Archives for: April 2000, 20
Whole lotta Everything Going On ~ 4 All Types!! :-D
April 20th, 2000 , by admin
Heidi, Thank you for all your wonderful advice. I'm trying to reach the 5BX exercises and I keep getting this message: Your account is currently unavailable. Please contact your support representative. Sarah SE Oklahoma
Whooops! The Royal Canadian Air Force better pay their webhosting fees!
:-) Any RCAF folk around? Canadian military or civilians: if possible, please pass the message along!! Thanks for the heads-up, Sarah! :-D
I have just started the diet and I am an A blood type (unknown whether secretor or not). I belive that I am suffering from leaky gut and possibly candida. The symptoms are most distressing for me and are really getting me down. I seem to react to what I eat and have skin rashes on my face and neck. When I eat around my mouth flares up in an ugly red and flaky rash. But no one food stands out as causing it. I cant sleep at night because I am so itchy. I have the rash which doctors say is excema on my face, neck, arms, behind knees. I dont want to leave the house as i look so terrible and feel so self conscious.
Will just doing the diet help or do I need supplements. Which protocol do I follow as several seem to apply to me in the book, ie intestinal health, allergy, detox, anti-bacterial, yeast... Also I have just had a baby five weeks ago and am breast feeding and supplementing with formula as due to past surgery I dont have enough milk. I am an A and my husband is an O and the baby is on formula but will be presumably be an A or O and they should avoid dairy?? What effect will this have on the baby? I really look forward to your answer, I just want to be normal again and feel good about myself I live in New Zealand, can you get the supplements here? Thankyou Kylie
Hi, Kylie ~ welcome!
The first thing to do is get solidly on your diet. Make sure to take a tablespoon of flax oil daily, and include some fish and plenty of vegetables in your meals. Eliminate all wheat and all dairy (with the exception of yogurt) for now. Instead, get your calcium from dark leafy greens, sesame seeds, almonds, broccoli, blackstrap molasses, etc. -- see This Link for a list of high-calcium foods. You will also benefit from taking supplementary calcium -- try to find calcium lactate or calcium citrate.
Adding that bit of good oil, and fish, and cutting out red meat, uncultured dairy and wheat will start making a huge difference in your skin and your intestinal health. Doctors won't tell you this unless they happen to have an education in nutrition and complementary medicine -- 99% of them do not.
A folic acid supplement is essential for you right now, along with a solid basic supplement program (including calcium mentioned above). Your pregnancy has depleted your body of many vital nutrients, and you'll start feeling better right away when you begin building up your stores of these nutrients again. Read through the details of the supplements available in the Store here for type A -- Polyvite, Polyflora, Phytocal and Deflect-A. If you cannot order them from us or from www.stacktheme.com, search online for good supps that contain no avoids for your type.
You especially need a good probiotic. Yogurt will do some good, and a high-quality probiotic is a health essential for the resolution of your candida problems and allergies. Look for a product containing Bifidobacterium bifidus, Lactobacillus plantarum, and Lactobacillus reuteri. And do take a tablespoon of nutritional yeast daily -- it will supply your B vitamin needs and will feed the beneficial bacteria. It can be stirred into warm soup, or used in a smoothie.
If I were to choose one protocol, it would be the Yeast protocol. Let me know if you need any assistance in following it. I'd be happy to help!
The baby will do well with your breast milk and the supplementary formula -- try to find a soy-based formula with NO corn sweetener of any kind. Alimentum and Nutramigen are two commercial brands which are designed for babies with allergies to both cow dairy and soy. I mention them only because of the slight chance your baby is a type O nonsecretor - in that case, a non-soy product would be far preferable. Another option is rice or almond milk with a little olive or flax oil blended in. Infant liquid vitamins can be administered if your pediatrician thinks it's necessary.
OK, so this should get you well on the road to feeling MUCH better, and soon! Let me know if questions arise -- and welcome to the BTD! :-D
Hi Heidi, I have been reading about the liver/gall bladder flushes and can't figure out if either of these would be a good idea for me. I'm 23 years old, not overweight (120 lbs), but would like to lose fat and be more toned. I'm an O non-secretor and follow the diet pretty faithfully except that I eat potatoes (only when I eat out - less than once per week) and I sometimes eat chocolate (I love chocolate so much, but I know it's bad for me and makes me feel bad too! - trying to give this up completely).
