The Elisa or Rast blood panels are commonly used to check for IgE reactions to common food. The Elisa blood test can help you discover with ease which foods in your diet may be a source of more harm than good. Just a simple finger prick, to collect a couple of drops of blood is enough to identify elevated IgA and IgG antibodies to foods you are reactive to in your immune system. Naturopathic doctors offer this Elisa test, known as the (Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay). A full blood draw can be used to identify IgE antibodies in addition to IgA and IgG.
Immediate food immune reactions create an antibody called IgE, for which one can test for. The old method of skin testing utilizes the immunoglobulin but is very unreliable. The RAST test also tests for IgE. The test is painful, highly inaccurate & can miss many food allergies and all food intolerances.
There are 2 levels of Elisa testing, the basic for the most common American diet (eggs, dairy, meat, wheat & other grains, some vegetables & fruits). The 2nd level of testing checks for less common foods, herbs, spices & a large spectrum of indoor & outdoor inhalants. This would include testing for a wide variety of pollens, molds, dust & animal dander & some address chemical panel sensitivity.
Under the guidance of your naturopathic doctor, test results for the Elisa test may provide a targeted approach as to what foods you need to eliminate from your diet and which foods you can continue eating. You can also choose the therapeutic path of NAET treatments, which assists your body in desensitizing to healthy foods that you are reactive to. I offer this treatment protocol, assisting your body/ mind to reacclimate to foods your immune system is overreacting to.
