Hi Heidi!! Hope you're doing well over there! My protein deficiency warning bells have been firing over some recent letters, I can't not write in about it! If I write in too much, just tell me & I'll hold back.

Today's reader who wrote about his wife with the hair loss, a lot of nutrient deficiencies can cause that, but people with extremely low protein intake like she seemed to have, they often lose hair. Protein deficiency can also masquerade as thyroid trouble, because temp will be low (metabolism/heat production slows) and weight won't come off, so it's one to check even though thyroid trouble is common.

And Paige, she reminds me of me, three years ago...if you aren't eating hardly any food, you won't have energy til you increase protein. (It'll take more than protein because likely need other nutrients too, but protein is about bottom line survival.) Depression, muscle stiffness, weight that won't come off, fatigue -- all of that, protein deficiency would be enough to cause, though other things could cause it too. If you're very protein deficient there's usually little hunger, just feels like being so very sleepy/dozey that crawling off the couch would be an enormous task. You end up not eating because you haven't the spunk.

I didn't have the energy to cook either, and the only way I could do it was to try to follow the beneficials as much as I could bring myself to, but bottom line, I ate 3 protein shakes a day. I used soy protein, not a beneficial for an O (check secretor status, nons can't), but it was easy to make or buy & digest. If a person is really low on nutrients then meat is hard to digest even for an O because you won't have enough stomach acid. (That makes for a picky eater, the body isn't inclined to eat even good food if it knows it can't digest it.)

Once I increased my protein I felt better, then I could gradually think about cooking & eating better. So wanted to encourage Paige, if I can crawl out of the "too little energy to eat" slump, she can too. But you have to eat even though you're not hungry. (o:Maia

P.S.: Oops on the protein shakes, should have made it clear I ate them in *addition* to the real food I was trying to eat! As a 5'6 1/2" O, I show protein deficiency signs if I don't get 100 grams a day, though people are all different & A's might need less. Below 50 grams, my understanding is any adult is in starvation.

Maia, it is ALWAYS a joy to hear from you, and I'm sure the people who have asked for help are very grateful for your experienced views on these subjects. thanks, my dear, and keep shining (AND writing)! :-)

I am writing in response to GPF's question for his wife about IBS and celiac disease. Yes, you can have either or both without anemia. You can also start with a blood test that tests for the antigens associated with gluten intolerance and celiac without doing a biopsy. Usually, if the blood work comes back positive for an intolerance, the doctors like to do a biopsy to solidify the diagnosis. However, with the symptoms that his wife has, if her blood work came back positive, that would be enough for me.

If she does find out that she has celiac disease, simply not eating the assocaited grains (wheat, rye, barley, maybe oats) may not be enough for her to get well. She may have to be more careful about contamination. For instance, using the same butter to butter her gluten-free toast as someone else used to butter their wheat toast. There is a lot more information on this if you do a search on celiac on the internet. Celiac disease and its symptoms are easily cured by the avoidance of gluten, and there are wonderful support groups to help one understand how to go about this in the beginning. I wish the best for GPF and his wife in their search for good health. Thank you , Heidi, for all the support you give to others. April

April ~~ thank you so much for your expert advice & encouragement! It is most welcome!! :-D

Bonjour Heidi! I'll make this a fairly short and simple question for a change.... I'm entering into the summer season in France when it is very difficult to find organic veggies that fall into the beneficial category for O+ Nonsecretors. I buy my produce at the local market or health food stores, so some is organic, but most is pesticide -free, but not really "organic."

Never see kale or certain other green leafy vegetables any time of year- only one I can find throughout the year is green chard. Spinach during the winter. I try to eat and LOVE brocolli, but it is now only available at the market in the stalls of "imported" produce - maybe from northern France, maybe Spain. Definitely suspect as to pesticides.

Escarole is now finished for the season, so salads are from various neutral lettuce varieties, basil, onions and tomatos. For the moment I can get carrots, so that makes green chard and carrots the only non-salad beneficial veggies I can find, though red peppers will soon be available.

Question is, is it better to eat zucchini and green beans, or other pesticide free veggies than it is to eat suspect brocolli??? Since brocolli is the only cruciferous veggie allowed for O nonnies, I hate to give it up due to the colon (and other) benefits. Hmmmn, so much for being short! Sorry.......

Ooops, forgot another question..... I often see various critters crawling around my produce here. Good sign that is is pesticide-free, but I'm never sure I have washed off all the bugs - I see snails, aphids, ants, tiny worm-like things, etc. Any thoughts on whattado on this issue??? As always, I thank yaou for all your great help. Sending you love, Abby PS. I'll soon let you know what my doctor had to say on the mercury problem, if you think it would be of interest to other readers. Let me know, okay?

Allo, Abby! So nice to hear from you, darlin'!

That "pesticide-free" thing is neat, ain't it? Funny you should write in with these concerns, because today I went shopping at Healthy Pleasures (University Ave. at 11th Street, NYC) instead of LifeThyme. Why? SIX WEEKS OF NO DECENT ONIONS AT ALL!! NO YELLOWS, NO WHITES, NO REDS, NO NOTHING. Just a few sad, swollen, sprouty, soft yellow specimens, sitting there week after week. ARE WE BACK IN THE 60's??? Bryan (a-non) is also fond of zeke-buns with sesame. HOW LONG SINCE THEY'VE HAD THEM? I'VE LOST COUNT. Sorry for shouting, but Jesus Marian Davies, if my lauded HFS to which I've been loyal for ten years can't manage these basic items -- ONIONS, for Heaven's sake?? -- well, HI! I'm off to better hunting grounds.

