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Intel Lab Diagnostics Dubai
Single Biomarker

Food Allergy Test (44 Allergens)

This comprehensive panel tests for IgE-mediated allergies to 44 common food items, including dairy, nuts, seafood, grains, and fruits. It helps identify foods that may trigger allergic reactions.

BLOOD2 TO 3 DAYSNO FASTING
AEDAED499
  • Free home collection
  • Physician-reviewed report

2 to 3 days

Turnaround

Blood

Sample

About This Test

What the Food Allergy Test (44 Allergens) test tells you

A food allergy panel measures immunoglobulin E (IgE) antibodies in a blood sample and reports them separately for each food included. IgE is the antibody class behind immediate allergic reactions: the itching, hives, swelling of the lips or throat, sudden vomiting or wheezing that appear within minutes to a few hours of eating. Because the measurement happens in the laboratory rather than on the skin, the test can be done when eczema covers the forearms, when antihistamines cannot be stopped, or when a previous reaction was severe enough that skin testing feels unwise.

The forty-four foods on this panel cover the groups responsible for most reactions: cow's milk and egg, peanut and tree nuts, wheat and soy, fish and shellfish, along with a spread of fruits, vegetables, seeds and spices. Reporting each allergen separately lets your doctor read a pattern rather than a single yes or no. Related foods often rise together, and that parallel rise is itself a useful clue about which protein family your immune system has learned to recognise.

A detectable antibody means your immune system has responded to that food; the medical word for it is sensitisation. Sensitisation and allergy are not the same thing, and many people carry antibodies to foods they eat comfortably every week. What turns a laboratory finding into a diagnosis is the story that goes with it: what you ate, how quickly you reacted, what the reaction looked like, and whether it has happened more than once. In unclear cases your doctor may add a supervised feeding challenge before advising you to avoid anything long term.

Sample type
Blood
Turnaround
2 to 3 days
Fasting
Not required
Best for
Adults & children
Why Get Tested?

Recommended if you experience hives, swelling, digestive distress, or anaphylaxis after eating, and need to identify the specific trigger foods.

  • Narrow down a trigger

    When several foods were eaten together, testing each allergen separately helps your doctor shortlist the likely culprit instead of guessing from the menu.

  • No skin pricks needed

    A blood sample can be taken while your skin is inflamed or while you are still on antihistamines, both of which interfere with skin prick testing.

  • Avoid needless restriction

    Clear results give your doctor grounds to return a wrongly excluded food to the diet, which matters most for children and for staple foods.

  • Support an emergency plan

    Knowing which foods you react to helps your doctor decide whether you should carry adrenaline and what a written action plan should say.

When This Test Is Ordered

Reasons your doctor may request the Food Allergy Test (44 Allergens) test

Your doctor may order this test for any of the reasons below. Some are routine checks, others follow specific symptoms or an earlier result.

  • Reactions after eating

    • Hives, lip or eyelid swelling, or sudden vomiting appearing soon after a meal.
    • Itching or tingling in the mouth when eating fresh fruit, nuts or raw vegetables.

  • Severe reactions & eczema

    • A previous severe allergic reaction whose trigger was never identified.
    • A child with troublesome eczema whose parents suspect a food is involved.

  • Before changing your diet

    • Before removing a nutritionally important food group such as milk, wheat or fish from a long-term diet.
Preparation
The short version
No prep needed.
  • Blood
  • Free home collection
  • No fasting
  • Results in 2 to 3 days
  1. 1
    Book any time

    No fasting window: pick any slot that suits you, online or on WhatsApp.

  2. 2
    We come to you

    A DHA-licensed nurse collects your sample at home or in the office: free home collection.

  3. 3
    Results in 2 to 3 days

    A physician-reviewed, easy-to-read report lands securely by WhatsApp and email.

Prep note
Physician reviewed

No fasting is needed and you should keep eating normally, including any food you suspect: avoiding it beforehand does not sharpen the result.

