An amazing test at the naturopath's

I went yesterday back to the Center for Advanced Medicine (Encinitas, CA) to the naturopath for a post cleanse follow up visit and computer screening for allergies/sensitivities, metals, minerals, etc. I was really looking forward to this test because I have dealt daily with a runny/stuffy nose, itching, and asthma for years now with no relief no matter what I did. I went to a regular allergist years back who had me take desensitization shots & they never did help me much. I would take antihistamines Zyrtec and Singulair both and they did absolutely nothing for me. I was told that I probably had "sensitivities" as opposed to true allergies, which basically means I still have the same symptoms but no allergy medicine will help me & that's why my three years of allergy shots never helped either. I asked the allergist back then how I could find out what I have sensitivities to, and his reply was that I really couldn't & there wasn't much of anything he could do for me.

Fast forward to yesterday's test... it was an amazing test & one I had never heard about before & not one that "regular" doctors use. I had one hand on an electrode type handle during the testing and the doctor used some kind of electric probe on my other hand (actually switched hands halfway thru). That was hooked up to his computer, which I was able to see the screen of during the whole thing. The test is based on something kind of like accupressure points, with the idea that there are meridians thoughout the body that come out in specific places on the hands and feet (even in the irises of the eye, someone else told me). This is also what accupuncture is based on. I was always very skeptical of acupuncture before, really thinking it was all quackery but was convinced last year because my cancer center offered free accupuncture for patients. When I tried accupuncture myself, I was amazed that I got great relief from back pain, joint pain, and hot flashes & nothing else helped as much.
During the testing, the few things that I already knew I was allergic to (corn, tuna fish, mustard- kind of odd things, actually) showed up strongly on this test too & the doctor did not know beforehand that I had allergies to those foods- so to me, that validated the accuracy of the test. Interesting that I had always suspected I had problems with wheat (I'd notice that I'd get bloated after eating anything with it). But since my former allergy testing didn't show a wheat allergy, I thought I must be imagining it. Sure enough, this test yesterday showed that I have a strong reaction to anything wheat and also rye- hence labeling me "gluten intolerant".

Findings of the test: I'm allergic (or have a sensitivity to, as they prefer to say): cats (and I have 3- but no dog allergy), milk and all kinds of cheeses made from cow's milk, wheat, rye, 4 types of beans, corn (which includes everything w/ high fructose corn syrup or corn meal), peanuts/peanut butter, pistachios, tuna fish, dill/mustard, red and white wine (I always have gotten flushed after a glass of wine & kind of itchy), vinegar, yeast, chocolate (bummer), eggplant, honeydew melon, mushrooms (due to their fungal qualities), paprika, cayenne pepper, many types of pollens from trees/weeds/flowers, molds, and dust mites.

It also screened for heavy metals. I was found to have high levels of mercury, cadmium, titanium, and nickel. Hmmm. When nickel showed up, the dr. said "you know that nickel is what they inject lab rats with to cause cancerous tumors in them. As long as you have that much nickel in you, I don't see that any of your chemo treatments are going to be completely successful. You've got to get that out of you." WOW. They now have me on some metal detox stuff, but said the best way to detox from heavy metals is through sweating & so I'm going to do some infra-red sauna therapy for metal detox.

It was able to test all of my teeth and see if there were problems with any of them. Four teeth showed up & two of the four happened to be the only crowns that I have in my mouth. Interesting- maybe my high mercury level is related to the crowns and a couple of fillings I have. All that I have are porcelein and not metal looking, so I just assumed they don't have any mercury in them, but I was told that they often still do have metals in the center. I guess the only way to get rid of the mercury from them is to have them removed and crowns put in that have no metals in them. I don't know if I'll be doing that.

It screened for parasites too- kinda scary, but two parasites were found in me- giardia lamblia and cryptosporidium. These are both usually picked up from contaminated water (either by drinking it or by swimming in it and getting some in your mouth) & both cause diahrrea. Of the list of parasites they checked for, these two are not as harmful to the body as some. I've heard that 80-90% of the population has some kind of parasite. It tested for various viruses and bacterias- just two showed up there- a bacterium called enterobacteria- I have to research that one, as I don't know what it causes or does & herpes simplex I (the cold sore on the mouth type), which I knew I had since I get cold sores every now and then- that also helped validate the accuracy of this test in my mind. On the molds/fungi portion of the test, I was definitely found to have a problem with candida (yeasts)- so I'm definitely gone off sugar and have to avoid foods that promote fermatation or fungal growth & am taking some things to help with that.

It went over all vitamin and mineral levels- another thing that helped validate that this type of test is accurate and not "quackery" is that my vitamin D level showed up as almost identical to what it recently showed on my bloodwork.

So- lots of information to digest. I am on some supplements and will be doing some sauna treatments for the metal detox and am supposed to go back in another month.

I know this was a long post and maybe too much detail on my own test for some, but I know that there are several of you who would find this interesting & maybe will want to try to pursue such a test for yourselves. Hopefully several naturopaths will know about this. If not, you could always google the Center For Advanced Medicine in Encinitas, CA for more info or get their phone # of the website and call to ask about it. Then you might get specific info on what it's called, etc. to know what to say if you're calling around your local area to see where such tests might be offered. The screening cost me $180- very well worth it to me (then the follow up visit w/ the dr. to discuss and go over it all was $94).