On The Diet with Heidi Merritt

Maia wrote the following for Rula, whose question appeared in the OTD column from November 30, 2002:

Hi Heidi, I'm glad you like getting reader feedback! (Oh no, not Maia again!) I was concerned about the woman who had read that she needed to consume less than 40grams of protein daily, in order to avoid osteoporosis. This is contrary to everything I've read, and contrary to what I know from my chiropractor. My chiro says adults of any blood type need at least 50 grams protein daily to avoid deficiency. This is backed up by the U.S. RDA, which says you need 50 grams...and the RDA tends to be the bare minimum you need to survive, not thrive. It is also supported by a standard medical textbook, Guyton's "Textbook of Medical Physiology," which says you need at least 50 grams, 75 grams to be safe.

As a 5'6" relatively active O blood type, at 135 lbs, I personally need about 100 grams protein a day, or I notice protein deficiency signs. (Such as fatigue, inability to be hungry without shakes related to blood sugar swings, and craving for sweets especially milk chocolate. Protein sufficiency is necessary to maintain stable blood sugar -- according to Guyton, protein deficiency mimics diabetes symptoms, which it sure did for me.)

According to my chiro, you can actually bring about osteoporosis through protein deficiency -- because bones are made of a matrix of collagen fibers (protein) and minerals. He treats osteoporosis with a good mineral supplement, and by ensuring protein sufficiency (also in some cases female hormones need balancing, for which he usually focuses first on making sure a person is not fatty acid deficient for omega 3's and omega 6's. Good resource on fatty acids, see udoerasmus.com website. Some women need to do more to balance hormones, but that would be too long an e-mail.)

Note that mineral deficiencies can also lead to chocolate craving. My chiro believes osteoporosis is reversible in most cases, because it's not that bones are permanently damaged, since bone structure/minerals/cells are always being renewed. Osteoporosis happens when you have a problem regulating the ongoing bone replacement process, which can be corrected, then the bones heal. I am an excellent example of healing -- had the beginnings of osteoporosis at age 35, to the point where about two of my teeth would crack each year. My teeth don't crack anymore since I started ER and worked on minerals, proteins & fats -- it's been 3 years -- and other signs of osteoporosis receded, though they return if I don't eat enough protein. (I always have enough minerals.) Anyway, hope this helps someone, take care Heidi! maia from the BB

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*LOL!* Oh, Hooray! It's Maia again!! I always love hearing from you, dear, and there are many others out there who are thanking you for sharing your wisdom ~~ just as I am! Great message ~ do PLEASE keep them coming! :-D

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Hi Heidi, I just thought I would pass along my Thanksgiving Day experience. Since my sons went out of town, a friend invited me to spend Thanksgiving Day with them. At meal time I stayed away from my major obvious avoids, such as the ham, rolls, and I just had a little bit of the cornbread dressing. I couldn't avoid everything and still be polite so I am sure some of the casseroles I ate had avoid ingredients in them. I did try to eat more of the OK things such as the turkey, fruit, and cranberry salad that I brought. I also took some Deflect capsules just prior to the meal.

Anyway, later that afternoon and evening I experienced some digestive system distress. The day after I was back to normal. The experience has once again confirmed to me the value of the BTD. It amazes me how I went through so many years of my life not knowing how to eat to protect and maximize my health even though I thought I was fairly knowledgeable about basic health and nutrition information.

I wish a lot more other people understood this so maybe it would be easier to find acceptable foods and to eat an acceptable meal out. I also would not be totally honest if I didn't say that at times, for a variety of reasons, I wish I didn't know about the BTD. What is the saying? "Ignorance is bliss" Of course that would be ignoring all of the benefits of the BTD. At this point I believe that the BTD will be a permanent part of my life and I just have to continue to figure out how to make it work for me and my life. I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Regards, Don

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See, folks? It can be done, even on major holidays. ;-) The accounts people send in of how they live the BTD are guideposts to beginners and old hands alike. So send in your success stories, too!

and thanks so much, Don ~~ I had a great Thanksgiving, and a lot to give thanks for!! :-D

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I started with BTD 2 months ago. I am a Non-secretor(recently confirmed with blood test) type 'A' height 5ft2". With no results I was advised to get LR4YT. Having read both books I am totaly confused. Generally I am a healthy female 38 yrs old and fairly active. I play golf Twice a week and do gym/weights 2-3 times a week. I have always had a weight problem and retain water. In my view I am about 10-15kg's overweight. My weight is evenly spread. One thing I have learnt is that I have always eaten the wrong foods. Foods that I avoided are the things I should be eating. Even though I have not lost weight I havn't gained. I was following the secretor diet. Now having find out that I am a Non-secretor.