Unlike skin prick testing, antihistamines, nasal sprays and asthma inhalers do not change the amount of IgE circulating in your blood, so continue them as prescribed. Mention oral steroids or any medicine that suppresses the immune system, and bring a short written note of what you ate before each reaction and how long the symptoms took to appear; that history is what your doctor will read the results against.

Understanding Your Results

This is a Multi-parameter panel, so there is no single figure to read: your report grades every food on the list individually, from negative to strongly positive. A negative grade means no specific IgE against that food was detected. A positive grade means your immune system has made antibodies to it: sensitisation, which is not the same as allergy, and many people carry antibodies to foods they eat comfortably every week. The strength of a grade does not forecast how severe a future reaction would be, and botanically related foods often rise together because their proteins resemble one another. What turns a positive grade into a diagnosis is the history beside it: what you ate, how fast you reacted, and whether it has happened more than once. Reactions that do not involve IgE, such as coeliac disease or lactose intolerance, are not covered here. Read the panel with your doctor.

SmartReport

Food Allergy Test (44 Allergens)

This is a Multi-parameter panel, so there is no single figure to read: your report grades every food on the list individually, from negative to strongly positive. A negative grade means no specific IgE against that food was detected. A positive grade means your immune system has made antibodies to it: sensitisation, which is not the same as allergy, and many people carry antibodies to foods they eat comfortably every week. The strength of a grade does not forecast how severe a future reaction would be, and botanically related foods often rise together because their proteins resemble one another. What turns a positive grade into a diagnosis is the history beside it: what you ate, how fast you reacted, and whether it has happened more than once. Reactions that do not involve IgE, such as coeliac disease or lactose intolerance, are not covered here. Read the panel with your doctor.

Multi-parameter panel

Each food is graded individually (e.g. from negative to strongly positive). Your report lists the grade for every item in the panel.

This test is reported descriptively rather than on a numeric scale: each finding below explains what your report may say.

This information is for general education only and is not medical advice. Reference ranges can vary by laboratory, age, sex, and individual factors. Always consult your physician or doctor to interpret your results.

Reading a High or Low Result

  • What a higher result can point to

    • A genuine food allergy, where the antibodies and the symptom history point to the same food.
    • Silent sensitisation, meaning antibodies to a food that is eaten regularly without any reaction.
    • Cross-reactivity between botanically related foods, such as several tree nuts or several legumes rising together.
    • Pollen–food cross-reactivity, where antibodies raised against pollen also bind similar proteins in raw fruit and vegetables.
    • A strongly atopic background, with eczema, asthma or hay fever lifting antibody production broadly.

These are possibilities, not diagnoses. A single value outside the reference range is interpreted alongside your symptoms, history and other tests: your doctor decides what it means for you.

Limitations & Safety

What this test cannot tell you

  • A positive result shows sensitisation, not proof that eating the food will cause symptoms.
  • The panel is fixed, so a trigger that is not among the foods tested will be missed entirely.
  • Reactions that do not involve IgE (coeliac disease, lactose intolerance, food protein-induced enterocolitis) are invisible to this test and need separate investigation.
  • The strength of a result does not forecast how severe a future reaction would be.

Risks of the blood draw

  • Mild bruising or brief soreness where the needle went in.
  • Occasional lightheadedness, which settles after a few minutes of rest.
  • Bleeding or infection at the site, which is rare with sterile single-use equipment.
Key Points
  • 1The panel measures IgE, the antibody class responsible for fast allergic reactions.
  • 2Antibodies to a food mean sensitisation; a diagnosis also needs your symptom history.
  • 3Related foods often appear together because their proteins resemble one another.
  • 4A negative panel does not rule out non-allergic reactions to food.
  • 5Results are meant to be read with your doctor rather than used to build an elimination diet alone.
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Frequently Asked Questions

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No. Antihistamines blunt the skin response that a prick test depends on, but they do not change the amount of specific IgE circulating in your blood, so the sample can be taken while you keep taking them.