Nambudripad's Allergy Elimination Techniques - Evidence

Evidence

Several reviews of the available evidence for various alternative techniques in allergy diagnosis have determined that applied kinesiology, the primary diagnostic technique in NAET, is ineffective at diagnosing allergies and advise against its use. Various medical associations also advise against its use, including the European Academy of Allergology and Clinical Immunology, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence, the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy and the Allergy Society of South Africa.

Independent studies on the treatment phase of NAET have not been performed, with two review articles concluding that "NAET has to be the most unsubstantiated allergy treatment proposed to date" and that "there have been no studies supporting the use of these techniques". The Teuber and Porch-Curren review cautions that "there is the potential for an anaphylactic reaction if a patient with severe food allergies seeks such a therapy and tests themselves by oral challenge away from a physician's office after completing the NAET sessions successfully". The Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy has advised against using NAET to treat allergies, criticizing its "lack of scientific rationale" and describing it as a "potentially dangerous technique".

In a critical appraisal of Nambudripad's techniques Stephen Barrett of Quackwatch writes:

"NAET clashes with the concepts of anatomy, physiology, pathology, physics, and allergy accepted by the scientific community. The story of its "discovery" is highly implausible. Its core diagnostic approach – muscle testing for "allergies" – is senseless and is virtually certain to diagnose nonexistent problems. Its recommendations for dietary restrictions based on nonexistent food allergies are likely to place the patient at great risk for nutrient deficiency, and, in the case of children, at risk for social problems and the development of eating disorders."