How to Self Test for Food Sensitivities & Allergies

Food sensitivities and allergies cause your pulse rate to increase or even race, depending upon the severity. The following process allows you to, within about 2 weeks, identify foods to which you may be sensitive or allergic. Food sensitivities can come and go. You can be fine with food "x", but after several years of constant "x" daily, you can develop a sensitivity to it.

The rule of thumb is to enjoy a great variety in foods, and any one food should be repeated no more than 1/3 of a given time span - ie 2 days out of a week, a week or two out of a month, 3 months out of a year.

You only need to remember a few things:

• Baseline,
• 16 beats over baseline,
• 21 beats over baseline
• it takes 2 hours for a pulse to go back to normal after eating something

Process

• For each of 3 days, first thing upon arising, wait 5 minutes to settle yourself, and then take your pulse.
• The average of those 3 days is your baseline pulse rate.
• After a meal (and especially if you notice your heart racing) check your pulse.
• If it is up between baseline and 16 beats over baseline - no problems
• Between 16 beats over and 21 beats over- there may be an inhalant sensitivity (mold, etc) and you'll need to re-evaluate your baseline under different conditions (ie, sleep outside, air conditioner, another's home).
• Above 21 beats above baseline - you are sensitive to something you just ate in the previous 2 hours.
• The next day, every 1/2 hour, you can introduce one of the elements of the meal in question, until you see the pulse increase to 21 beats above - and you have identified a food to which you are sensitive.

Example

Suppose your baseline pulse rate is 60. You eat a meal, and 1/2 hour later (within 2 hours) you test your pulse and notice that it is 82. Ah ha - some sensitivity there!

Suppose the meal was biscuits (wheat flour, baking powder, salt, milk) and cream of brocoli soup (brocoli, onion, potato, milk, prepared mustard, lemon juice, salt).

So the next day you start testing.

At least 2 hours after breakfast, you have a glass of milk; you wait 15 or so minutes and test your pulse - it's 70 = no problem with milk.

You wait another 1/2 hour and have a biscuit (same as before); you wait 15 or so minutes and test your pulse - it's 83 = something in the biscuit.

You wait until your pulse is back to 60, about 2 hours, and start testing the separate ingrediants of the biscuit.

You know it's not milk, but it could be any of the others - so test them one by one until you see the spike in your pulse.

You discover that it's the baking powder. If you've been eating baking powder biscuits every day for months it might be a temporary problem. So, avoid baking powder for at least 2 weeks and then test it again.

Remember, sensitivities can come and go, so keep as much variety in your diet as possible.