So there I was, a newcomer in this place (good joint, by the way), and right after my system received the immense shock of seeing red peppers offered at $9.00 (nope, you haven't gone blind, that's USD 9,00) per pound (you know the ones with the very long green HEAVY stems?), I turned to see some "pesticide-free" tomatoes, picked one up, and asked it, "WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE? ARE YOU SECRETLY GMO? SPEAK UP!!!" to the great entertainment of my fellow shoppers who've certainly been wondering about the same thing. Found my zeke buns, found beautiful onions resplendent in four colors, and exchanged a wink with a woman who'd just discovered that each red pepper weighed about one half POUND (that's USD 4,50 to you, oh Mary)!!

Any chance you can get artichokes? They should be abundant in Europe now, all sizes, shapes, colors! No dandelion? Chicory? Your organic grocer should have brought in fiddleheads and spring garlic by this time, as well. What I'd do is talk to the produce manager about broccoli. Ask where the regular variety comes from -- is it clean but uncertified? and whether there is an organic producer anywhere. Express your concerns. In your situation, I'd be hesitant to chow down on it if it's not reasonably free of toxins. But chard, onions and as much neutral veg as you can pack in will be fine for you!

The silver lining in this cloud is that your local markets are forcing you to eat seasonally. This is a very good thing, which frustratingly masquerades as limited choices in the beneficial category. What you're getting in return is food your body senses is "correct" by its natural correlation with temperature and environment. Eating the widest variety of everything and anything available in the neutral category is the best revenge.

Bugs? HOORAY! Free protein! (well... protein at vegetable per-pound prices!) I make the ultimate sacrifice of transferring my lady bugs to the outdoors rather than ingesting them, but clean buggies & worms and such are nothing to worry about. In fact, our ancestors valued them properly, and crunched them up YUM. You might even get a tad of that elusive slug lectin we're all trying to get hold of. ;-D I don't suppose that suspect brocc has healthy critters among its fronds? that would be a very good sign, too.

That'll do from me ~ YES, we most definitely want to hear your medical report on the metal toxicity issue, dear! Write early and often! :-D

I,m a type A and I love asien food. Now according to the book I cant eat red chillies, what about green chilles? I would also like to cook with fish sauce and oyster sauce, which is very common in the thai citchen, are this products ok for an A type or not? and how about egg noodles? I would appreciate you answering my Question! Many thanks and best regards!! Hetty

Greetings, Hetty! Fish sauce made from anchovy only is fine. Check the ingredients of the oyster sauce -- if it contains any avoids for type A, it would be an avoid for you. All chilis of every color are avoid for type A. For the egg noodles, again, just check its ingredients against the book.

I hope the next time you write, I can offer cheerier news! Welcome, dear, and please do keep in touch!! :-D

Heard Dr. D when he was in April. He is very impressive in his dedication to good health while maintaining his humbleness. I for one greatly respect his giving credit to the tons of scientific research that has been done which supports the BTD in addition to the good anecdotal experience. My heartfelt thanks to Dr. D. and you for all the good information and help.

One question I have about babies relates to jaundice which I did not find answered in the baby book. It seems that quite a few new born babies have jaundice. Is there any relation to the blood types of the parents or is there some other cause? Is this jaundice something which will create a problem(s) for the child later in life? Intellectually curious, Conrad

Hello, Conrad! I'm glad you enjoyed Peter's presentation ~ remarkable fellow, isn't he? ;-) may his tribe increase!!!

I do enjoy this kind of question. I get to scramble around looking for research and try in my unschooled way to offer at least a qualified response on the problem. :-) From what I've found, it appears that jaundice in babies is due to (1) the shorter life of red blood cells in newborns, and the cell death involved in bruising in the birth process, resulting in (2) greater demands on their tiny livers and intestines to process & excrete the dead blood cells, causing (3) a rise in the liver pigment bilirubin in the blood which can't be excreted quickly enough, presenting as (4) yellow color in the skin and eyes. You're right, it is quite common, and babies usually need no treatment (although many hospitals routinely use phototherapy to help them along, and in the rare case where bilirubin levels are dangerously high, a blood exchange is done).

Experienced midwives of my acquaintance tell me that ABO incompatibility (meaning that Mom is type O and baby is type A or can indeed cause jaundice, through the transfer of blood during and immediately after birth which allows Mom's antibodies to A and B to kill lots of those "alien" baby blood cells. If there is reason to suspect possible incompatibility, the attending midwife will clamp the cord immediately in order to minimize this damage -- whereas the normal procedure is to preserve the open link between mom & child as long as possible, leaving the cord intact to pulse until it is empty. This is a case of extreme caution, since serious concerns over jaundice usually arise only in premature babies.

If any of our distinguished readers can offer additional insight, do please write in & continue our education! Many thanks in advance! and it was lovely to receive your message, Conrad!! :-D