I do 30 min cardio and at least 30 minutes weights (constantly increasing what I lift) each week. I also take PolyVite O, Phytocal O, and Fucus. I have no health problems. So, would I benefit at all from doing either a liver or gall bladder flush at this point? Or should following the diet, exercise, etc be enough? Thanks, Kate
Hi there, Kate ~~ The diet, exercise (3x per week), and plenty of water should be perfectly adequate for you. That said, there's certainly no harm in doing an occasional 'self-therapeutic' like a gallbladder flush. It does improve fat digestion.
Thanks for your note, and I'm glad you're starting the diet at a relatively young age -- it's a wonderful long-term health strategy, and will stand you in good stead. :-D
Two items I cannot find in the blood typebase food index are clover sprouts and palm oil (not palm kernal oil). I need a solid fat for shortening other than butter. We have types A and O in our household. I do not know our secretor status. Thanks for your help. Candace
Hi, Candace! For a solid shortening, just make GHEE from 'organic' butter, and put the container in the fridge. It is a wonderful food for all types, and does yeoman's work as a solid shortening.
PALM OIL is not recommended for anyone. Clover sprouts would be OK for you as long as red clover is OK -- but since it is an avoid for all types except AB, I would avoid it in your case.
Thanks for your message! :-D
Heidi, What is the best breakfast for the Type O? I don't know my secretor status yet, I'm submitting that test in tonight. Some people say eating meat & veges is the morning is best, but sometimes that's too much work for my system to handle in the morning. I sometimes feel bloated and not so comfortable. Some people say vegetables only in the morning are best. The problem I have with that is I am starving by 9 am! Others suggest eating fruit in the morning is best to get the digestive system started, however I have hypoglycemic tendancies, and sometimes that causes a huge sugar rush that makes me feel sick by 9 or 10 am. Thank you so much for helping me with my breakfast menu! You are truly a God send! - Tina
Hello, Tina! Well, from your observation that meat & veg is too much, but veg is too little to keep you going, I'd certainly try (1) two eggs with a slice of turkey bacon and tomato; (2) a half cup of chopped nuts and two tablespoons of ground flaxseed, pour very warm water over it all and let it stand for 10 minutes -- then top with a handful of berries or a drizzle of vegetable glycerine or other favorite OK sweetener. Both contain good measures of protein and fat, and you'd then get LOADS of fresh vegetables the rest of the day, right? :-D let me know if these work for you, and thanks for writing, Tina! :-)
Hey there, Heidi! I meant to get back to you before this, but I'm a student and between school and work I've been one busy girl. I got the results of my secretor test (I'm a secretor), and I did another search with slightly different terms and found a source for grass-fed lamb. I haven't found time to look for rabbit or venison yet.
I searched for "cookbook" in your column and am slowly working my way through the list of past columns that came up, when I can find the time. I guess my big problem as far as flours goes is that my favorite cookbook is "The Allergy Self-Help Cookbook" which I think someone wrote in and suggested for O's. It's not so great for B's, however (lots of buckwheat, amaranth, and teff - I was especially fond of teff).
So, I would still be grateful for any suggestions you or anyone else may have. I also have a couple of other questions. Looking ahead to the fall and winter months, if I took the seeds from an acorn squash and roasted them, would they make an OK substitute for roasted pumpkin seeds? And, I want to try the alternate nostril breathing you keep talking about; does it matter which nostril you breathe in through and which nostril you breathe in through? I can see where it might not matter, but then again... Thanks so much for your help. Keep up the good work! Jessica
Hey there, Jessica! Glad you popped up out of that busy life long enough to write!
In the case of all cookbooks, the key is to identify the BTD-keyed changes a recipe requires, then try it out. Substitutions of spelt usually work for type Bs in the flour area, and other adjustments will need to be made in virtually every recipe of 5 or more items we come across. For those with multiple allergies / IBS / candida / and similar restricting conditions, it's VERY often best to set aside grains altogether until those conditions are resolved -- rather than cling doggedly to one's bread or pastry favorites and pouring energy into finding substitute recipes for them. If truth be told, one's health will not suffer as a result of eliminating these foods -- and it's a great feeling to be free of the idea that they are necessary in order to have a happy day. ;-) So, just establish which camp you fall into: the folks who can do well with substitute flours, and those who are better off without the breads, cakes, cookies, pasta, etc.
