Dr. Haley Talks Women's Health

You have started using ALCAT [food sensitivity] testing. What is it, and what drew you to learning more about ALCAT?
The ALCAT test (antigen leukocyte antibody test) measures negative reactions to the food we put in our bodies. I got interested because I was seeing patients having health issues, and no amount of regular testing was showing any kind of helpful results. Becoming a subspecialist in Female Pelvic Medicine has factually pushed me to a new level of knowledge for my patients –surgically, and in other areas as well.

Is there a correlation between food sensitivity picked up from an ALCAT test and gynecological issues?
A lot of “hormonal” issues can actually be related to food sensitivities.

I hear patients discuss things like hormone imbalances, weight gain and depression all the time. Sometimes there’s a gynecological cause. But sometimes, there’s an interplay of other things. And what I’ve come to realize is it’s often the combination of underlying issues that’s the source of the problem.

As an OB-GYN, I see women every day who tell me the problems they’re experiencing, and yet sometimes there hasn’t been this simple, easy resolution. This is especially the case with patients who use their OB-GYN as their primary care provider and don’t see an additional doctor. A woman will come in for her yearly exam and mention she’s just not able to lose weight, or that nothing she’s tried is working. If we check standard things and find nothing is working, what’s missing? Then I know it’s time to move onto something else.

An ALCAT test is the only reliable test that can discover these types of things in the blood. They are used worldwide, and a lot of athletes use ALCAT tests to try to give themselves an edge in performance.

What exactly is a food sensitivity?
Here’s a little backstory:
Our bodies react when they come in contact with toxins in our food, such as chemicals, dyes, or pesticides. When you talk about our immune system, there are two parts: one is when our bodies come into contact with a particular food; there can be an immediate allergic reaction that many people are familiar with. (For example, peanuts, shellfish, etc.) But the second part, called the Innate Immune System, is when we come into contact with foods that create a delayed response. This response can occur within a day, several days, or even a week. We don’t realize the connection, and sometimes we don’t even notice.

So, if we’re putting things into our body, and the body recognizes it as an “intruder,” our bodies send out an “attack” response to this particular type of food or substance. Food responses are responsible for numerous related health issues.

Learn more about ALCAT and Dr. Haley's philosophy regarding pelvic reconstructive surgery.