Most of us have been taught that allergies are something we just have to live with: if you’re allergic to something, simply don’t eat or touch it, and if you’re allergic to a lot of things then you’re just going to have a more limited experience of life. To complicate the issue further, allergies often manifest in ways we wouldn’t expect (depression, headaches, body aches and poor digestion, to name a few), so many people don’t even know they have them. Well, there is now actually a way to clear your allergies–yes, get rid of them. The method is called Nambudripad’s Allergy Elimination Testing (NAET), named after the doctor who discovered it, Dr. Devi S. Nambudripad.

NAET, a technique that uses Energetic Medicine and Kinesiology to determine a person’s sensitivity to a particular substance (also known as an allergy), raises the eyebrows of people foreign to alternative medicine since its methods are far from traditional. In fact, until you try it out yourself, it appears to be suspiciously simple and just plain, well…weird. The thing is, it works. NAET is used primarily by acupuncturists and doctors who practice alternative medicine, but due to its effectiveness, there are many MD’s worldwide now practicing it as well.

The first step of NAET is to test for a sensitivity to a substance (this includes food) through a technique called Muscle Testing. To muscle test, a practitioner has the patient hold a particular substance in their hand and then tests to see if their resistance to pressure on a designated muscle is weakened due to the substance’s presence. If it is, the person has a sensitivity to that substance. Why does this simple method work? “Because we’re energetic beings,” says Dr. Kathy Long, Licensed Acupuncturist and NAET Practitioner. “And by introducing something into your energy field, it’s either going to support your energy field or weaken it.”

Once the allergen is identified, the patient continues to touch the substance while the practitioner stimulates key acupressure points on their back which correspond to the spinal nerves (acupuncture can be used instead of acupressure to achieve the same effect.) “What we’re doing is realigning the body’s energy system to the energy of the substance,” explains Long. It takes some time for the body to readjust to the substance in the new way, so after treatment the patient must completely abstain from contact with the substance for 25 hours to ensure the desired results.

Most people have some degree of allergies. Whenever allergies are present, one’s immune system is compromised, and since it is the immune system which fights off toxins and illness, it is important that allergies be cleared. If left untreated, over time one’s body will experience more and more symptoms and eventually break down.

“Allergies equate to the immune system,” explains Long. “When your body doesn’t recognize something like vitamin C, which is a powerful antioxidant, it’s not going to break it down, and as a result it won’t be able to handle the free radicals which are damaging cells and causing aging. And that affects how well our system can fight viruses, bacteria and fungus.” 

It is crucial that sensitivities are cleared in a particular order of priority in terms of the body’s basic needs. Key nutrients such as vitamins and minerals must be cleared first, and then specific key foods that are in every diet, such as wheat, sugar, artificial sweeteners, chocolate, caffeine, etc. Also, since our bodies are complicated systems in which every structure affects the functioning of the whole, in order for treatment to be effective the goal must be to clear all of one’s allergies over time. “By simply treating only one thing, you’re not strengthening the whole,” adds Long. “That is why if someone comes in and says they want to be treated for their cat allergy but not for anything else, I won’t even treat them. It won’t hold. You need a foundation first.” Once the “foundation” allergies are cleared, a lot of times other allergies will start to go away on their own because once strengthened, the immune system becomes more capable of dealing with substances it was previously unable to handle.

Often NAET can identify the cause of a symptom that other doctors are unable to determine. For example, Dr. Long once had a two-year-old patient with severely dry and itchy skin. The patient’s pediatrician had simply diagnosed her with eczema, and gave her one cream after another, all to no avail at all. Fortunately, since Long could identify and clear the specific allergies through NAET, this little girl could go on to lead a normal life. NAET can also be used on pets, and is practiced by many veterinarians as well.

NAET is effective (for life) for 80-90% of the people treated, though sometimes certain sensitivities have to be cleared repeatedly. To find an NAET practitioner near you, visit the NAET website at www.naet.com.

Kathy Long, Licensed Acupuncturist and Doctor of Chinese Medicine, can be reached at the Santa Monica Wellness Center at 310-451-7170.

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How To Muscle Test

Hold your stronger arm straight out in front of you. Have another person press down on your forearm arm while you resist their pressure. Not a lot of pressure is needed, just enough so that you have something to resist (this isn’t an arm wrestling match). Do this a few times until you and the other person get used to a steady level of pressure and resistance. Next, hold in your other hand either a battery or a substance to which you know you are allergic (a battery generally weakens our energy field) and then have the other person push on your arm again. At this point, when pushed, your arm won’t be able to resist the pressure and will fall. By touching the allergen or battery, your energy field is weakened, and therefore your muscles are weakened, as seen by your inability to resist the other person’s pressure anymore. Although it is preferred, the substance you are testing does not usually need to touch your hand directly. For example, if you are allergic to milk, holding a carton with milk in it should be enough to make your other arm weaken. Beware that sometimes you will test positively for a particular food (such as bread, let’s say) but it may actually only be one of the ingredients in the bread that you are allergic to (like wheat, for instance).