Durum wheat was a food type in BTD but now it is not even listed in LR4YT, I know it is stated in the "errata on the publication" that foods not listed are to be considered neutral. Additional to this I have had a problem finding out the properties of certain foods. eg Durum Wheat semolina pasta is this made from Durum Wheat? I have been told that semolia is a process that the wheat goes thru. Please advise.

The two tier diet. I want to loose weight initially then concentrate on maintaing that weight. My weight has always fluctuated with the 10kg's I need to loose now (Queen of diets). I am realy sick of trying to control my weight. Can you please help me formulate a diet for weight loss. Am I suposed to eat only Tier 2 foods or can I eat Tier 1 as well. Should I only eat beneficials or can I include neutrals. Your assistance in this regard would be greatly appreciated. Maureen

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Hello, Maureen! Nice to hear from South Africa!

Having found your secretor status, you're now on the road to success! Don't be discouraged if your weight loss is slow; everyone's metabolism is different, and since your weight has fluctuated over that 10 kg range (22 pounds), your body may be resistant to letting go of the weight due to those ups and downs over the years. A gradual, steady fat loss is what you want to aim for ~ it is far more likely to stay off that way.

We in the U.S. denote six classes, or types, of wheat: "durum," "hard red winter," "hard red spring," "soft red winter," "hard white," and "soft white." The hard wheats contain a higher gluten content than the soft varieties, and are used in foods like breads and pasta (yeasted and/or kneaded products); the soft wheats make their appearance in cakes, pastries, biscuits, and other "no-knead," baking-soda- or egg-rising, delicate products. Semolina is made from durum wheat berries by a grinding process. The germ and bran are separated out from the endosperm (the "white part" or "meat" of the berry), and some of the endosperm is taken aside along with the germ and bran to make "durum flour," either "white" (no bran) or "whole wheat" (germ and bran). Semolina is the fine-ground endosperm only ~ no germ or bran. Couscous is identical to "semolina," but is used as-is after grinding -- it is not further ground into semolina flour.

Now, hold on to your chair and please don't hate me! For type A nonsecretors all wheat of every kind (except sprouted wheat) is an 'avoid.' Semolina, durum wheat, wheat germ, wheat bran, white flour ~ you name it, it's on your no-no list. :-}

Second possible shocker: ;-) The Tiers system is designed for secretors ~ you can see this principle at work by looking at the first (secretor) column of the food lists. ALL Beneficial and Avoid foods for secretors are in Tiers I & II, and ALL neutral foods for secretors are in the Neutral Tier. Nonsecretors should continue to be guided by the food values as listed, no matter which Tier the food item appears under.

To get started on losing that weight and keeping it off, here are my suggestions:

(1) Eat only Beneficial foods for at least one month straight ~ no avoids; limit the neutrals as close to 0% as possible. This has helped MANY type As in jump-starting and facilitating weight loss. Once you've formed the habit of a primarily Beneficials diet, insulin resistance and any other conditions which may be impeding your weight loss can resolve far more quickly ~ and your water retention problems will just fade away!

(2) Pay careful attention to the portion/frequency tables, and note that fruits and vegetable frequencies should read "per day," rather than "per week." (That point is in the Updates Page, but worth a reminder!)

(3) Re-read the Type A Prescription in LR4YT, especially the exercise recommendations on page 182. Do you walk the golf course, or ride in a cart? guess which one I'd prefer? :-D

(4) Drink plenty of pure water between meals ~~ it will help your body excrete the toxins released as it lets go of the fat, and make the process easier & faster for you.

