I am a licensed acupuncturist. I have been treating patients with alpha-gal for over 13 years. 

What is Alpha-Gal Syndrome (AGS)? AGS is an increasingly common tick-borne allergy to the sugar molecule alpha-gal found in most mammals, which can cause a myriad of symptoms, including, but not limited to: delayed reactions (hours after eating) to red meat (beef, pork, lamb) and dairy, with symptoms from hives to breathing and digestive issues. Source: Mayo Clinic

I have been certified by Dr. Soliman in SAAT for almost 7 years. I have studied NAET, but have not taken the certification training, as the number of treatments required per patient is not realistic for the number of people who need treatment in my area. I have studied AAT, which is a non-needle technique that uses acupressure and electronic signals instead of the filters used in SAAT and NAET. It looks promising, but the system is very expensive and will take years to pay for itself—I haven't considered it worth the gamble with the other tools available to me.  

I keep getting people asking, "Who does this (electroacupuncture for alpha-gal) near me (insert your city/state here)?"

The problem is that “this” isn’t a standard treatment—at least not when it comes to electroacupuncture for allergies, including alpha-gal. There are several systems for treating allergies that can be beneficial for individuals with alpha-gal. 

I’ll go through in further detail, but the short version is:

SAAT: Developed by Dr. Nader Soliman using auricular (ear) acupuncture and bioenergetic testing to identify specific allergy triggers and decrease reactivity. It is a part of a larger system of medicine he has developed, integrating homeopathy and ear acupuncture, which he calls Auricular Medicine. I am certified in both Auricular Medicine and SAAT and find both to be very effective. This technique includes using small needles that stay in the ear for 3-4 weeks, and sometimes the associated bioenergetic remedies or “sprays”.

NAET- NAET® was discovered by Dr. Devi S. Nambudripad in 1983. NAMBUDRIPAD Allergy Elimination Techniques, also known as NAET, are a non-invasive, drug-free, natural solution to alleviate allergies of all types and intensities using a blend of selective energy balancing, testing, and treatment procedures from acupuncture/acupressure, allopathy, chiropractic, nutritional, and kinesiological disciplines of medicine. One allergen is treated at a time, and the protocol includes a strict avoidance window of 26 hrs after treatment for each allergen treated. It can be very effective. I haven’t personally used it because it takes too long for the number of people we see. That being said, I do know of many patients who have had excellent results with it. It’s easy to verify practitioner certification in this technique, and there are many certified providers to choose from.

AAT(Advanced Allergy Therapeutics): Combines electrical stimulation from a specialized computer system with acupressure. Seems similar in concept to SAAT and NAET, but with a very different approach to activating the meridians to reduce the allergy response. The high upfront cost of equipment has kept me from trying this so far because we have other effective protocols, but I do know a number of patients who have had excellent results with this, and the depth of allergens addressed by the software is impressive. Only certified providers can use this technique, and it is easy to verify certification on the company's website. No needles are used in the process. AAT also explicitly does not treat anaphylactic reactions.

There are no other "systems" or "procedures" that are published and taught that I've come across that acupuncturists or other providers get certified in to treat allergies with acupuncture, with or without electrical stimulation. 

Ginger Spencer has become an internet sensation promoting her treatments. She has a protocol using electroacupuncture that seems to be effective for some people, but she is not training other providers or sharing her protocol. And, technically, she is not a licensed acupuncturist—she is a massage therapist practicing in a state that doesn’t license acupuncture. Nor has she been willing to answer questions about her training and experience or how she developed this protocol. As more people go through her doors, the 100% success rate is dropping. I have tried to duplicate her protocol with limited success—initial results were promising, but the body response was only temporary. Admittedly, not knowing exactly what she does, I can’t say exactly how close the protocol I tried was to what she actually does. There are a few other providers I have come across using “electroneedling” for allergies, but their training varies wildly, and many are not licensed acupuncturists.

There are PT's claiming to be doing "integrative dry needling" with or without electrical stimulation and various acupuncture points in the ear and/or on the body. There are published protocols using electroacupuncture and points on the body to reduce histamines. From the photos available online, what Ginger Spencer is doing seems to be a variation of these basic needle combinations to decrease histamines and regulate the liver. Except for AAT and NAET,I have used all of these in my clinic with varying degrees of success, but none are as effective as using SAAT so far. 

So what's the point of all this? Patient education!  Acupuncture is a complex family of systems—a very large umbrella that includes various treatment philosophies, systems, and models, even for something as "simple" as treating an allergy. It is important to know the training of your provider. Most states license acupuncture, but then do very little to enforce the licensure requirement with other professions with acupuncture under their umbrella. PT’s and chiropractors doing dry needling are the most common culprits. They may or may not be certified in dry needling. They then do things that go far beyond the limited scope of dry needling without the additional training required to actually practice acupuncture, because there is no penalty for practicing acupuncture without a license for it. 

So we see things emerging like “electro dry needling” and “integrative dry needling”, no matter what you call it, what they are attempting to do is acupuncture. And I say attempting because the most comprehensive dry needling certifications out there are a maximum of 500 hours. 

Acupuncture licenses require a minimum of 1500 hours and more often 2500-3000 hours.  An acupuncture license requires years of supervised hands-on clinical training—not a weekend seminar or online lecture. It requires certification in clean needle technique and knowing red flags for dangerous practices when using needles, and especially when using estim with the needles. Acupuncture is so much more than simply knowing how to find a muscle trigger point and needling it. 

So be aware and make sure to check the credentials of your provider!

Dry needling is “kind of like acupuncture, only based in science,” is what many unwary patients are told. They omit that the science used to validate dry needling was actually based on acupuncture research. Acupuncture is based on science and thousands of years of traditional knowledge. Yes, the model uses language like “Qi” and “Meridian”, and we talk about ideas like “Spleen Qi Deficiency” or “Liver Blood Stagnation” that sound foreign and even arcane. But to explain how those same concepts can also be described using activation of mitochondria, increased perfusion of nitric oxide and hydrogen sulfide in the tissue, resulting in a cascade of functions that can regulate both under- and overactive immune functions—can be equally confusing for patients! Acupuncture can stimulate the repair of damaged organs. Acupuncture can regulate an allergic response. There are very few things we can’t address with one form of acupuncture or another. 

Dry needling training doesn’t cover any of the systemic knowledge required to actually practice acupuncture. So, again, it is important to educate yourself enough to evaluate the training of your provider.

Stay tuned for part 2 of this series, where we discuss: The severity and complications of alpha-gal symptoms, the importance of a whole-body approach, why some treatments may not work, what to look out for when seeking treatment, and more!

Yours in Health, 

Jenny-Marie Greenough, LAc