In all cases, once illnesses are resolved, then we can test individual foods to see if they can be re-introduced safely. Hoorah! :-D
Any winter squash seed can be substituted for pumpkin seeds, and they're just as tasty and nutritious! ;-) The alternate nostril breathing technique uses both nostrils -- you can start 'in' with either, then proceed to alternate as mentioned.
Nice to hear from you, and please pop up again when you can!! :-D
Dear Heidi, Thanks for your wonderful column, the information on it is so helpful. I wrote a while back about bacteria and yeast etc. Have now got heallix and at last I seem to be getting somewhere. Thank you for advising it.
I have several questions. What do you think to liquid minerals, for example Maximol which contains fulvic acid and is ionised. It is marketed by Neways International as a supplement.
I am confused about probiotics as a couple of people have written in in relation to heavy metal detox and have advised against using them and digestive enzymes while undergoing a detox, particularly in relation mercury. Do probiotics affect the process in some way.
Are all Dr Ds supplements that contain seaweeds screened for pollutants and heavy metals?
and finally what do you know about NDF and NDF Plus for heavy metal detoxing? It seems to be the new up and coming product for this purpose. I have been on all the websites and read all the information but cant decide whether or not it would work in relation to blood grouping. In both products they have probiotics and several herbs and mushrooms, some of which seem suitable and correct for certain blood groups but not others and I am not sure about the bacteria or doesnt it matter?
Would very much appreciate your thoughts on this as I know its hard to get rid of candida, fungi etc while you are heavily laden with mercuty deposits. One last thing. What is the upper limit you can take of vitamin B6 if you are pre-disposed to cancer? This is highlighted in the encylopedia but dosent say a limit. Many thanks for your time and energy. Do you ever sleep? best wishes val from England A resus negative A1MN secretor.
Hello, Val ~~ I'm very pleased Heallix is doing good work for you -- VERY exciting!!
I'm not familiar with the liquid minerals or other products you mentioned. I can certainly say that, as always, if a formulation contains avoids for your type -- don't use it. The NDF stuff is a case in point -- especially if it is to be used over a long period of time (and metal detox is a long-term process). "First, do no harm." ;-) Carefully evaluate any newly-popular product -- they spring up everywhere wide markets exist, and the metal-detox crowd is very much a growing market.
There are indeed bacteria which are suited to one type but not another. For a quick reference, compare the Polyflora-A product with Polyflora-B.
I am not at all well-versed in severe heavy-metal toxicity conditions, which is why I've referred questions such as yours to others better equipped to answer them. First, I suggest sending an email to NAP customer service with your pollutant-screening question. Second, pop on over to the BTD-UK site, where the estimable Dr. Tom Greenfield may be able to help you with the probiotic/detox questions. He's a wonderful fellow, and extremely helpful and kind!
As to the upper B6 limit, it varies. In the protocols, we suggest variations between 50 and 200 mg per day -- ONLY for the length of the protocol. Any symptoms of sensory peripheral neuropathy resulting from overuse of B6 will resolve on lowering the dosage or discontinuing it. If you want to supplement it on a daily and ongoing basis, keep it below 40mg -- and readjust if you find any problems cropping up. These calculations are on the basis of a 150-pound person, so tweak accordingly for your weight. ;-)
Hope this helps, Val -- let me know what you learn! best wishes!! :-D
I am an AB non-secretor who needs to lose about 30 lbs. I have been on the diet (mostly) for about 2 months and haven't lost any weight. I have in the past had chronic fatigue which will come back for short periods if I stress myself or don't eat well. There isn't a lot of information on how an AB should follow the program to lose weight, do you have any words of wisdom for me? Carol
Sure, Carol! I've got a lot of words, anyway! :->
Tell me what your normal weekly menu is like -- the kinds of dishes you eat, and how often. I'll help you adjust anything I see that may be hindering your progress.
Also, tell me about your daily schedule. Do you practice yoga, meditation, or any other stress-relief exercise? And do you walk, swim, bike, or get other regular exercise?