Give it one solid month, and drop me a note on your progress. You'll succeed, Maureen ~ I know you will! Do keep in touch!! :-)



Hi Heidi! First, let me say that I find your column a great source of information on the BTD and that I look forward to it every day. I’m a Type O+ Secretor (31 years old) and have recently found out that I have the MM blood type. In LR4YT, Dr. D’Adamo suggests that these people adopt an aggressive cancer-prevention lifestyle if they have a family history of cancer. This is true in my case. I was wondering if you could say a bit more about what he means by an aggressive cancer-prevention lifestyle. I guess drinking lots of green tea and not smoking (which I don’t do anyway) would be part of such a lifestyle. For over a decade, I have suffered from various health issues (IBS, adult acne, hypothyroidism, knee pain) which fortunately have nearly all disappeared since I started following the BTD two years ago, but I’m afraid that this has made me rather prone to having cancer later in life. I was also wondering why in his book LR4YT, Dr. D’Adamo suggests that MM typed Os should try to use mostly Tier One Beneficials in the vegetables and fruits sections. I thought that one should adhere to the Tier Two Diet when suffering from health-related issues. Many thanks! Thomas

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Hello, Thomas! First I want to reassure you that just being on the O diet is a superb cancer-prevention strategy all by itself. You'll undoubtedly be the beginning of a NEW family history! Using the lifestyle recommendations for Os and the specific MM-modified O secretor food list, along with food-based vitamin C, basic supplements and ARA6 for antioxidant support, puts you far ahead of the pack in the cancer-prevention league!

The quote from LR4YT you mentioned is addressed to type A (secretor)/MM individuals. Because many cancers are "A-like," the type A immune system is not as effective on its own in eliminating them -- hence the higher risk noted in conjunction with the MM type.

My understanding of the MM modifications for Os is: no dairy at all, and get plenty of the Beneficials in the fruits & veg categories... mostly Tier I, but Tier II can be added. In the case of fruits, there's only 1 good guy in Tier II. Under veggies, there are several Tier II Beneficials ~ use them to replace neutrals you'd otherwise choose. That is the key to understanding Tier II: the beneficials noted there are not "special" medicinal foods, but a class of items to be used in place of neutrals when one wishes to get the full benefit of the diet. The avoids listed there are less troublesome for healthy people than the Tier I avoids; and the beneficials are less vital for healthy people than the Tier I beneficials. :-)

Take care, and take heart! You're doing splendidly, and you'll be building your health and immunity with every month you spend on this plan!!



Dear Heidi! I just recieved the encyclopedia. For my Lupus there are several protocols adivised. A few for autoimmunediseases in general and various for the lupus itself. Should I follwow all of them at the same time, or go through them one after the other? The tier system is not mentioned in the food list. As it is a compendium for certain diseases I assume that it is just fine to follow what is stated in the enyclopedia list instead of following meticulously the tier system in the book Live right fyt... Thank you in advance! Karin

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Hi, Karin ~ The protocols work best if you do only one or two at a time, but I see in the protocols for Lupus that the Detox regimen is one week only, and the Immune System protocol is four weeks. I'd choose them first, then continue with the Chronic Disease list. As I recall, you are a Type B secretor, so, YES, use the Tier system for your food choices. The Encyclopedia is primarily intended as a reference work for the disease protocols, and included the food lists only as an appendix to the main work. That's why the Tiers are not given room there.

Thanks for your kind messages, Karin, and keep us posted on your reactions and progress! take care!! :-)



Hello, Heidi! I really enjoy your section of the website and log on each night to see what I can learn. I am an A Non-secretor. I have followed the plan since late May and have lost 25 lbs. I have noticed many other benefits including getting rid of that yucky stuff that seems to come up each morning from eating wheat, corn and dairy. People are always asking me about the diet, and I am always ready to share with them about how great it is. I do have one question about the two-tier system in LR4YT which I am trying to follow as closely as possible. When focusing on Tier Two, what do I do with Tier One? Do I include both, or just use Tier Two by itself? I have read the info on the website, but I am still confused. I'm sure it should be very simple, so I know you will clear it up for me. Thanks for all you do to keep us informed. The potpourri pages are great! Phyllis

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Hey there, Phyllis! Glad you like the ol' OTD, and I'm thrilled with your marvelous achievements!

Well, hope you took a peek at my little (*LOL*) note to Maureen right up above there. We nonnies ain't got no Tiers, 'ceptin' our Nonsecretor Tier, which is implicit rather than explicit in Live Right. Pleeze say you're not going shopping for a gun to shoot me? Rather than thinking about all the effort you've spent trying to get those Tiers working, umm.... think about how much simpler it is now. HOORAH! Right? Lemme hear it... a little "hoorah," maybe? a tiny "yay?" :-}

The Updates Page has a paragraph which covers this point, but not as clearly as I thought when I wrote it. Live & learn, eh? Here's that text:

"Tier Two values should be used as written if you are seeking to resolve an illness, heal from injury, lose weight, bear up under added stress, or to alleviate chronic fatigue or other health issues -- or if you are following the diet according to your status as one of the variants nonsecretor, MM or A2. Minimize your use of Neutral foods."

