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Re: Vegie Gly I have a chiro/nutritionist who does her own tests on things, using various sophisticated and, to me, somewhat mysterious methods that I don't claim to understand fully, but they seem to work. I asked her about vegie gly, and she said it would not be the substance per se that would necessarily be at issue, but the way it was prepared and bottled, etc. I brought in a bottle of Starwest brand, which I can get at Whole Foods. That checked out OK by her tests. I had been using another brand, and I don't recall the name of it, that had seemed a bit off to me--I felt odd after consuming it.

As an O nonnie who has to greatly restrict sweets, vegie gly is a big part of my life, so I hope it really is OK, and won't be found years later to have actually been...you know how that goes! I do notice that when I eat a LOT of vegie gly, I get some sensation later in the kidneys, as if they were having to work hard--and when I did research on it, which I sent in to this column, it was advised that one not consume more than the listed amount per day, with kidney damage as a possible consequence of overconsumption. I would welcome any more research and input on this, as I rely on the stuff! Cyndi

Hi, Cyndi ~~ It's good to hear that the veg gly you use now checks out OK. You're being careful not to consume too much of it, and you're listening for your body's responses, which is a prudent and fruitful approach.

I'm now looking for additional info or updates on the issues we raised, but right now we can't substantiate the alert Dr. Clark posted. Anything new will be posted here, instanter! thanks, dear!! :-)

Barb on Nov. 26 immediately suspected milk of causing digestive problems for her B husband. He said eliminating it did not help. Here's her opportunity to convince him of the wisdom of the diet! Of course it wasn't the milk. B's do fine with milk. If he wasn't having corn (I always had bloating when I ate popcorn), I don't know what to suspect instead, but if he was given the list of avoids for B, he might see something on there that rang a bell.

Appologize for suggesting it was milk and offer the book ("Look, B's can have dairy!"). If stress is involved, I found pantethine (Dr. D recommended in his column) works great; it got rid of symptoms I didn't know I had. And when GNC discontinued pantethine in tablet form, Cortiguard worked also. Anyway, I'd let him start where he wants to and the milk discovery might be a foot in the door for him. -- Sandra (another

Good points! Barb, whaddya think? Hope for hubby? let us know! :-D

Hi, Heidi! I don't have any questions today (gasp!), but I do have a message for Arlene AB+: please, please, PLEASE have your daughter checked for celiac disease!!! Celiac disease is also known as celiac sprue, gluten intolerance, or gluten-sensitive enteropathy. It is a genetically transmitted auto-immune reaction to gluten (a protein found in WHEAT, rye, and barley, and possibly also in oats) that "traditionally" manifests as diarrhea and malnutrition--but there are over 200 symptoms and conditions associated with it, including migraine, "irritable bowel syndrome," acne, and dermatitis.

The "classic" signs are actually rather rare, while experts estimate that anywhere from 1 in 250 to 1 in 133 people in the US has celiac disease. A recent study estimated that the prevalence in Britain is even greater: about 1 in 80! That's not rare at all! Even if there is no family history of celiac disease or any suspicious symptoms, it is still worth it to have your daughter checked.

A person with the gene(s) for celiac disease won't get the disease itself until the gene is "activated" by some circumstance that isn't fully understood. It may be difficult to convince a conventional doctor to test for celiac disease (try a naturopath instead), but persist until you succeed. Doctors use a blood test to screen for celiac disease, but it MISSES many patients who actually do have the disease, so you'll need to be adamant about further testing if her blood work comes back "normal." In the realm of "alternative" medicine, a test has been developed that looks for celiac-specific antibodies in a stool specimen.

If you want to research celiac disease yourself, start with http://www.celiac.com. Along with tons of information, there is a message board there full of people who would be happy to help you and your daughter through the testing process and the adjustment to a totally gluten-free diet, should that be necessary.

I just discovered that I and my two children (and possibly my husband) have celiac disease, and this website has helped me tremendously. Celiac disease may be difficult to cope with, but if it turns out to affect your daughter, she can expect improvement in all of the conditions you mentioned just by ELIMINATING (strictly!) gluten from her diet. I hope this information is helpful!

Oh, on a related note, I have a comment about the caffeine-migraine connection. I am recovering from a gluten accident that brought with it all the lovely digestive symptoms, a face full of acne, and a MIGRAINE! Arrgh! Months ago I eliminated ALL sources of caffeine from my diet, even decaffeinated beverages, and this is the first full-blown headache of any kind I have had since that time. I haven't taken any medication or consumed any different food or drink Lately (although I THOUGHT about chocolate, but I don't think that counts!). So I agree that caffeine withdrawal is a major cause of migraine, but I fear it is not the only one, at least for gluten-sensitive individuals.

I have read that gluten (and casein) can be physically/psychologically addictive if a person is sensitive to them, so I wonder if the same withdrawal mechanism is at work. Just a thought! Thanks for passing on my message, and I hope your hiatus was productive! --Sarah in PA

Great tips and advice, Sarah -- I'm very interested to hear that caffeine was not the trigger for a true migraine, it gives an alternate view of what's going on with those dreadful things. thanks again!!

Dear Heidi, How are you? WELCOME BACK FROM YOUR HIATUS.

I went to the Red Cross today (01 Dec 03) to donate blood/"A"Pos. The Red Cross,(Central Plains Region/Wichita KS), gave me the latest information on blood types in America. HERE IT IS WORD FOR WORD:

"O" Positive is the most common blood type in America. However, blood type percentages differ from area to area and between different ethnic groups.