The diet will most certainly work for you, in conjunction with the stress relief and exercise parts of the whole plan. I also suggest taking PolyFlora-AB, and Cortiguard -- they work marvelously for my type AB friends!
I'll look forward to your reply, and thanks SO much for writing!
Heidi, thanks for your your response for the flour subs. I checked out Shiloh farms. Problem is that allof there bread except the spelt contains vital whest gluten as a enhancer. I will check on the flours later. Angel
Thanks, Angel! Yep, I wasn't recommending their breads -- just giving the site locale for a contact point on the flours. Keep me posted on what you find! :-)
Howdy, I really did try to find my answers in the database, but to no avail. Fish-- which is better frozen or canned? Those are my only options for a good part of the year.
And as an AB nonsecretor I am having a hard time eating my minimum two 2 ounce servings of turkey a week. I just don't like meat. Didn't eat the stuff for years. I can do ok with the fish, but not anything else. How critical is it?
Lastly, My bowels have always given me problems. Sometimes, rarely, I'll have a normal bowel movement. Most of the time, its the diameter of a pencil. The frequency is good. A few times a day at least. But the size thing bugs me. Peppermint oil and psyllium seem to help a bit, but I can't help thinking I'm masking the issue. I seem to run the best when the bulk of my diet is raw veggies. Anything else, rye, pinto beans and god forbid dairy, wheat, or meat play havoc. Any suggestions? Thanks, Marie
Hey there, Marie! Gee, lots of ABs posting lately ~ Whoo-Hoo!! keep 'em coming!
Fish: best choice is fresh, second best canned, third best frozen. Are there any places in or around your area where there's some fishing? A stream, lake, river? You might get to know a fisherman and arrange for a couple fish weekly now and again? Just a thought ~ and explore the www.eatwild.com site for any fish vendors. Plenty of people out there are salting and/or drying/jerking and/or vacuum-packing their fish, which is better than the canning process. If there is some time during the year when fresh fish is available to you, you can buy up a good quantity and preserve it at home.
Look online for a purveyor of salt cod. This is a beneficial fish for everyone, and it keeps for quite a long time. It is rinsed/soaked thoroughly to remove the salt, and you then have something very nearly identical to the fresh fish, ready for cooking.
How are you cooking the turkey -- does it not taste good to you, or are you having trouble digesting it? Or is it just the 'idea' that is unpleasant? Whether the turkey's necessary (or any item from that group) is largely a question of balance. I'd feel better if you continued with one serving weekly -- or if you treated yourself to a roasted quail now and again for variety, and tried a little of the other neutral or beneficial meats -- rabbit, maybe? (just very rarely, just to see if you might develop a taste for any of them.) If it's possible to add a serving of fish instead, and keep in line with the other protein recommendations from nuts, beans and dairy, then I'd say you can safely dispense with the turkey. :-}
Looks like your body is telling you that the bulk of your diet should be raw veggies. Nothing wrong with that at all! Follow that very good advice. ;-) Add in only the need-cooking vegs which are beneficials (MOST especially, the dark leafy greens -- VERY important for Bs and ABs in particular), and have raw stuff for the rest. And plenty of them -- at least four servings daily. Let me know how things go with that plan -- I think it should work out very well!
always lovely to hear from you hard-to-find types! :-D thanks for writing, Marie, and do keep in touch! :-D
I am a A blood type and I have been trying to follow the eating plan for the last few months, although I have a problem defining some of the avoids for A's. As far as I am aware, wheat is fine in moderation, but I still have a few questions (sorry if these are obvious, but I soo need to know). Is plain white bread an avoid? Is wholewheat only bad if you are trying to lose weight? Can I eat ordinary durum wheat pasta? And another thing, are Lima (butter) beans only bad if you are trying to lose weight? I also found some miso in the supermarket, any ideas of what to do with it? Thanks so much… Vanessa
Hello, Vanessa! Welcome to our site!!
I gather you are not trying to lose weight. Are you using this plan to resolve a specific health issue, or just to maintain and enhance your health?
Lima beans should be avoided by all type As -- they are not conducive to your health.
For all the specific food questions, go to the a href="http://www.dadamo.com/typebase/typebase.cgi>TYPEbase3® page. Enter the search term "wheat" (without the quotation marks), then hit the "search" button -- the "enter" key does not engage the search.
