The majority of allergy patients know that what they ingest, inhale or contact can drastically change their lives in minutes. If you find yourself in this group, you know the frustration and hopelessness your condition can produce. If you are one of the lucky ones, you have identified your allergic substances (allergens) and at least know what you need to avoid. If you're not so lucky, you may be experiencing severe or chronic ailments that seem to have no resolution.
Your Options
• Avoidance – this works as long as you have no accidental exposure.
• Over-The-Counter Remedies – these can provide temporary relief of symptoms for mild conditions.
• Prescription Medications – these may include weekly shots at the doctor’s office along with daily self-administered shots.
• Changing Your Environment – this may involve discovering and eliminating offending substances such as pets, carpets, bedding, fragrances, soaps, etc. You may need to install air purifiers, water filtration and even rework your electrical wiring. Some people have gone as far as moving to another location or state.
• Elimination – this gets rid of the reaction so you are done with it.
What Is An Allergy?
Conventional medicine describes an allergy as “an over-reaction by the body's immune system to a foreign substance”. In NAET, an allergy is defined more broadly as “a condition of abnormal sensitivity of an individual to any of one or more substances which are otherwise harmless to the majority of people”. For example, some people are allergic to wheat or pollens, nuts or shellfish, milk or animal dander, but others are not. This sensitivity, in turn, results in changes in the biochemistry and energy flows throughout the body. It has been discovered in NAET that when an allergen enters or contacts the body, there is a clash between the electro-magnetic energy field of the body and the electromagnetic field of the allergen. When the body detects an allergen in its presence, an immune response is generated. This could be anything from a mild local itch or temporary nasal constriction or brief period of sneezing to a very severe reaction that results in a trip to the emergency room. Additionally, the same allergen may cause a completely different reaction in two different people.
Hidden Allergies
For many people, allergies are low-grade and nothing more than a minor nuisance. For others, accidental contact with an allergen can be a terrifying, life-threatening situation.
Often people with mild reactions at the time of exposure are unaware that they even have allergies. As their health declines, they know something is wrong but no one has made the connection. Their complaints are not distinct and may include feeling “out of sorts”, a slight mental dullness or confusion, a mild but persistent sore throat or cough, a dull headache that won't respond to usual methods. Many of these people have seen several doctors only to come away disappointed, disillusioned, diagnosed with a “nervous disorder”, labeled a hypochondriac, or worse yet, have been told their complaints are “all in their head” and get prescribed psychiatric drugs!
How Are Allergens Contacted?
There are many ways a person may come in contact with allergens. The general categories are: by inhaling them through the air; by ingesting them from foods and fluids; from injections or insect bites; from the accumulated residue of drugs, chemicals and bacterial, viral or parasitic infestation; by touching or merely being near a substance; hereditary tendencies; physical agents such as cold, heat, vibration or strong electromagnetic fields; and molds, mildew and fungi as a separate category. Susceptibility and extent tend to increase with age.
Allergies Can Cause Real Illness
Contact with an allergen can cause a reaction similar to that of a virus attacking your body. In both instances, an amazing defense mechanism goes into action as the body rallies to attack the invader. The resulting symptoms in either case may be a cough, fever, sweats, nausea, vomiting, headaches, body aches, fatigue, skin rashes, rapid heart rate, difficulty breathing, etc.
Allergic reactions can be immediate or delayed. They can produce symptoms that can mimic other conditions: respiratory problems such as sneezing, coughing, bronchitis, pneumonia or asthma; circulatory conditions like chest pains, high blood pressure, heart irregularities or rapid heart beat; gastro-intestinal troubles like gas, bloating, ulcers, colic, diarrhea, irritable bowel, constipation or acute abdominal pain; muscle/bone/joint problems like backache, arthritis, headaches, restless leg syndrome or unexplained muscle aches, pains or weakness; sexual or urinary problems such as prostate problems, kidney and bladder infections, PMS, post-menstrual disorder, decreased sexual interest and performance, impotence and infertility; skin conditions like acne, rashes, blotching, itching, eczema, psoriasis, chemical sensitivities; brain / neurological conditions such as numbness, tingling, A.D.H.D., migraines, irritability, depression or brain fog; immune system problems such as lupus, chronic fatigue syndrome and frequent, chronic or recurring infections. Because of the chain-reaction of biochemical changes and nutritional deficiencies that result, allergies can produce or contribute to just about any named condition. It is important that they be identified and eliminated, not just “treated”.
Nutritional Deficiencies
When the body reacts to a given food, it can also reject the individual nutrients contained in that food. For example, if the body reacts to milk, there can also be a rejection of the calcium contained in the milk… as well as the calcium from other sources. This can lead to a calcium deficiency that no amount of right eating or supplementation will resolve until the allergy is cleared. This potential rejection of associated nutrients is a factor with all food allergies. In these cases, treatment will likely included taking nutritional supplements for a while after clearing to restore any resulting deficiencies.
Allergy Testing & Treatment
Conventional medicine seeks to determine the offending substances through various blood and skin reaction tests. Treatment includes drugs to relieve the symptoms of the reaction, injections of diluted allergenic substances to suppress or desensitize the reaction, rotation and elimination diets, complete avoidance of the substance for the rest of one’s life, etc. Results are limited and the continual need for ongoing medication or treatment is typical.
Reprogramming the Reaction
NAET (an acronym taken from Nambudripad Allergy Elimination Technique) was developed by Dr. Devi Nambudripad, MD, PhD, DC, LAc, RN, while researching how to handle her own allergies and is a blend of Western and Eastern contributions. Other contributors include A/SERT (Allergy/Sensitivity Elimination and Reprogramming Technique), JMT (Jaffe-Mellor Technique) and NRT's Accelerated Allergy Clearing. Testing and treatment are accomplished by painless, drugless, non-invasive methods that can be used safely on persons of any age.
NAET et al eliminates allergies by clearing blockages in nerve and energy pathways caused by allergens that, in turn, interfere with normal immune system and body function. A “reprogramming” of the immune response occurs, and afterwards, the body no longer perceives or deals with the substance as an allergen. And the patient no longer needs to avoid it!! Allergy-induced malfunctions and health can return to normal.
Allergens are treated one at a time and one day at a time in a prescribed sequence. The treated substance must then be completely avoided for 25 hours following the treatment. In some cases, one session will permanently eliminate a given allergy.