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Although the amazing technique of muscle response testing is
widely accepted as a diagnostic tool among chiropractors, it's hard to
fathom how pushing against one's arm can reveal weakness, or what makes
the body weak. There is nothing new about the
testing of muscles. Physiotherapists often use it to assess the
strength of specific muscles, particularly in patients who have a
weakness as results of a stroke or injury. Physiotherapists evaluate
muscle strength against gravity on a scale of 0-5, 0 being equivalent
to no response and 5 to normal strength.
Kinesiology, of which muscle response testing is a refinement, is the
brainchild of George Goodheart, a Chiropractor. Dr. Goodheart began
developing this holistic method in the 1960's to diagnose or read
certain blockages in the body. It has been rapidly accepted by the
chiropractic community and some of the medical community.
One of Dr. Goodheart's most important discoveries was that there are
connections between muscles, organs, and the acupuncture meridian
system. A malfunction of a body organ can result in weakness in a
related muscle. Today muscle response testing is
widely used as a biofeedback response from the body. It is one of the
most accurate methods of biofeedback. Along with testing for blockages
in the body, muscle response testing is also a method of using the
relative strength of the muscles to uncover allergies, nutritional
imbalances, and structural misalignments in the body.
In muscle response testing the muscle being tested is isolated as far
as possible from other muscles. Most often the muscles being tested are
related to those used by the arms or legs, although others can be
tested. The arm (used for this reference) is
placed in a specific position in which the person holds the position.
The tester then applies light pressure, about five pounds or less for
two seconds, pushing in a direction that will extend the muscle. If the
limb moves more than two inches it is considered weak, if it holds, it
is strong. One manner of using muscle testing is
to use one muscle to gain information about the body/mind. A muscle
used in this way is called an indicator muscle. This muscle must always
be strong before testing further. Muscle response
testing can be used to identify blockages in energy fields when one is
exposed to, or in contact with, an allergen. Muscle response testing
passes the conscious and subconscious minds. When a suspected substance
is held in the hand, a strong muscle will weaken if a sensitivity to
the substance is present. Another application may
be ascertaining the strong indicator muscle, then touching reflex
points on the body. When a specific reflex point is touched, and the
muscle goes weak, that indicates a weakness in the reflex area.
Muscle testing works because the physical body in sometimes dramatic
ways, can respond to extremely subtle changes. Muscle response testing
is supported by a pilot study done by Walter H. Schmitt Jr. and Gerry
Leisman of Applied Neuroscience Laboratories in the United States, and
the College of Judea and Samaria, in Israel. The study is titled
"Correlation of Applied Kinesiology Muscle Testing Findings With Serum
Immunoglobulin Levels For Food Allergy, August 1998." In this study
serum blood tests confirmed than out of twenty-one allergens tested
with muscle response testing, 19 were confirmed.
When practiced by people who are properly trained, muscle response
testing cannot harm anyone. The techniques used are simple and gentle,
following the dictates of the client's own body. Any modality is only
as good as the person practicing it. Often simple modalities may be
picked up and used by untrained people. If your practitioner uses
muscle response testing, ask their training – don't hesitate.
Most practitioners are willing to give an introduction to muscle
response testing. You are entering, to you, a new method of obtaining
information from the body, so do not hesitate to ask questions.
Experiencing a muscle response test can demonstrate more than any
amount of words can. | 