IgG food-intolerance panels

Domain XII · Complementary, energy & biofield

What it is

A blood sample, usually a home finger-prick, is sent to a laboratory that measures food-specific IgG antibodies (one seller states all four IgG subclasses) against a panel of foods; one current UK panel lists about 200 food and drink ingredients. Results are presented as foods to which the person…

Format

• UK (medical device/IVD status): status of individual kits under MHRA in-vitro-diagnostic rules.
• Notice and ask (any session): routine, non-judgemental inquiry; record what was tested, when, by whom, what was cut out. Move on when you know whether eating has changed.

Who practises it, and how they are trained or regulated

• Direct-to-consumer laboratories, pharmacies and some nutrition and complementary practitioners. CSACI does not support licensed physicians or pharmacists offering the test and states that food reactions should be diagnosed and managed by a trained, accredited professional such as an allergist or clinical immunologist.
• UK (advertising): the ASA upheld complaints in 2021 that YorkTest's ads misleadingly implied an IgG test could identify food intolerances and that IgG-guided elimination could relieve migraine and depression; it also noted that CE marking is not evidence of efficacy. CAP guidance (June 2025) says claims that testing identifies intolerances need a robust evidence base, and cites a further 2025 ruling against IgG-test…
• US: reported in 2018 as laboratory-developed tests not regulated by the FDA; any change since under FDA laboratory-developed-test policy or CLIA.

Evidence status, as the guide reports it

• Australia: ASCIA lists IgG food testing among non-evidence-based tests it does not recommend; online allergy tests are not Medicare-rebated.

Questions to explore with your client

• What drew you to it, and what are you hoping it will change?
• Does it involve any substance, plant preparation, remedy or supplement? Has your doctor or prescriber been told, especially about any medication you take?
• Does it involve intense or unusual breathing? Have you been told about the medical conditions for which that is not advised?
• Does it involve fasting, a special diet or 'detox'? Have you discussed this with your doctor?
• Is it a group, retreat or community? How do they respond if someone wants to leave or raises a concern?
• Who runs it, and what training or registration do they hold?
• What actually happens in a session or meeting, and how often?
• What does it cost, and is there pressure to commit to more?
• How do you feel afterwards, in the hours and days that follow?
• Does it fit with, or clash with, the work we do here?

What practitioners of it watch for

• restriction combined with nausea or vomiting; eating-disorder history. Working when the maternity team is aware.
• debt, secrecy from a partner, an escalating sequence of tests. Working when spending decisions feel chosen rather than driven.
• reporting used as a substitute for the clinical conversation. Working when the client knows their options and any mandatory duty has been met.
• the client using a "green" result as reassurance about a food that previously caused a severe reaction. Working when allergic-type reactions are being assessed medically.
• the client feeling judged or foolish (acknowledge money and hope invested); you sliding into advising on foods (stop and route to the dietitian). Working when the client can hold both their…

When to involve someone else

• New or worsening physical symptoms, or advice to stop or change prescribed medication: involve the client's doctor or prescriber.
• Signs of coercion, isolation from family and friends, escalating costs or secrecy: discuss openly and consider safeguarding.
• A crisis or thoughts of suicide: follow your crisis protocol. In the US, call or text 988; in the UK and Ireland, Samaritans on 116 123.

Drawn automatically from the guide's own sections. Stay curious: neither endorse nor dismiss what the client values, and check anything that matters against the full guide and its sources. Not medical advice.