Miso is wonderful stuff. One way of using it is to stir a tablespoon into warm broth. Toss in some tofu cubes and finely-chopped green onions... and you have basic miso soup! Miso shouldn't be boiled, but you can add it to sauces or soups off the heat. It makes a great addition to salad dressings -- it's very salty, so taste the result before adding more salt.
Lovely to hear from you, Vanessa ~ drop by if any other questions arise! :-)
Dear Heidi, after a long while I am back again with a question. In the meantime I feel that the diet has done very good things to me. Let me just tell you one thing: Here in Germany, we had for an extended period of time for us unusually high temperatures - around 30 to 35 C, almost no cooling-off at night, increasing ozon values etc. - and mind you: you hardly find any air condition here around - which might be good on its own grounds. However, I still "survived" quite good, and my blood pressure was in average 135 to 65. Without any medication again for high blood pressue which I stopped taking after I began with the BTD. Not bad for a 79 years old lady, isn't it?
I feel more energetic and of good mood. I also saw over the last month a slow weight loss and I still want to loose some. But now, without changing my regiment, I have been gaining weight again. I still eat maybe a bit more grains (no wheat!!!) than I should but I haven't increased the rate, rather decreased it slowly. I try to do sports but this is only possible in a limited way. I do my walks and a bit of biking on a home trainer. I don't think my weight gain is due to muscles. I supplement with Phytocal "0" - 3 to 4 capsules a day - and Fucus. Do you have an idea where this weight gain might come from? Also: Do you have an idea how I could speed up the weight loss? As always your help is greatly appreciated. With many thanks and greetings to New York, Helene
Well, look who's here! :-D That's a wonderful report, Helene!! I'm so pleased the O plan made the sweltering heat more bearable -- and that those blood pressure medications are gone for good. :-D
About the weight gain... could you tell me how much you've gained (and how much was lost before)? If I knew your height and total weight, that would help as well. In the meantime, start keeping track of your measurements with a tape measure. Take a measurement at waist, hip and around one thigh, and write it down. Then continue doing so on the same day each week. I'd like to have a good grasp of the situation before suggesting any changes. This may be just some water gain due to the weather, or due to your tissues gaining health and plumping up nicely! :-)
Let me know how much grain you're eating now, and of what kind. The clue may lie right there -- and once again, it may be water weight rather than fat, and a small adjustment in that one area may be of surprising effect! OK, I'll await your reply. You're a shining light to us all, Helene ~ thank you so much for keeping in touch!
When advising Cyndi about her type A pepper-guzzling husband, you said: "A thought: you didn't mention his type, but I'm gathering from the foods you mentioned that he's an A. Hmmm.... is he a nonsecretor? sure is tempting to find out, eh? since peppers are OK for A nonnies! ??? .... ;-)" As I recently discovered, A2s (even secretors) can also have red pepper including cayenne. It would be worth Cyndi's husband doing the full serotype.
I don't know (& neither did you when I asked) why they were OK. But on that point, is there any chance you couold find out whether the peppers become neutral for A2s because they no longer have the flocculating effect or because they have some other beneficial effect that is so important to A2s that it balances out the lectin harm?
If the latter I personally (as a person with cancer) would still probably avoid them and get the benefit from something else. Obviously for nonnies this does not apply as they aren't secreting the antibody so the lectin can't cause the reaction with the antibody in the gut (of which the in-vitro flocculation is a predictor). Sarah
Hey there, Sarah! A2 blood cells carry only the type 2A antigen, while A1 cells carry 2A, 3A and 4A -- to me this indicates a direction of inquiry on the lack of A2 interactivity with some of the A1 avoids. And nonsecretors do not secrete these antigens in the digestive tract, thus escaping certain lectins' effects.
I'd like to promise you a quick and definitive answer to your question, but I doubt I will obtain it any time soon, so I decided to go ahead and publish this q&a now. If I have the opportunity to find the answer, I'll do my best to get it and convey it to you. A note for now: the item that we're discussing is sweet red peppers, rather than the hot varieties. I agree that Cyndi's husband might find the full serotype panel useful, and I hope he'd be willing to get it done.
