There was a study conducted in the 1990’s by the FDA where over 200 practitioners that specialized in muscle testing or applied kinesiology were brought in to determine the effectiveness of applied kinesiology for diagnostic principles. In this study the practitioners received no medical background regarding the individual they were to test their methods upon and the practitioner Dr. Klinghardt was the only one that was able to successfully diagnose that the patient had cancer in the liver that had metastasized to the spine.
Autonomic Response Testing is a blend of biophoton physics and applied kinesiology or muscle testing developed by renowned German physician pioneer Dietrich Klinghardt MD using muscle biofeedback to make a comprehensive diagnosis of what is causing stress to the patient’s autonomic nervous system. The autonomic nervous system (ANS) is a component of the peripheral nervous system that controls involuntary bodily functions like heart rate, digestion, thermal regulation, blood pressure, and breathing, essentially regulating internal organs or glands without conscious effort (Lebouef, Yaker, & Whited, 2023).
Autonomic Response Testing is far more accurate than applied kinesiology and eliminates the inconsistencies of muscle testing. Dr. Klinghardt teamed up with IGeneX Labs (the best laboratory testing company in the United States that specializes in testing for Lyme and co-infections) to test the validity of this technique to diagnose Borrelia and co-infections in his patients with Lyme. Since IGeneX also tests ticks as well to determine what infections are present, Klinghardt also tested out how effective his technique was to determine what infections were present in the Deer ticks collected. They found the Autonomic Response Testing was consistently congruent with the IGeneX tests for Borrelia and specific co-infections in the patients he was testing. The only inconsistencies that occurred were in testing the actual Deer ticks themselves for infections they were carrying where he was 90% accurate, and in my opinion that is phenomenal.
When a toxin, latent pathogen, or allergy is causing stress within a patient, their system goes into a sympathetic “fight or flight” stress response. Dr. Klinghardt developed the Autonomic Response Technique to test the autonomic nervous system and differentiate which specific pathogen/s are causing stress to the patient, what specific toxins and heavy metals became too toxic within their system, and to determine which specific allergens are causing the most stress in the patient, keeping their nervous system in a sympathetic “fight or flight” state.
Autonomic Response Testing is a form of manual muscle testing in which an interpretation is made regarding the response (weakness, no response, or strengthening) of a muscle to manual testing (Chung & LaRiccia, 2016). The interpretation informs the assessment conducted by observing changes in muscle tone and strength to quickly, accurately, and comprehensively assess the root causal factors of a patient’s health problems. This testing technique saves thousands of dollars on laboratory testing that may or may not give you the any information about your health and in many cases standard laboratory testing is subject to variability and is far from absolute.
I have found Autonomic Response Testing to be extremely helpful to ensure the testing I’m conducting with my patients is accurate. I find this technique successful in determining what treatment protocol will be most effective with my patients. It teaches me how to tailor my treatment approach and be precise, even in the most difficult cases. It is complimentary to the various techniques I learned from Integrative MD’s, naturopaths, chiropractors, physical therapists, and acupuncturists. Autonomic Response Technique significantly enhanced the effectiveness of acupuncture and herbal medicine in my practice! In the case of Lyme, I have found Autonomic Response Testing to enhance and compliment techniques and diagnostics I learned from various practitioners in this field like the Craniobiotic Technique (CBT) I learned from Lymestop and the techniques I learned in my certification process of being a Lyme Specialist.
References
Chung, M. & LaRiccia, P. (2016). Succesful Integrative Medicine Assessment and Treatment of Chronic Pain Associated With Breast Surgery. Holistic Nursing Practice. https://klinghardtinstitute.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Successful_Integrative_Medicine_Assessment_and.99984.pdf
LeBouef, Yaker, & Whited (2023, May 1). Physiology Autonomic Nervous System. National Library of Medicine. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK538516/#:~:text=Introduction,Go%20to:
