Calibration is the procedure used to differentiate between a locked and weak muscle. Once a lock is obtained then the patient needs to be calibrated. To calibrate means to “adjust precisely for a particular function” according to Webster. So when someone is calibrated for Nutrition Response Testing all we are simply demonstrating is the ability to lock and unlock a muscle. Calibration then is a process whereby the patient and doctor are able to develop a cooperative understanding and sense of a lock and weak muscle.

Let us think of it this way. A voltmeter is a device for measuring electrical phenomena like voltage, current, and amperes. Prior to using the voltmeter it must be calibrated to the electrical system that it is testing. If the voltmeter is not calibrated to the system it is measuring, then the results will be inaccurate and the voltmeter could even be ruined. For instance, if you are testing a circuit that is operating on milliamps and millivolts you certainly would not use a voltage scale from 1 to 10 volts. The voltmeter would give no reading because the units are too great for the circuit tested. On the other hand, if you applied a voltmeter set to read millivolts on a circuit that is carrying 110 volts you will burn up the voltmeter. So to calibrate the voltmeter you apply it to the circuit at a higher level and attempt adjust it by bringing down the volt dial from a higher range to a lower range until it becomes sensitive enough to be within the range of the circuit being tested. Now you are calibrated so that the testing instrument is set at the same sensitivity as circuit which is tested and the voltmeter can now accurately measure the electrical aspects of the circuit.

That is what we do when calibrating a patient for Nutrition Response Testing. Once the lock is obtained then the practitioner calibrates the patient. This is done using the middle or the index finger of the practitioner. The palmar surface of the finger, (where the finger print is located) has the opposite charge that the dorsum of the finger has (the side containing the finger nail). One side, when placed on the concavity of the nose right below the forehead, will cause the muscle to lock, and the other side will cause the muscle to go weak. One charge facilitates the lock and the other charge inhibits the lock. This can go either way. In other words, the print side may cause a lock on one patient and the next patient it will cause it to go weak. Even on the same patient- one time it may cause muscle lock, and another time, muscle weakness. The important thing for the practitioner to remember is that at any point in time one side of the finger will facilitate muscle contraction and the other side will inhibit muscle contraction(lock and weak). As the practitioner performs these two tests alternatively on the patient he is looking for a lock on one side of the finger and a weak reflex on the other side of the finger. He may have to lighten his challenge or force, he may have to instruct the patient to increase or decrease his resistance, or a combination of both until he achieves the desired result. Once he is able to reproduce a lock using one side of the finger and a weak muscle with the other side of the finger the patient is calibrated. The practitioner cannot proceed to the next procedure until both he/she and the patient are comfortable with the results.

This procedure is very important throughout the testing procedure. If the tester begins to get results which appear to be out of the ordinary (many reflexes which all test weak in succession), then it is time to recalibrate to ensure the accuracy of the testing. This may have to re redone several times during the evaluation or analysis. However many times it takes when doing the procedure is absolutely necessary because faulty readings mean faulty results. In order to maintain certainty calibration is essential. Think of calibration as testing the patient before you test him to make sure that you can test him.