A few weeks ago, I decided to give Network Chiropractic (also known as Network Spinal Analysis) another try. My body’s a bit wonky and most bodyworkers can’t quite figure out what to do with me (which is another story entirely)—but I’ve had some decent results with Network before, and there’s a practitioner quite near my house, so… You get the picture.
It so happens that this chiropractor also does NAET. NAET or Nambudripad’s Allergy Elimination Techniques (named after Dr. Devi Nambudripad, developer of the technique), is a “non-invasive, drug free, natural solution to eliminate allergies of all types and intensities using a blend of selective energy balancing, testing and treatment procedures from acupuncture/acupressure, allopathy, chiropractic, nutritional, and kinesiological disciplines of medicine.” (Whew! That’s a mouthful courtesy of the NAET website.)
Being one of those people with chronic mystery ailments that no one can seem to figure out, and being the type of person who is willing to experiment with a wide variety of healing practices (more on that another time), I thought, Sure, I’ll bite. Let’s see what NAET can do for me. Maybe, just maybe, it’ll be the missing link…
Hope springs eternal!
Here’s a ridiculously simplistic overview of the NAET process. During an initial examination, the client is tested for allergies to about 70 different substances, including foods, vitamins & minerals, chemicals, environmental allergens, and more. Any allergies are treated one by one, over a period of time. Following a treatment, the client must COMPLETELY avoid the allergenic substance for 25 hours. She cannot ingest it, touch it, breathe it or have any contact with it whatsoever. After that 25 hour period, she should be in the clear, although stubborn allergens may require more than one treatment.
Get the idea?
So. I went to my initial examination with some trepidation. What, I wondered, would come up in the diagnostics? Would I be allergic to things I might expect—wheat, milk, soy, maybe corn… Or might I be allergic to something a little less obvious? What if I were allergic to something that was hard to avoid? What would I do then? My chiropractor mentioned that when she’d done a treatment for cat dander, she’d had to spend the night at her office, since her home had cat hair everywhere. I was a little worried. This could be harder than I thought. Good grief—what if I were allergic to something like dust? How on earth could you spend 25 hours avoiding dust? I prayed that dust would not be one of my primary allergens.
It wasn’t.
Instead, I tested positive for allergies to…(drumroll, please)…B-complex (really??), in particular B12 and B15 (I didn’t even know there was a B15!), gluten (no surprise), perfume, pesticides, and….plastic.
Plastic?
Despite the fact that the B-complex allergy was primary and had to be cleared first before we could do any others, my mind became fixated on plastic, as I tried to think of all the things I’d have to avoid:
Computer keyboard, pens, hairbrush, toothbrush, telephone, cell phone, shampoo and soap bottles, remote control, hairdryer…
I was relieved when my chiropractor told me I could wear latex gloves part of the time, to avoid contacting things with my skin, though she was clear that I should only use them as necessary.
The wheels of my brain continued to turn after I left my appointment. Everywhere I looked, from my car to my kitchen, I saw plastic:
Food containers, kitchen utensils, appliances, produce bags, vitamin bottles and caps, handles, knobs, light switches, personal care and cosmetics containers and lids (not to mention feminine care products and packaging), the shower curtain and liner, bookjackets, CD and DVD cases, office supplies, my sunglasses, yoga mat, bits of clothing (buttons, zippers, plastic thread), the entire console of my car…
By this point I was freaking out. Is it even possible to avoid plastic?? It’s EVERYWHERE!
And I thought dust was bad!
How interesting that more and more types of plastic are being recognized as health hazards—from hormone-disrupting phthalates and BPA to the cancer-causing chemicals associated with PVC. It’s no wonder we’re getting sick from it—we’re inundated with it!
Wherever you happen to be, look around you. Then check out your car, your kitchen, your bathroom, and try to imagine what it would be like not to touch plastic for 25 hours.
Honestly, I’m not sure I can do it. It would take quite a bit of work and preparation, and I’ll have to decide if it’s worth it. Regardless, I’m going to start reducing my exposure to it, because no matter what its influence on me, I’m sure I could do with a lot less of it in my life. Maybe I’ll get some of those mesh produce bags so I don’t have to store my veggies in plastic bags. For sure I’m going to toss my old plastic food containers. Yikes. Who knows what they’re leaching into my food? It’ll be glass for me as much as possible from now on.
But right now, I’ve got to get in gear for my B-complex treatment. White rice, cauliflower, and well-cooked fish are pretty much all I will be able to eat for the 25 hours after the treatment. No picnic, but compared to a plastic-free diet, it’ll be a walk in the park.
Stay tuned for more on my adventures with NAET…
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
Interesting stuff, Kristi!
When I saw this article, I had to read it. After my cancer diagnosis (now clean after lumpectomy), one friend mentioned plastic as a culprit. As you did, I freaked out and tossed all my plastic storage containers. Glass jars were my friend. I also found resin bags & containers (from Cafe Gratitude). It’s hard to avoid the stuff though; think of yogurt etc. I read up on the various kinds of plastic through a web search and supposedly some numbers (on the bottom of the container) are better than others. I pretty much walk a middle path: I use wax paper on whatever I can like bread then put it in a plastic bag, and glass jars. I realize I’m going to die anyway . . . but I’d like to, at least, slow that process down. BTW, I like the design of this site and very nice photos. Thanks
Hi Moria! Thanks for the compliment. Yes, I don’t think any of us realizes just how much plastic we come in contact with on a daily basis, from the home to work to the car… It’s everywhere! And it’s true: some plastics are worse than others. Certain types of plastic leach out hormone-disrupters, particularly when they’re heated. I’ll find some current information to post on the site.
It’s great that you’re taking care of your health by being conscious about your containers and walking a more middle path! Thanks for your suggestions.
I’ve known not to heat in plastic for some time especially or, I guess, only in Microwaves. I read where the plastic molecules pass into the food when microwaved. That’s the worst and very carcinogenic. I told someone at work because she was heating vegies every morning but she didn’t change . . . oh well.
I try to avoid microwaves altogether, except for heating liquids. My understanding is that they alter the structure of foods, and I ain’t messing with that! I use a toaster oven (or the stove) for heating any type of food.
Here’s the link to an article by Dr. Mercola (radical that he is!) on the dangers of microwaves:
Thanks I have read it but maybe your other readers have not.