Articles
Food Intolerances - Myth or Reality?
Are food intolerances just the latest buzz word in complementary health circles or are they slowly undermining our good health? Some people find it hard to believe that some of the most common foods, even those which we have been told since childhood are good for us, can be causing us harm and be the cause of our persistent health problems. Food intolerance sounds like a feeble excuse for allergy, however whereas an allergy to a food causes a severe and almost immediate reaction, a food intolerance is more insidious and can be steadily causing the body harm. In most cases individuals concerned are completely unaware that certain foods are eroding their good health.
The symptoms caused by food intolerances can affect children, teenagers and adults alike. Those common problems that plague our teenagers, such as skin eruptions, mood swings, weight issues and even conditions like athletes' foot can be attributed to food intolerances. Children's symptoms arising from eating foods which do not suit them range from the more obvious persistent stomach ache and bowel problems to concentration, learning difficulties and behavioural problems like hyperactivity. The immune system can also be severely compromised by food intolerances leading to children picking up every bug and virus in the school playground. The ever increasing number of children carrying an inhaler for asthma can be another symptom of food intolerances.
On to the adult years - by this time we have probably been eating the offending food or foods for years leading to numerous muscular skeletal weaknesses such as backache, neck pain, shoulder tension and even tennis elbow. The now very commonly diagnosed condition by doctors of irritable bowel syndrome can have its roots in food intolerances leading to an erosion of the normal functioning of the gut and years of misery for sufferers, as indeed can any bloating or abdominal discomfort. Some headaches and even migraines which have commonly been attributed to stress are now being identified as being triggered by food reactions. Persistent skin conditions like acne or spots in later years when we had thought teenage spots were behind us or the more worrying eczema and psoriasis have links to the foods that we eat. Even our emotional side is not exempt from food intolerances, some foods to sensitive individuals can have a bearing on mood and even anxiety and depression. Not forgetting the eternal problem of our modern society - weight gain - older years do not necessarily have to bring an increase in girth or dress size if we are eating foods that we can tolerate.
Although we are all individuals and it is difficult to make general statements applying to all, there are some foods and drinks which are the most common culprits. The foods we most frequently eat are often the ones causing us most harm, for example wheat and cows' milk. A cows' milk intolerance can be to the milk itself or to the chemicals and antibiotics with which the milk is laced, or unfortunately, to both. Another common source of food intolerances is the ever increasing range of processed foods, even the ones designated as 'healthy' or organic' can contain a whole spectrum of chemicals and preservatives which some people find difficult or impossible to detoxify. Certain foods and drinks targeted at children can be a chemical cocktail including a list of chemical additives, flavour enhancers, artificial sweeteners, preservatives, monosodium glutamate, citric acid and ascorbic acid to name but a few. Some children will fare far worse from these since their genetic makeup can hinder their detoxification process and allow these unwanted and damaging chemicals to build up.
If you have any doubts that foods may be contributing to either your or one of your family's health problems, then it is worth getting tested. Information about which foods suit you and which don't could save a lot of unnecessary pain and suffering and lead to a speedy cure for your symptoms. If a food or foods are identified as causing your symptoms, it need not be a life sentence of abstinence. With effective treatment, after a period of time the body can be built up to tolerate the foods again. Even if this is not the case, a food withdrawn from your diet could eradicate a lifetime of problems - and that has got to be worth thinking about. Hippocrates said "Let food be your medicine", all too often these days food has become our poison.
Improve Your Health With Kinesiology
Introduction
Kinesiology is a complementary health therapy which offers good health, great energy and a wonderful sense of well-being. Kinesiology is an ingenious mix of ancient Chinese knowledge and more recent western scientifically researched knowledge and techniques -a true 'East meets West' situation combining what is best from both schools of thought. It can give us a fascinating insight into the functioning of the body. It can work on existing symptoms or be used as a preventive tool to make sure we actively look after our health and do not abuse it. Kinesiology is a complete, holistic approach to improving health. It gives us information on the workings of the body both internal and external in a non-intrusive fashion. The kinesiologists approach to health considers the whole person emotional, chemical and energetical factors as well as simply the physical symptoms. Kinesiology has the power to deal with many common complaints and conditions, many of which people believe they have to learn to live with, just waiting for them to get worse. Many of our health problems can be linked to our diet, the kinesiologist can ascertain which foods can be causing health problems in different individuals. Conversely, Kinesiology can identify which vitamins and minerals are deficient in an individual and which supplements would help their current health problem. By using Kinesiology people can truly live up to the old adage "Prevention is better than cure".