If you follow this advice to its logical conclusion, you'll see that nonsecretors using Tier II values "as written" are back in the Beneficial/Neutral/Avoid ballpark, with additional playing rules to "minimize... use of Neutral foods." The nonsecretor food lists are designed to work on their own, with no modification save any additions/reductions vis-á-vis the Rhesus factor ~ for type As, this tweak shows up only in the Dairy section. The benefits for secretors of following the MM modifications are built into the nonsecretor diet, so nonnies don't use those changes.

Great to hear from you, Phyllis ~ have a lovely!



OK everyone, now we're all experts on the Tiers! That was easy, eh? Thanks for all your wonderful comments, kvetches, Qs, stories and generous advice. Keep shining!! *:-D

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Hi, Helen ~

Legumes are a food that seem to lose little through industrial cooking and canning methods. The canned ones are fine for you! Just watch those labels (as usual). :-}

Eden and Healthy Valley, among many brands, offer organic canned beans and soups of many varieties. Eden even carries black soybeans, for instance.

You won't be missing any of the the nutritional value of the beans, and the convenience will help you stay compliant, especially while you're recovering from your illness.

Best wishes, dear!

I am a non-secretor O, and when i read the question from september 3rd, my antennae shot up! the laboratory diagnosis, "blastocystis hominis" could be very important for this woman to heed. i was diagnosed with this parasite in june, 2002 --- and i was sicker than i have ever been in my life, for over two months. i was spiraling downward for many months before that. my doctor was not much help, as she had only encountered it once before. my boss, who is a practicing internist, had never heard of this parasite. my longtime friend in washington, d.c., who is a family practitioner, had heard of it but never encountered it in her medical practice.

the data on blastocystis hominis is contradictory, controversial, and scant. i had to move forward with it on the energy of my family practitioner friend, who said, "if the data is sparse or contradictory, why side with the naysayers? treat it!" so i did, with the standard treatment -- high doses of flagyl. since the woman who wrote you can not take antibiotics, she would need a naturopath to prescribe for her a different treatment for this parasite, but she should treat it! she may have had this parasite in her weakened gut for 6 years or longer. (she wrote that the laboratory diagnosis of it came 6 years ago.)

i was much better after starting the antibiotics, and continued getting better within the course of the 10-day treatment. but i was still very sick and recovered very slowly, i presume because of the parasite's damaging my intestinal tissue. food choices that worked for me: homemade chicken broth for weeks. no solid foods. water and diluted pineapple juice. later food choices that worked: plain, well-cooked meats. i was especially drawn to plain chicken. also some banana (first cooked puree, then frozen, then regular). continued with water and diluted pineapple juice.

i did try rice and blueberry juice. while i tolerated both, they did not seem to help me, and in fact the rice seemed to just sit in my stomach for a bit. on the other hand, the homemade chicken broth instantly felt like elixir (and i believe kept me alive), and i actually began to get energy from the meats, when i added them in later. i craved the plain, cooked chicken! my theory on this is that the tissue damage required animal protein to get it on the mend. and as a non-secretor O, rice is ok but did not feel truly helpful.

i wish this woman the best. blastocystis hominis has the ability to make one very, very sick. it is possible that in addition to seeing a naturopath, she could also benefit from speaking with an infectious disease specialist who has treated it successfully. hope this helps someone. melissa

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Melissa!! Thank you so much for offering your experience and advice on this condition ~~ I deeply appreciate it, and I am sure there are others out there who will benefit from your generosity!

Dear Readers: If you see a topic here on which you have information to relay, please be encouraged to do so! My gratitude goes out to all of you, the seekers and the guides on the BTD path!!

Hi, Paula! Well: Ezekiel toast with ghee, jam and scrambled tofu with onions? Or... beans and eggs (a campfire favorite)? Miso soup and steamed vegetables? An open-faced sandwich of sauteed tempeh with greens and sprouts on toasted rye? A one-egg omelette filled with leftover chicken/rice/veg from the night before? Or a small salmon patty (flaked canned salmon with toasted Ezekiel crumbs, minced parsley & onion, an egg and lemon juice ~ makes several patties from one can of salmon) made the night before, warmed in a pan and wrapped in crunchy radicchio leaves? This morning, my type A man had a cup of coffee, then a piece of the kamut double-crust apple pie I made for Thanksgiving. I could keep going, but you get the idea!



