I mentioned a few days ago that I had been listening to Dr. D’s interview with Dr. Oz on my MP3 player. Someone wrote to ask where to find the interview, and I’m embarrassed to say that I haven’t answered that question yet. This is the most frantic part of my year. I have one deadline after another racing at me. On top of that are DD’s graduation activities. I’ve sadly neglected my mail – both my BTD mail and my personal mail. I’ll get caught up when school is out. In the meantime, I’m going to return to the Dr. Oz interview today, so I will give everyone the link.

Dr. D & Dr. Oz

Toward the end of the interview, Dr. D’Adamo said something I found to be quite profound. It may become my third favorite quotation about food. (The first two are in my blogger biography) Here is what he said in context. What I found so helpful is in bold.

“I’ve been in this naturopathic thing for 25 years. That actually was the way I was taught. You get the patient and start taking things away until they get better…I was looking at the wall one afternoon because a patient cancelled, and I got this brilliant break through that it wasn’t what I was taking away from people that was going to make them better. It was what I isolated that they should consume that was going to make them better…Where you should start is not where the book tells you avoid foods. Go straight to were it says, eat this stuff. I think it’s a good idea. And try to actually get a few of those things in your life. You will only get slightly less sick if somebody takes food away from you, but you will not get more healthy. You will get more healthy by eating stuff.”

This was precisely the direction my thinking about the BTD and the GTD was taking. But I was reluctant to go out on a limb, until I got some confirmation.

When I think of myself as a Type O and Hunter, I’m both. I’m not one or the other. If I look at the BTD that I’m familiar and fond of and the GTD that I’ve had fun experimenting with, and focus on avoid foods, my diet becomes restrictive and legalistic.

Just take greens for example. On the BTD I could eat all greens except mustard greens. On the GTD collard greens, beet greens, and spinach became black dot avoids, but mustard greens were super beneficial. If I focus on avoids I stop eating all four because I’m not sure. That limits the variety of greens I can eat, even though I know that greens are good for me. However if I look at the beneficials, I see that mustard greens are super beneficial on the GTD; spinach and collard greens are super beneficial in the Type O Health Library. Turnip greens, beet greens, and Swiss chard are beneficial. I am surrounded by greens that will build health for one aspect of my self or another.

As I peruse DD’s and my database, I am looking for beneficials – both Type O and Hunter beneficials. I am both. And if it’s beneficial or super beneficial for one, in some way it is beneficial for me.

I can be comfortable with this view of the diets, because they are a work in progress. The next book or the details behind the food lists will add another layer of knowledge and understanding. Until then, my focus is going to be building health. And as Dr. D said, “You will only get slightly less sick if somebody takes food away from you, but you will … get more healthy by eating stuff.”