In our population the breakdown of blood types is: 1)"O"Pos.-38%, 2)"A"Pos.-32%, 3)"B"Pos.-9%, 4)"AB"Pos.-2%, 5)"O"Neg.-8%, 6)"A"Neg.-7%, 7)"B"Neg.-3%, 8)"AB"Neg.-1%.

"Universal Donor" is the term given to the blood group that can be used by ALL other groups. There are two "Universal Donor" blood groups. For red cells the "Universal Donor" blood group is "O" NEGATIVE. For Platelets and Plasma the "Universal Donor" group is "AB".

Heidi, again, WELCOME BACK FROM YOUR HIATUS! God bless you and your family! God bless the U.S.A.! -Marshal in Wichita KS-

Thank you so much, Marshal! Isn't it odd how Rhesus negative is SO rare? Bless you, and thanks again for your many kind wishes! :-)

Hey, Heidi, it's good to have you back!

I'm writing in with a suggestion for Sarah, who wanted advice on A-friendly gluten-free baking. She might want to check out "The Allergy Self-Help Cookbook" by Marjorie Hurt Jones. Not all of the recipes are gluten-free, but many of them are, and there's a very useful section in the front that gives information about many alternative flours and how to use them.

A lot of the recipes call for a mixture of buckwheat, amaranth, and quinoa flours, which I believe are all acceptable for A's (lucky ducks, they don't have the added burden of trying to avoid cornstarch either). Anyway, I hope this helps. Jessica

Jessica! thanks for that reminder!! I'm sure it will help! Yep, those As are certainly fortunate in the grains category, even the nonsecretors (for whom corn's off the list as well as wheat). This is a good project for me -- to put together a list of useful cookbooks online and off. Let's see when THAT task gets done, LOL!! I really appreciate your offerings, and your warm wishes! thanks!! :-D

Hi Heidi! Hope you had a good break and got caught up! I'm writing in on the question about zinc & nausea, because I have heard of that. Agreeing with everything you said, this is just some additional info that may help.

My old chiro used to say that zinc levels in the body are one of the most variable of all the minerals. On a normal day you may need only 15mg, and I easily get more than that with the veggies on the ER diet. On ER, I generally don't supplement zinc unless I know I'm deficient or have ongoing stress. On a stressful day the body can use up a lot more zinc -- which is why ongoing stress can result in deficiency. (Especially if you tend to eat less of the good stuff when stressed!)

So like you said Heidi, the reader may have caught up on zinc, but maybe had some kind of stress afterwards & got low again. And zinc supplements can cause nausea if you get more than you can handle, a level which varies for everyone. (The tests that warn of nausea at high levels of zinc supplementation are likely based on very deficient people eating standard diets.)

A friend of mine gets nausea if he supplements half as much zinc as I supplement easily -- but my body is under much more physical stress than his, because of things like allergies & blood sugar swings, aside from day-to-day stress. So if very low levels of zinc bring on nausea, then that may say something positive about your overall health & stress level!

And the reader with nausea (sorry too lazy to search for name) caught up on zinc really quickly at a low level of supplementation. It took me months before my feet lost their smell at higher doses (under medical supervision), so quite likely she was not very deficient.

So anyway, if it were me with zinc nausea, I'd test for zinc deficiency. There is a product called Zinc Status by Ethical Nutrients, a diluted liquid zinc you put under your tongue -- if it tastes horrible you don't need zinc. If there is a delay and then it tastes horrible, you're maybe a bit low. If it doesn't bother you at all then you're deficient. Zinc is supposed to taste horrible -- your body knows when you don't need more. (Lozenges are flavored.)

You can do the same test with a crushed zinc pill, the cheap kind from the drugstore that's worthless as a supplement -- though a there may be more of a delay before it tastes bad, because liquid would absorb more quickly. If I tested as zinc deficient & still had nausea, I'd cut a zinc lozenge in half or quarters, take a little bit at a time, and I wouldn't take it at the same time as other minerals like magnesium.

So welcome back Heidi! Missed your column! (o:Maia

Oh, thank you, Maia! I'm a little worn out, to tell the truth. But I'm perking up now that I'm home!

Hey, I love those do-it-yourself deficiency tests, and I'm grateful to learn a new one! keep 'em coming, and don't forget how grateful we all are to you! stay cozy, dear! :-D

Hi Heidi - welcome back!! we missed you!! I have been able to locate some Organic Kamut flour and tried a bread-making machine recipe yesterday - it wasn't bad but not as good as I would like it -- would you have a Kamut Bread recipe? I searched the Recipe Base and didn't find one. I am trying Kamut as Spelt gives me indigestion. Thanks bunches if you do have one! P.S. still have the funny ear - tried everything, including ear candling and acupuncture - it comes and goes. Dr. has referred me to a specialist now - he says the eardrum is slightly "retracted" - these thinks are sent to try us I guess. Anyway, once again - welcome back!! love sue (O-neg)

Thank you for the welcome, sweet sue! Please keep me posted on that eardrum thang, OK? Could it be the result of a noisy environment/tensing against the noise, or against some other stimulus? I'd like to hear more, as you learn more.

Well, I just told Bryan (A-non) the other day that I'd look into making kamut bread. The gluten in it comes up better than spelt (in my opinion), and I make flatbreads, cookies, quick breads and pie crust with it. It appears to require more leavening and less kneading time than wheat flour -- so when I made rolls, or even quick-risers like baking powder biscuits (with soda & cream of tartar rather than b. powder) it did not increase in volume quite as one would like. more trials necessary! ;->

Now, you will want a bread machine recipe which is yet further afield from my modest bread-making expertise, so ... yoo-hoo, readers! got a good reliable recipe for Sue? Send it along!! ~:-D