Specialist treatment of allergies and allergic asthma has made great progress in recent decades. A large number of scientific studies have clearly demonstrated the good effects of various drugs. Specific immunotherapy (allergy vaccination) has also proved its worth for many years. However, not all allergy sufferers trust conventional medicine. Many resort to alternative cures or alternative methods for allergy diagnosis.
Does alternative therapy show effect?
However, the use of alternative methods for allergies is controversial. “Alternative cures are also usually not paid for by health insurance companies because proof of efficacy is usually lacking,” explains the president of the Association of German Allergists (ÄDA), Professor Wolfgang Czech. Nevertheless alternative welfare and test methods provide such as Pendeln, self-blood treatment, Bioresonanz and brook bloom therapy as miracle cures against allergies again and again for headlines. So what’s the truth about alternative allergy treatment?
Allergists put alternative methods under the microscope
The Complementary Medicine Working Group of the German Society for Allergology and Clinical Immunology (DGAKI) has evaluated alternative methods after a thorough review of the available scientific studies on them. With the exception of proven methods such as respiratory and physiotherapy, Kneipp’s methods, bathing or climatic therapy, the experts led by Munich allergist Professor Wolfgang Dorsch found almost no evidence of efficacy:
| Method | Description | Proof of Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Acupuncture | Stimulation of certain points on the body by needles. | Controlled studies show effects in mild asthma. Acceptable as an adjunct to classical pulmonary therapy methods. |
| Electroacupuncture according to Dr. Voll | Changes in electrical potentials at acupuncture points are said to provide information about causes of disease. | Already disproved in 1976 in the presence of Dr. Reinhold Voll. |
| Treatment with own blood | Venously drawn blood is injected into a muscle of the patient; in a homeopathic version, it is given to drink dissolved in water or alcohol. Controlled studies of efficacy are not available. | In contrast, painful inflammation may occur after injection. |
| Autohomologous immunotherapy according to Dr. Kief | Specially prepared blood or urine is swallowed, inhaled or injected. | Traceable proof of efficacy is lacking. The method is extremely expensive. |
| Aromatherapy, color therapy | Inhalation of fragrant plant essences or irradiation with colored light. | Autosuggestion or placebo effect: harmless but ineffective. |
| Bach Flower Therapy | Fresh flowers of selected plants are placed overnight in fresh spring water. The essence is taken or processed the next morning. | Drinking flower water drop by drop is very unlikely to have any effect. |
| Kinesiology | Allergies are detected by contact of allergens with subsequent change in muscle tension. | Refuted in a double-blind study with an experienced kinesiologist. The method also failed in food intolerances. |
| Pendulum | Allergies are detected by pendulums. | No significance, the method is based only on suggestion |
| Bioresonance and related techniques | “Ultra-fine oscillations” or electrical phenomena caused by contact with allergens are said to be measurable by means of a special device and also to be extinguishable. | Clinical studies showed that bioresonance is not suitable for diagnosis or therapy of allergies. (2) |
| Homeopathy | Use of very highly diluted (“potentized”) active ingredients. | To date, evidence of efficacy for hay fever has been shown only for the plant Galphimia glauca in a specific dilution. |
| Traditional Chinese Medicine | Use of traditional traditional mixtures of medicinal plants. | The complex mixtures often contain dozens of active ingredients, some with interactions that make scientific evaluation difficult.There is evidence of both efficacy and serious side effects. |
Effectiveness of alternative methods is controversial
“Alternative methods are not a real alternative. They cannot replace classical therapy,” says ÄDA president Professor Czech. Sufficient proof of efficacy in allergies is not yet available, according to the specialist. “Those affected should definitely also consult an allergist. For hay fever, antihistamine tablets to relieve symptoms and cortisone nasal sprays to reduce inflammation are highly recommended. In addition, the cause of the allergy can be effectively controlled in the long term with specific immunotherapy (allergy vaccination). “After that, most patients are largely symptom-free,” says Professor Czech. Sources:
Dorsch, W., Ring, J.: Complementary methods or so-called alternative methods in allergology. Allergo Journal 3: 163-170, 2002. Wüthrich B et al : Bioresonance diagnostic and therapeutic nonsense. Allergo Journal 15: 338-343, 2006.