For now, I'd suggest leaving the red peppers out -- they are at best neutral for you, thus presenting little in the way of therapeutic benefit to you. Very best wishes, and I'll be in touch if I've anything of note for you! :-)
Read about Heallix for rosacea. What is it? I can't find it on the site when I enter the word. Thank you, Frances
Hi, Frances! The site is www.heallix.com -- let us know how it works for you! :-)
Hi Heidi, I read Bob's post where he relays that with the blood test he came out as a secretor and with the spit test he came out as a nonnie. This typing stuff I find very interesting and crucial because of its significance in following the BTD.
In the knowledge base, Metabolic and Immunological Consequences of ABH secretor status, http://www.dadamo.com/abh-lewis.html, it says, "ABH secretors are almost always Lewis (a-b+) since they convert all their Lewis (a) antigen into Lewis (b). ABH non-secretors are always (Lewis a+b-) since they lack the FUT2 dependent glycosyltransferase to accomplish this. " Given the above, is it possible that someone could come out as a secretor, Lewis (a-b+), using the blood test and a nonnie with the spit test?
I understand how a person could come out as a secretor with the spit test and then be blood typed and come out as a Lewis Double Negative. See below. "A small section (1-4% of the population dependent on race) will be Lewis Double Negative (LDN; Lewis (a-b-)) and for which Lewis typing cannot be used to determine ABH secretor status. In these individuals determination via saliva is necessary."
If you think best, I can take this up with Tom Greenfield along with the topic of secretor gradations of LDNs. Thanks for your understanding with my questions. I love this stuff! Best, Nina (A2 nonnie)
:-) Glad it's floatin' yer boat, Nina! Fun, ain't it?! :-) The answer to the first question is YES -- not only because of the fussiness and delicacy of the Lewis test, which requires great skill to perform and to interpret, but also remember that the text you quoted actually focused upon the reason why a nonsecretor is Lea+b-, not whether someone might be such a "weak secretor" that they are, for all useful (dietary) purposes, a nonsecretor. That's where the saliva test reigns supreme.
I think it's a grand idea to take it up with Tom, and I look forward to hearing what you learn! :-)
Hello Heidi, I'm starting Stone root(Collinsonia canadensis) in the form of fluid extract for my varicose vein condition(the thick ropey type, not the fine capilliary type), and wondered what dose to take.The bottle says rec. dose 1.0 to 4.0 mls 3 times daily.Should I take the min. or max dose? I am A2 type, aged 62. It would be great to achieve some improvement rather than have to think about surgery.Thanks once again for your incredible generosity of spirit to us all. Jenny
Greetings, Jenny! I'd go with the highest dosage of the stoneroot.
Take a look at This Link to a column I posted in January. There are some detailed instructions for dealing with varicose veins there. Please give them a whirl and let me know periodically how your situation is coming along. Thanks for your kindness, Jenny-- very best wishes to you!! :-)
Heidi, I'm type O and suffer from cystic Acne. I don't know yet if I'm a secretor or non-secretor. I've taken your advice from a previous posting to stick closely to the Type O diet (i've been on it for 4 months), Drink 2 liters of water with a squeeze of lemon daily, Take ARA6, PolyFlora-O, Deflect-O and have been taking Heallix for a month. So far, I can see a difference in the general health and oil of my skin, but I still break out in very large cystic pimples (3 or 4) a week before my menstrual cycle starts.
Part of my PMS symptoms that week before are the cystic pimple break-out, constipation, feel bloated, irritable (you know the drill...). I've read about the importance of EFA's in my diet. I've been taking Flax Seed Oil and eating oily fish, but have read that I should be taking Omega-6 supplement as well. I'm planning to start Black Currant oil since i don't know yet if i'm a secretor or not. The skin on my hands has gotten scaly and dry, which for me is a sign that i need to get some Omega-6 fats (GLA) into my body. Thank you so much for any guidance you can provide. - Tina
Hey there, Tina! OK, now we're narrowing down the problem. You need some balancing in the hormone area. Add the Female Balancing protocol for type O, and add two capsules twice daily of wild yam, and a tablespoon of maca root powder, daily. In one month, I think you'll experience a big difference. And see about getting some grass-fed beef for the conjugated linoleic acid (CLA). Very wonderful stuff!! I'll be eager to hear your report in a few weeks!!! thanks for keeping in touch, Tina! :-D
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