This is a relatively simple test developed by Arthur Coca, M.D., a pioneer in the field of environmental medicine. Dr. Coca based his test on many years of clinical observations of patients, during which he noticed that a common symptom of many food allergies is increased heart rate. Although the pulse test can help identify food allergies, you should not conclude you are allergy-free if the foods you test do not affect your pulse rate. The problem is that not all food allergens will increase heart rate. “The weakness of this particular approach lies in the frank possibility that not every allergic reaction will necessarily produce the biochemical responses that result in a faster heartbeat,” says Dr. Golan. If you have no success in identifying a food allergen using the pulse test, but still suspect that you are suffering from such an allergy, you should try one of the other tests.
