac Disease is a disorder of the small intestine, where gluten from foods actually attacks the lining of the gut and interferes with digestion. Typical symptoms include diarrhea, bloating and iron deficiency. |
| Colon |
Coal-on |
The large intestine |
| CD |
|
Celiac Disease |
| Deficiency |
defish-en-see |
Shortage, lack. |
| Dehydration |
|
Excessive loss of water from the body |
| Diarrhea, diarrhoea |
dye-are-ria |
Bowel movement that is too fluid |
| Eczema |
ecks-ema |
Itchy skin rash |
| Elimination Diet |
|
Diagnostic diet that excludes known allergens and progressively introduces suspect foods. Used for identification of food allergies and intolerances. |
| Flatulence |
flat-you-lence |
Excessive production of gases in the gut often caused by fermentation of poorly processed foods. |
| Gastro- |
|
Prefix: the stomach |
| Gastro-intestinal |
|
The stomach and intestinal tract |
| Gluten |
gloo-ten |
Highly complex and difficult to digest protein found in wheat, rye, barley and oats, and known to cause damage to the small intestine of those with Celiac disease |
| Hemorrhoids, Haemorrhoids |
|
Swollen painful blood vessels of the anus. |
| Histamines |
|
A biological chemical released in large amounts in response to allergens. |
| Hyper- |
high-per |
Prefix: exceeding, over, above. |
| Hypersensitive |
|
Super-sensitive |
| IBS |
|
Irritable Bowel Syndrome |
| Irritable Bowel Syndrome |
|
A collection of intestinal symptoms characterised as alternating bouts of diarrhea and constipation. |
| Edema, oedema |
ed-eema |
Swelling of tissue |
| Lactase |
lack-taze |
Enzyme found in the digestive tract of infant mammals needed for the digestion of milk. Lactase production ceases in all mammals upon weaning. However a minor percentage (~30%) of Northern European humans do continue to produce lactase into adulthood. |
| Lactose |
lack-toze |
Simple (single) sugar found in milk requiring the enzyme lactase for digestion in the mammalian gut. |
| Lethargy |
leth-argee |
Prolonged and unnatural drowsiness, lack of interest and energy. |
| Malabsorption |
|
Poor absorption esp. of a nutrient and leading to deficiencies |
| Migraine |
my-grain |
Immense headache often occurring with nausea and blurred vision. |
| Osteoporosis |
Osteo-por-O-sis |
Disease causing reduced bone density and brittleness |
| Rhinitis |
rye-NIGHT-iss |
Inflammation of mucous membranes of the nose and throat |
| Ringworm |
|
Alternative name for Tinea. Fungal infection of the skin characterised by circular patterns. |
| Systemic |
Siss-TEM-ic |
Throughout the whole body, not just a single part. |
| Thrush |
|
Yeast infection, of the mouth, throat or vagina - Candidiasis. |
| Tinea |
tinny-a |
Fungal disease of the skin |
| Topical |
|
For use on the skin |
| Urticaria |
ur-tick-area |
Hives |
| Whey |
way |
Lactose-rich watery liquid formed by the fermentation of milk into curds eg. in cheesemaking |
| Whey powder |
|
Dehydrated whey ~70% lactose – an inexpensive simple sugar used extensively in processed foods and confectionery |
