Blood chemistry tests can be very useful in regulating your health and wellness and can give alot of insight into the health of almost every bodily function.One of the major advancements in medicine in recent years has been our expanded understanding of the immune system and its far broader and more important role in general health and wellness. Initially, it was thought that our immune system was only involved in defending our bodies against threatening agents such as bacteria, viruses, and environmental ‘invaders’. Medical science has recently come to recognize that the immune system has defense as well as repair capabilities. This repair component plays an important role in restoring tissue and organs from damage that a disease state may have caused. Recent studies have shown that when lymphocytes (white blood cells) are mobilized to fight off invaders, the vital repair process suffers! As a result, organs and tissue weaken over time and the body’s ability to fight off future assaults is reduced. The effect of immune system dysfunction can be chronic inflammatory and auto-immune diseases that often defy treatment.
The most common assaults that pose the greatest burden to our immune system on a daily basis are digestive remnants and environmental antigens. By identifying these antigens and eliminating them from our exposure, the immune burden can be lifted or eliminated, allowing both the defense and repair systems to return to optimal function. The result is improved, sustainable overall health.
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How is the LRA by ELISA/ACT testing different from a RAST test?
RAST (IgE) only detects immediate allergic reactions to approximately 100 dietary or environmental substances. This test is useful to assess hives, wheezing, or shock that may appear minutes after being exposed to a reacting food or chemical.
The LRA by ELISA/ACT are comprehensive, reliable tests able to identify the causes of delayed allergy/ hypersensitivity reactions. These can occur from hours to weeks after exposure. Most people do not realize they are reacting to these substances since the onset of symptoms does not occur quickly. For example, people may develop achiness hours to days after a food or chemical exposure. This tests measures sensitivities up to 450 items including foods, additives, preservatives, environmental chemicals and toxic minerals, molds, danders, hairs and feathers, medications, therapeutic herbs, and food colorings.
How does it work then?
A blood sample is taken and at the lab these different items are introduced one by one to your blood. The test basically measures the antigens produced against each of these items. If the body produces a high number of antigens against a certain item, it means that your body is ‘sensitive’ to that item…the body doesn’t like that item (for whatever reason) and is constantly fighting it. This causes your defense system to be in a constant ‘war’ which burdens the repair system and eventually the immune system….resulting in disease.
Once we know what items our body is sensitive to, we need to eliminate those items from our diet or avoid exposure to them. The defense system can take a break, the repair system starts working better, and the immune system regains optimal function!
Note: This test is also VERY beneficial as part of a weight loss program, since an impaired immune system and therefore a body-out-of-balance limits effectiveness of diet, exercise and supplementation! Eliminating the items your body is sensitive too will indirectly speed up (read: bring back to normal) your metabolism, which was sluggish and part of your weight problem!
Yours in Optimal Health,
Dr. Mike
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Tags: allergy test, Blood Chemistry Test, ELISA test, LRA test, RAST test
Ive never done one of these tests before, what age should a person get it done at?
Comment by Jett — January 4, 2010 @ 4:40 pm
I did a LRA and have now eliminated foods from my diet that made me sick and I feel great!
Comment by Jemel — January 4, 2010 @ 4:49 pm