The first key to breakfast, as I see it, is planning it the night before. The second key to breakfast is: you are free to eat ANYTHING at breakfast that you'd eat at any other meal. Anything goes, girl! Use breakfast to pack in the Beneficials, and choose lighter or heavier as your daily activities and inclinations dictate. Boredom inspires temptation... so let breakfast be an opportunity for creativity! :-)



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Dear Heidi, I'm 43 years old and my background is Greek. I'm 5'4" and 153 lbs. Although I enjoy good health I don't feel great. My mum is a diabetic and my father died of cancer when I was 14. I also don't like to take medication and I'm lucky that I don't need to. I like to take the natural approach and this diet sounds like it could help. I found after reading the book that I do suffer from the symptoms described (but not all) and I've had a hell of time trying to loose weight even though I eat well and excersise regularly. I would like to do this diet with proper monitoring. Do you know of any doctor/nutritionist/clinic/hospital here in HK that has used this programme and could assist me? Also, In ER4YBT p.68, Type O should avoid all cabbages. In Blood Type O Food, Beverage and Supplement Lists, p. 29, all cabbages are neutral. Which is correct? Pauline



Pauline! I do not have a listing for any BTD practitioners in Hong Kong, but the instructions in the books can safely be followed by healthy people like yourself who seek a higher level of well-being and a protective diet. These diets are one of the premiere "natural approaches" -- and the only dietary system specifically designed for the needs of the individual rather than based upon the generalized statistics of the many. Give it a good solid testing for one month, and write again! The single blood-type lists have the latest secretor-neutral updated values for foods. Let me know if you need more information, and thanks for writing!!



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Hi Heidi, Can you help me figure out a problem? I am Type O secretor and follow the diet 100%. Right now I am making smoothies out of egg protein and want to find another(not rice or soy) that I can use. I found a triple filtered whey protein(no cassein in it) and have also read many reports that whey has an added benefit of helping to strengthen the immune system, so I was wondering do the benefits outway the the negatives for using whey. I would like to use it once a day. Is there anything I can do to make it acceptable to use on a daily basis on the blood type diet?? thank you and I sure miss you with the old forum, but everything changes....... James



Hello, James ~ man, I miss you, too! :-} Howzit goin?



If you really want a powdered "smoothie additive," have you tried nutritional yeast? B vitamins, protein, and other added benefits all in one little scoop. Some nutbutter popped in there makes a 'taste divine.' :-) I can't recommend milk proteins for type O, neither whey nor caseins ~ our immune systems (already the most "active" of the types) are made calm & strong by exercise and the proper selection of whole foods on our diet. Did the reports you've read sort results by blood group? I'd love to see them if you have a chance to pass them on to me! And what are the benefits of whey that something like Rhodiola rosea couldn't replace? :-D Now you're wondering why I've got more questions than answers here... but these are the answers I get when I ask myself the questions you offered. Let me know, OK?



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I'm a type A+ Is sprouted wheat or rye bread better for me? Thanks in advance -- Robert



Hmmm... that's a new question! I tend to think that sprouted rye, an older grain than the commercial wheat hybrids, is marginally more nutritious and digestible than sprouted wheat, but the difference is probably esoteric and not at all an overriding one for purposes of the diets. I've no authoritative basis to prefer sprouted rye over sprouted wheat for these reasons ~ it's just my personal feeling about the thing. Technically, either is fine for you!



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Dear Miss Heidi -- Thank you for your efforts in advising and helping people. I am 38 years old. Unfortunately last year I became menopause. My blood type is A negative. After reading BTD I began to avoid red meats and began to increase lentils and white beans in my diet since there isn't any soya beans or soya products in our country. Thanks to Dr. D'adamos' efforts in ER4YT the side effects of menopause like hot flushes and mood swings diminishes. My concern now is about the relationship between early menopause and osteoporoses, although there isn't any case in the history of my family of such thing. I also have read that the amount of protein consumed must not exceed 40 mg/day, otherwise the Calcium in the bones will counterbalance. I eat dairy products like yoghurt every day to have enough Calcium but I think that I exceed the amount of protein mentioned above. I lost weight in persuing ER4YT now I am 51 KG and my height is 168cm and I want to gain some weight. I am also interested in brisk walking and aerobics for and hour daily to help me avoid such thing in the future. Is this enough? What can I do please advise me. Sincerely, Rula



Greetings, Rula ~ From your results with hot flashes and mood balancing, I believe you are on your optimal diet, right now!



