"I hope that western doctors will receive it in a spirit of a) open mindedness and b) humility. For more than 100 years, allergic medicine has practiced between the 40 yard lines, as I like to say", Henry Ehrlich, AAC.
All month of May, you can chat with Henry in our Facebook chat group about his newest book, Food Allergies: Traditional Chinese Medicine, Western Science and the Search for a Cure. Below, is an interview on this new book - Enjoy and see you on Facebook!
Interview by , with Henry Ehrlich of Asthma Allergies Children
(LH): What is the name of your new book?
Henry Ehrlich (HE): Thanks for this opportunity. I go way back with AFAA because it was the first Facebook group that opened its doors to me. The new book is called Food Allergies: Traditional Chinese Medicine, Western Science, and the Search for a Cure.
LH: What prompted you to write this new book?
HE: As you know, I edit a website called asthmaallergieschildren.com. When it was very new, my cousin and co-founder and co-author of our other book, Dr. Paul Ehrlich told me about Dr. Xiu-Min Li at Mount Sinai Medical School. He had heard her speak and said that her work was not only a distinct departure from everything else going on and maybe she would write something for our website. I went to meet her, heard her story, saw evidence of the good results she was getting in her private clinic with eczema, and I thought, this is a woman to be reckoned with. About a year later we first started talking about my writing a book.
LH: What would you say is the main draw to this book for parents of children with food allergy, or adults with food allergy?
HE: Borrowing from many of the early customer reviewers on Amazon and people who have heard me speak, I'd have to say it gives people hope that the epidemic can be dealt with and the science is there to prove it.
LH: How do you hope western medical doctors will receive this book, and potentially implement to help the food allergy community?
HE: I hope that western doctors will receive it in a spirit of a) open mindedness and b) humility. For more than 100 years, allergic medicine has practiced between the 40 yard lines, as I like to say. Allergy shots for seasonal and environmental allergies and inhaled corticosteroids for asthma--those have been the only real breakthroughs for large numbers of patients. Dr. Li's vision of integrative medicine to treat allergies is not going to happen quickly, but given the right level of interest, it should burgeon. If enough patients and parents want to go in this direction, then they should try to make sure the resources are there to make it happen.
LH: Is there anything else you’d like to add about your book?
HE: I had a ball writing it. I think that shows through, even though much of it is very detailed accounts of laboratory science and clinical trials based on peer-reviewed literature. I call it "a love letter to science."