​
Deal with common complaints and conditions
Many common complaints and conditions can be treated by Kinesiology. All systems of the body can be investigated. The digestive system plays a huge part in a person's state of health and can have many knock on effects for other parts of the body. This is a vital system to have running smoothly since it provides all the nourishment for our bodies and minds. Correct absorption of the nutrients from food is a primary requisite, since the rest of our body depends on them. Armed with their expertise and techniques Kinesiologists can help the digestive system to work effectively. Some of the common symptoms which can be addressed are acid stomach, indigestion, flatulence, bloating and weight reduction The process of elimination is also vital to our overall health. Constipation is very prevalent in the west and can be the cause of many more serious health problems. This can be a very taboo subject to talk about and consequently many people are not aware that daily elimination is paramount. Irritable Bowel syndrome seems to be on the increase in our society and this too is something which Kinesiology can alleviate. Another important area for good health throughout the whole body is the endocrine system which produces all our hormones which regulate the functioning of many aspects in the body. The Kinesiologist can balance the endocrine system, this in itself has huge implications for the whole body and sets the body on an even keel to be able to regulate itself. Many women suffer the affects of pre-menstrual syndrome on a regular basis, with Kinesiology this need not be the case. Menopausal symptoms can also be greatly alleviated. Kinesiology can help with respiratory problems and can offer relief to people who suffer with these types of problems ranging from asthma and allergies through to catarrh and sinusitis. It can also help people who are very susceptible to colds and find they are experiencing frequent colds in the winter time. On a structural level Kinesiology can help with many joint aches and pains from the more general conditions like arthritis to specific pain as in backache and sciatica or neck, shoulder and elbow pain. Also working on the muscles in the way that Kinesiology does greatly improves posture. It also increases the muscles ability to grow and become stronger since the muscles are functioning much better and are receiving all they need to develop, so making all that hard work in the gym more effective. Kinesiology can help many skin conditions like eczema and psoriasis. Acne and spots can be treated either in adolescence or in later life. Migraines and headaches can also be effectively helped. Lack of energy or tired all the time syndrome can be helped as can insomnia. Kinesiology works well at an emotional level. Anxiety and depression can take a heavy toll on the body and kinesiology has powerful tools to help with these problems. Lack of confidence and low self-esteem can greatly affect a person's wellbeing and health and these can be tackled and overcome with kinesiology. Stress is a major feature of our times - we are all doing too much, have too little time, have too many demands made of us, living life in the fast lane - all this places an enormous strain on our bodies and emotions. Kinesiology can help alleviate the affect that stress is having on our bodies and addresses the emotional issues that are involved.
​
Method of Treatment
Kinesiology can check out all the systems of the body by a non-intrusive method known as muscle testing. By testing certain muscles, Kinesiologists can identify which areas of the body require attention, as well as being able to deal with muscle problems themselves. Muscle testing involves placing an arm or leg in certain positions and applying gentle pressure in a particular direction. The treatment carried out by kinesiologists is also non-intrusive. It consists of massaging Lymphatic Reflex points on the body to ensure a good flow of lymph which has a powerful role in cleaning and feeding the body. Vascular points on the head are lightly touched to ensure good blood flow to relevant areas. Meridian energy pathways, first discovered by the ancient Chinese and now scientifically verified by western research, enable energy to flow through the body. These pathways can get blocked, depriving muscles and organs of vital energy. The Kinesiologist removes these blockages by tracing the meridians. The Kinesiologist has access to many powerful and effective emotional techniques. Such is the power of the mind that it can affect different parts of the body when emotionally charged events dominate our thinking. The Kinesiologist deals with the emotional stress which can cause untold damage to our physical health.
​
Holistic Approach
Kinesiology treats the whole person. All too often physical symptoms have their root cause in other areas of our lives, our chemical make-up with all the concoctions we put into our bodies or our complex emotional baggage with all its incumbent stresses. All aspects of our lives are inter-related and together have a huge impact on our health. For example we can see how emotional states can upset our physical well-being by thinking of the indigestion which can be caused by eating in a state of mental stress. What we consume can affect us mentally, physically and energetically, we can see this by considering the person who is sensitive to wheat and as a consequence can experience emotional swings, aching limbs and loss of energy. The Kinesiologist by assessing the whole person achieves longer lasting results since the causes of the health problems are found rather than just dealing with the symptoms, for example giving pain killers for backache or antacids for indigestion.
​
Food Choice
Food plays a vitally important role in our health. It is important to identify for individuals which foods could be causing health issues for them. Food intolerances or sensitivities can be steadily causing the body small amounts of harm and in most cases people are completely unaware that they are spoiling the quality of their life. Kinesiology can identify these foods for people and although a period of avoidance is normally necessary the body can be strengthened to be able to tolerate the foods again after a period of time. It is becoming increasingly difficult these days to decide which food fad to follow, which out of the many diets around today will enable you to maintain your ideal weight. Kinesiology can identify for you which foods suit your body, which foods will give you energy and which foods to avoid since they will be badly digested and stored as fat. However plausible the latest diet seems, we are all 'biochemically individual' which means that a food which suits one person very well will not necessarily suit another. There is no such thing as a universal diet which suits everyone. Kinesiology takes the guesswork out of balancing a diet for an individual.
​
Vitamin supplements
Muscle testing by a kinesiologist can demonstrate which vitamins your body responds to. Although some think we can get all vitamins and minerals from our food, that may not necessarily be the case, modern production methods, storage, transportation all strip our food of its vital nutrients. Stress, both emotional and physical, depletes us of vitamins and requires a greater intake of vitamins and minerals. There may be a deficiency that someone has experienced for a long time which is adversely affecting a certain part of their body, with Kinesiology this can be identified. Again, Kinesiology takes the guesswork out of health care. We no longer need to scour the shelves in the health shop trying to guess which out of all the rows of vitamin supplements our body needs.
​
Prevention is better than cure
A great benefit of Kinesiology is its function in preventative health care. We routinely maintain our cars and domestic appliances to prevent breakdown, the same approach can be applied to our health. It makes no sense to let our bodies get into such a bad state suffering unbearable symptoms until we are forced to consider our health. It makes no sense to allow disease processes to develop over many years because we simply don't know how to prevent it. Lots of people resign themselves to a lower level of health than they could enjoy. We need to be aware of our bodies and what is happening to them. Symptoms left untreated can develop into more persistent symptoms and eventually disease. Whether you have a particular health issue or want to pursue a preventative health care regime, Kinesiology can help.