The study quoted in Peter's column, "Will Type Os Eating Protein Lose Bone?", indicates that getting adequate protein in your diet stimulates the production of intestinal alkaline phosphatase -- the very secretion needed to assimilate calcium efficiently from food. It is a rather outdated idea that more protein = less calcium, or that eating the correct "A" sources of protein in the proper amounts for you means your bones will begin giving up calcium! The best thing for you as a type A is to get good food sources of calcium, like dark green leafy vegetables, almonds, broccoli, soy, sesame, and boost your calcium assimilation by including foods high in carotene along with those high-calcium items.



(For those of us still on the imperial measurements system, Rula is 5'6" tall and 112 pounds.) Rula, I suggest a daily brisk walk is a great idea. To gain weight -- by that, I mean active tissue mass, or muscle -- use yoga at least three times per week and do either a brief (20-30 minutes) weight-lifting session two or three times per week, or strength-building calisthenics daily -- or vary your routine daily between them. A wonderful series of simple, quick and easy exercises can be found at the Canadian Air Force site. Start with the Age Table, then go right on to Chart One. If you use these exercises daily, you will be a very strong and slender type A!



My best to you, and please keep us posted on your progress!! :-D



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Hello! I am 37 years old female Caucasian from Finland, type O. I eat wrong for my type: I drink lots of coffee,(lots, indeed!) I eat bread (mostly of rye, however) and poatatoes and drink milk, and (I use milk in food, it is typical here) and beer - basically our "national" food! I am quite all right, I feel healthy, ecept some small problems: my stomach is problematic, also I am very stressed during my periodes, very angry and nervous and tired, I want only sleep.

But I have exercise, though. I cycle every day to my work and do other exercise also. last summer we did long cyckle trips with my daughter (10years) and we were so happy every day! For some time ago I also noticed, that during winter I got sick (flue) every time if I had spent my summer in Finland, but if I had had my vacation in South Europe (Provence) or in Africa, I didn't get anything, even most of the workmates spent days in bed because of the flue.

Two years ago me and my daughter, who is half African, spent our summer is Senegal. We ate mostly chicken, meat (lamb and cow) and seafood. Especially our evening meal was, in my opinion, not very healthy: we bought a plate of lamb meat in the nearest dibiterie and ate it all, only meat, and onions! It was made in the open fire. Or we went to buy a fried chicken and ate it, included some grean vegetables, not rice nor couscous. At the daytime we ate crabs and fish.

Fish and rice, fish and couscous, every day, and I decided that when I return to Finland, I won't eat fish any more in my life, I was so boored with fish. Local people there like it so much. And we drank tea, not coffee, because people there drink strong green tea with mynth. It is so strong, that i didn't feel like to drink coffee at all. The tea there is called "attaya".

But I had never been healthier in my life after my vacation and the following winter! I just read your book and I noticd, that the meat I ate there is excatly what is good for me, because I am the type O! I coulnd't imagine that the answer could be this simple!

Sometimes I have been annoyed by Africans, who live here and are not willing to eat potatoes ( I have felt that they are proud and don't want to adopt our culture as I try to adopt theirs when I am there, and I eat their food) and now I understand, that it is not even healthy for many them, but their food is healthy for me! Especially I was annoyed, when my daughter's father cooked liver-meals in the owen and that smelled so bad. Now, myself, I must go shopping and test it!

I made also the conclution, that my daughter must be O. I don't know her fathers type, but I assume it is O, because of his character and because of his African heritage, it is more likely that he is O. He likes to eat cow, lamb, liver, chikcen and crabs, doesn't want to eat pork, drik beer nor wine, and he is very very healthy.

When the school started here, my daughter got stomach problems at once. Then I read your book and I realized, that here in Finland, the food they eat at the schools, consists mostly meat and potatoes, bread and milk. We don't eat so much potatoes at home, we like rice. Now I am quite sure, that my dosuhter's stomach problmes after the school are caused of the food she eats there. She also have often very bad headache after the school.

We tried yoga one year and got boored by it at once. My daughter chose to play baskettball and when she is playing, I go to build my body, and after, on saturdays, our tradition is to go to eat nice beef - and I have done it with a bad conscious, eating so unhealthy, nonrecommended food! I am surprised, that even I am naturally the whitest, blondest person you can find, I have found my blood relatives in Africa and it seems to me, that West-African food is best for me! It is a joke in my life.

