Celebs blamed for food allergies

Celebrity food fads are leading thousands of patients to diagnose themselves wrongly with allergies and intolerances, doctors warned yesterday.

Sixty-three per cent of GPs have seen an increase in such incidences over the past year.

But nearly three - quarters believe the reactions of patients are 'psychological not physical'.

People hear about food intolerances through celebrity interviews in magazines and on TV shows.

They are then encouraged to adopt fashionable regimes, such as the wheat-free and dairy-free diets followed by the likes of Carol Vorderman, Geri Halliwell and Victoria Beckham.

But a poll of family doctors by Norwich Union Healthcare found that a growing number of patients might be excluding vital foods from their daily diet as a result.

A separate poll of 1,000 adults found that one in five patients first heard about allergies and intolerances through the media.

A similar number find out about them through family and friends.

Of those who claimed to suffer an intolerance or allergy, 23 per cent said it came from wheat products, as is claimed by former Spice Girl Miss Halliwell and actress Rachel Weisz.

Nineteen per cent believe they have a gluten intolerance, such as that suffered by TV presenter Miss Vorderman.

Another 18 per cent claim a lactose intolerance like that of Rod Stewart's ex-wife, Rachel Hunter.

Many of the 250 GPs surveyed in the regular 'Health of the Nation' poll found that many patients were diagnosing themselves from sources which have no medical credibility.

And they warn that cutting out certain foods from a diet can be dangerous without proper consultation.

Doug Wright, clinical spokesman for Norwich Union Healthcare, said: 'Our results seem to suggest that people are getting their ideas from celebrities in places like magazines and television.

'The worry is that people pick up health information and make the assumption that they are suffering from the same thing. 'The concern is then that people make significant changes to what they eat when they should be eating a normal balanced diet. Making such changes could put their health at risk.'

Nutritionist and dietician Jill Scott says many people are not even aware of the difference between a food allergy and a food intolerance.