A new approach to allergy-related disease - Book Corners

Townsend Letter for Doctors and Patients, Nov, 2002 by Robert S. Carson

CFIDS, Fibromyalgia, and the Virus-Allergy Link

Marian Lengio

by Bruce Duncan, MD

Haworth Medical Press, 10 Alice St., Binghamton, New York 13904 USA; 607-733-5857

Hardbound, ISBN 0-7890-1072-0; $79.95, Softbound ISBN 0-7890-1072-9; $39.95

In July of 2001 the Townsend Letter printed a brief letter of ours which presented the relationship of food, mold, and chemical sensitivities to schizophrenia. We mentioned the importance of the pioneering work of Joseph Miller, MD with his provocative testing and intradermal neutralization of the allergies.

Much to our surprise, one of us (R.S.C.) received a telephone call all the way from New Zealand from Bruce Duncan, MD an 80-year young physician who has just written an extremely important book, CFIDS. Fibromyalgia. and the Virus-Allergy Link.

It is our opinion that Dr. Duncan has put us all to shame and that the book is well worth the investment. Not only has he very successfully

used the Miller technique in his extensive work but also has incorporated the concept of chronic viral initiation and has devised methods of pinpointing the virus and neutralizing it. In addition, Dr. Duncan spells out in considerable detail, techniques of going after the Candida Related Complex.

Dr. Duncan repeatedly refers to what he terms Old World Grass Grain (OWGG) sensitivity, a broader concept than our gluten, wheatfree diet. He also excludes rice and millet, which makes sense botanically. His book includes recipes and discussion of supplementation of this diet in great detail. There are repeated testimonies of grateful patients who have responded favorably to this more inclusive diet.

Most of us should now be aware of the relationship of gluten (wheat) sensitivity to such conditions as Rheumatoid Arthritis, Lupus, Fibromyalgia, Crohn's Disease and possibly, Multiple Sclerosis. Certainly a broader-based OWGG elimination is worth considering in chronic schizophrenia. Dr. Duncan himself, expressed surprise at the frequency of OWGG sensitivity in Type II Diabetes.

There are a much larger number of conditions that respond favorably to Dr. Duncan's approach than those just mentioned. For example -- a whole variety of ENT and respiratory disorders, Genital Herpes, Attention Deficit Disorder, Depression, and Memory Loss, just to mention a few.

A most appealing aspect of Dr. Duncan's approach is its comprehensiveness as well as its diagnostic and therapeutic precision. The book is addressed to both physicians and patients. We are certain that anyone who is able to incorporate the concepts into their practice will be well rewarded.

An especially fertile area would be in the field of psychiatry. Some years ago, one of us attended an International Conference on Schizophrenia in Zurich. In this conference, a prominent Dutch psychiatrist presented a clear distinction between true Schizophrenia and what he termed "Schizophrenoform" type of illness. It has been our experience that this distinction is an important one and that the acute "Schizophrenoform" type of illness frequently does not respond favorably to neuroleptic drugs but is often helped by close attention to "Cerebral Allergy."