Actually I have already been almost on the O diet, without knowing it. I have tried to turn to vegetarian many times and felt bad because I haven't been successful. We eat mosty rye bread because we have wonderful amount of different rye breads in Finland - I recommend for eveyone O's to taste finnish bread. Thanks for the great book! ~~ Sanna

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Well, stap me and sink me if that isn't one of the most moving accounts of body wisdom and finding one's own way I've ever seen. Dear Sanna! Thank YOU for writing out your marvelous story for all of us! Thank you very much, indeed!!

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Hello, Chris! OK ~ I'll take this one step at a time, and see if we can figure out a steady plan of attack on these problems.

Let me start with your doctor’s diagnosis:

Fibroids are causing heavy bleeding, which is causing anemia, which is probably causing the dizziness.

First thing to address: the fibroids. Peter recommends the "Immune-Enhancing" and "Female Balancing" protocols, and I would add that the vaunted type B visualization abilities could be marshalled as well. Upon rising in the morning and before sleep at night, spend a few minutes seeing in your mind the fibroids shrinking and disappearing. Make it a game for yourself: imagine they fade like shadows until you can no longer see them; in the next session, see them turn black and shrink down to infinitesimal dots; in the next, perhaps they turn into wispy clouds and float off on a gentle breeze. :-) You may think I'm bughouse right now, but set aside any qualms you may have for the moment and just give it a nice try for a few weeks. The body illustrates the beliefs of the mind... just see what you think! :-)

Down the road, there is a procedure you may want to discuss with your doctor: uterine fibroid embolization. I suggest this measure as a last resort only because I would consider it if nothing else worked ~~ let me emphasize that saying 'I would consider it' is high praise for a surgical procedure, coming from me! :-)

This is the American Academy of Family Physicians' webpage where the treatment is discussed in great detail. Draw it to your doctor's attention, and have a good chat about it. It may be completely unnecessary in your case, but it's nice to have one's ducks in a row well in advance of the event, if you do elect to go this route. It is not an experimental procedure, but one which has been performed on thousands of women in the U.S. Still, it is not well-known in surgical circles, hence my suggestion. :-)

Now: Iron citrate is specifically recommended for anyone with a B antigen (Bs and ABs). I can't tell you the exact difference in uptake between bisglycinate and citrate, but Thorne Research (a truly great supp manufacturer) makes the citrate form -- if desired, you can find it readily on the Net.

I realize the dizziness is something you'd like to be rid of right now. My understanding of menorraghia (heavy bleeding) is that it can cause anemia only when quantity of bleeding exceeds 1.5 liters in a short period of time (one or two days). Yes, liters ~ 1.5 liters is about 51 ounces (1.6 quarts). Ask your doc about this, if you're unsure? There is a product called "The Keeper," a menstrual cup, which can allow you to measure just how much bleeding actually occurs. It reduced my bleeding to some extent, but also let me find out for the first time in my life exactly what the quantity is! Give this page a read, too.

Chris, do you eat enough to sustain you? Could the dizziness be at all connected with not eating breakfast, or waiting a long time between meals? Have you tried eating five or six small meals instead of three? Do you get plenty of water between meals? A side-effect of heavy bleeding is some dehydration, so adding a few glasses of spring or mineral water could help.

You may or may not prefer to continue with the progesterone cream once you've resolved the fibroids ~ see how you're doing in a few months. The protocols in the Encyclopedia have time limits because they work better that way. Herbs take a while to "kick in," and their effectiveness can wane with constant dosing. Some of the supplements are suggested in therapeutic doses which might be deleterious if continued without pause. Give two weeks between re-starts (unless otherwise directed) and begin again if desired.

And about the active B12 (methylcobalamin): take it as directed in the protocols. Three capsules of Methyl12 Plus is 3000 mcg, not a dangerous dosage, and if your doctor suspects pernicious anemia, it can be of enormous help. The B vitamins in liver, dessicated liver and other foods will not push you over the limit ~ by the way, the "active B12" supplement is methylcobalamin (not cyanocobalamin) and folates, and should be taken alone (away from food).

At this point you're probably dizzy from reading all this! Chris, I hope your progress is swift, and please keep in touch on how it all works out for you!

Glad you wrote! Do it again, and soon! :->

Hello, Nan! ~ some good news for you: Live Right’s type O section shows red wine as Neutral for secretors and Beneficial for nonsecretors. This more recent book is all about the differences between the two secretor states, and their impact upon diet and lifestyle. Additionally, recent research accounts for some updates in food status. Thanks for writing!!

