Allergist/Immunologist

[Lenny]

Can anyone give me some direction when having my son allergy tested? At 15-16 he's developed verbal tics, but has had a history of eye rolling/blinking and occasional grimacing since 5 or 6. I'd like to have him tested for both food and other potential environmental allergies. We've cleaned up the diet and he's been gluten/dairy free for some time and we've noticed a reduction in occurrences. I've not been able to find a "Holistic" or "Natural" Allergist/Immunologist who may know the specific testing that would serve him best. Do you think a general type of Allergist/Immunologist would suffice? Is there a specific panel of tests that is recommended? Or is it best to test for every potential food/environmental allergy? I've also noticed that there are some online/mail-in testing available for under $200. They claim to run a full panel of testing, but not sure of the reliability. Do you feel the in person "prick" testing would be more accurate? I was also curios if these tests will reveal a specific degree of intolerance. I understand his body may have not have a complete intolerance to something, but there may be a "weakness" to it. I'd greatly appreciate any direction or recommendations and advice anyone can offer. Regards.

[ahmoy44]

Hi Lenny,

Looking at your post it sounds similar to one I have done. We have also removed gluten from our daughters diet and noticed an improvement but have found ourselves considering specific testing to get a clearer picture of what we potentially need to avoid.

I'm afraid I don't have any advice to give right now as I'm still trying to narrow down the options on testing but once we do go ahead with it I'd be happy to come back here to let you know where we got to. There may be some differences as it sounds like you're in the States and I'm in the UK but I'm sure there'll be some common factors too.

[Sheila]

Hello Lenny and welcome to the Forums.  I'm really sorry for the delay in responding, this totally slipped through! 

As Ahmoy44 said, you seem to be in the US. What area of the country are you in? I'm asking in case you would benefit from seeing an environmental physician. Allergy testing is a controversial field, with people--even on this forum-- turning to a range of techniques for allergy testing.  Part of the issue is cost and whether insurance coverage is an issue. In general, I would not recommend the mail-in testing.  A number of lab tests can be completed depending on the situation; it is best to have a practitioner overseeing those.  Please write back and let me know where you live and tell us a little more, OK?

Do you think anything changed in your son's environment around the time when the vocal tics started up? How long has he had those? I'm glad you have seen some improvement with the diet changes you've tried.  Sheila