Are you sick and tired of sneezing with eyes that are gushing water? Tired of itchy nose, itchy throat, itchy eyes? I mean, come on – there are better things to do in a day, right?

Allergies plague many Americans, and here in Southern California our local Santa Ana’s and heat spells can really exacerbate our symptoms. There are lots of things that can trigger our allergy type responses. Common triggers are listed here:

Some can be controlled more easily than others.  In our La Mesa Naturopathic Medical Clinic, we work on strengthening your overall health so your body doesn’t need to be so hyperactive to the things that appear foreign.

We can also talk about allergy testing and what is right for you.  There is the typical IgE allergy testing but there is also IgG allergy testing which can help identify other items causing your allergies.

Most patients who come to me would like to get rid of their allergies once and for all. After working with me for a season and adjusting their diet, optimizing their nutrient levels, getting a few herbs and addressing any underlying health problems, patients can potentially be allergy free the following year!

Hearing your child complain of belly pain can be confusing and worrisome. Parents often try to make sense of it-whether it has to do with food or stool. Belly pain can be caused by many things such as: inflammation, digestive concerns, food allergies, constipation, and more. Options usually offered to pediatric patients include Miralax, PPI’s, steroids, and sometimes the suggestion of avoiding dairy or gluten. Naturopathic options are more plentiful including gentle alternatives such as botanicals, nutrition evaluations, testing for gastrointestinal infections, colitis, or food sensitivities. Call your Naturopathic Doctor to find your options. Stop the worry.

Finding the options that work for you empowers you and your kid to feel good so you can both do the things you love.

Anxiety in kids is not an uncommon thing to see in my Naturopathic office. Anxiety can surely cause lack of sleep, digestive complaints, elimination problems, troubles breathing, problems with focus and concentration, and can most certainly prevent children from performing at their best. Sometimes identifying that anxiety is the cause of the problem is the key to solving it. There are times however; when metabolic, neurotransmitter, or physiological issues are at the heart of the problem and you may want to explore and tweak levels of nutrition and their chemical balance before trying a pharmaceutical solution. There are many alternative tools and options to resolve anxiety that children are especially receptive to as methods of treatment.

One major concern I hear from patients is about potential side effects of pharmaceuticals. Most people don’t realize that there is actually a way to test for side effects before having to actually experience them. This can be accomplished through genetic testing. The human genome mapping was completed a few years ago, and this gives us the ability to take a look at your genes and predict how certain drugs will affect you. Some medications will react in specific ways with your particular genes, and others won’t. This technology is still in the experimental stage, but it is still a useful tool in predicting problems with medications.

For example, one of my patients was on some medications for GERD and had a horrible reaction of headaches. She came to me in a difficult spot of needing the medication for GERD but having side effects. As we worked toward addressing what was causing her GERD to begin with, we were able to test her genetics. We found a GERD medication that she was not reactive to since we identified the liver pathways that work well for her.

Another very common reaction we should to identify is antibiotics. Many people have reactions to antibiotics. In genetic testing, we can find the normally functioning pathways and make better choices to prevent reactions when antibiotic treatment is actually needed.

Genetic testing only needs to be done once. It doesn’t change. Therefore, it can be a good reference for any medication you may need in the future for arthritis, blood thinning, etc (the list is endless!). Education on your genes makes for better health outcomes!

To learn more about genetic testing, just contact our office.