Why do I feel fatigued after eating certain foods?

Sometimes when I eat the wrong thing for my tummy I feel really fatigued afterwards, I just lose all my energy and all I can do is sleep it off. Why do I feel this way after eating certain foods?

Another good question. The reason we feel tired when we eat foods that we are intolerant to is because we create an immune response in the gut when we do so. This immune reaction requires a whole lot of energy, and will quite often use all your reserves, leaving you with very little.

I often say that the immune system is the biggest hole in the bucket for our energy levels. If your immune system is overstimulated it will divert energy from other areas of your body to go help fight. This is why it's important to understand what foods your body does and does not agree with. Some symptoms of food intolerances include: headaches, fatigue, diarrhoea, constipation, tummy pains, nausea, skin rashes and reflux. 

If any of these symptoms sounds like you then you can trial food elimination diets to see what food is the culprit. This can take several months so for those of you who are a little impatient you can choose the alternative of doing a blood test to check food intolerances/ allergies. Personally I find these more accurate than hair testing.