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I have read your first book (1996) in French and your second book (2002) in English. Can you kindly clear up some discrepancies? I am bloodgroup AB. 1. Trout is considered beneficial in the first book, and to be avoided in the second. 2. Pepper and vinegar "too acid" in the first book, not recommended. A few pages later balsamique, cidre, red wine vinegar is said to be neutral, white and black pepper "whole" to be avoided - what about red and green pepper, and "crushed"? (I love pepper, vinegar - and coffee...) 3. Your first book recommends as "very beneficial" one or two cups of light coffee per day which is good for AB's low stomach acid. Your second book states "avoid coffee". Has new research shown a different result? Type setting error? 4. The "standard menu" for losing weight in the first book says "some parmesan cheese on your salad" - why? if parmesan is to be avoided for bloodgroup AB?? Thank you for enlightening me. Angela

Greetings, Angela ~~ The seven-year span between the two books represents significant research and testing/retesting of various food items. Second, the Live Right book uses secretor status to further refine the lists, while the more recent individual Food & Supplement Lists were written to accommodate those who do not plan to learn their secretor status. The most recent food lists are in Live Right with the modifications noted on the Updates Page (also linked in the "Library" section on the front page of this site.

Any color of peppercorn (the spice) falls under the listing for "peppercorn." If you are looking for the vegetable "pepper," it is included in the vegetables category of the food lists -- not the spices. The rating for coffee is correct in Live Right, and I suspect the parmesan was intended as a "tiny treat." :-D

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Hi! I am following my bloodtype diet faithfully and have seen dramatic results in my health and condition. I am an O secretor with chronic sinus problems including nose polyps. According to the diet, bananas are beneficial for a secretor, yet I have been told to stay away from bananas as they produce mucous. Should I use them as beneficial or keep well away? Thank you for your time. Anna

Hi, Anna ~~ The bottom line here is: DO bananas produce mucus for You? If you find they do, feel free not to eat them. They are not a vital part of the type O diet. If you find they do not, you've got your answer! :-) Just avoid them for a week or two, then eat a couple and monitor what happens within an hour or two. I wouldn't be surprised if eliminating avoid grains and dairy entirely will clear up your sinus problems in pretty short order. Keep me advised on your progress!!

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I have some questions about milk for O's. I know it's forbidden, but I wondered about products like lactaid? Also, since a little butter is allowed, what about creme? And isn't yogurt already digested? Why would Romano be allowed, but not Parmesan? Thanks. Ann

Hello, Ann ~ "Lactaid" (the enzyme lactase) addresses the lactose (milk sugar) issue by breaking down lactose into glucose and galactose. Most Os and As lose the ability to produce lactase in early childhood (4 to 5 years of age). Why would we adults want to eat the enzyme in order to rinse ourselves with type B sugar (galactose!?!) :-} Additionally, lactase won't do anything about the proteins (caseins & whey) from the milk, which we cannot fully digest. Butter goes through a process of separation of the milk FAT from the proteins. Even better is ghee, in which all one has left is the butyrate, a wonderful thing for the digestion and a perfectly buttery-tasting food. Yogurt? Fermentation uses up the sugars, once again, not the proteins. And why is romano OK, but parmesano is not? Good question! Where did you see that romano is OK? I can't seem to find that listing in any of my books.... Do let me know where you found it! :-)

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Whew!! Thanks once again, everyone!!

In the United States of America, today is Thanksgiving Day ~ a national holiday whose origins I am ashamed to say I did not learn until this year! Always assumed it had something to do with Pilgrims and Indians... although the last Thursday in November seemed a little late in the season for a harvest festival. Thanks to a friend, I learned that President Lincoln instituted the holiday's current date (originally celebrated on August 6, 1624 according to the diaries of the first Pilgrim colony's governor, William Bradford). My best wishes for a joyful Thanksgiving to you all!





By the President of the United States of America.



Washington, D.C.

October 3, 1863



A Proclamation.



The year that is drawing towards its close, has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added, which are of so extraordinary a nature, that they cannot fail to penetrate and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever watchful providence of Almighty God. In the midst of a civil war of unequaled magnitude and severity, which has sometimes seemed to foreign States to invite and to provoke their aggression, peace has been preserved with all nations, order has been maintained, the laws have been respected and obeyed, and harmony has prevailed everywhere except in the theatre of military conflict; while that theatre has been greatly contracted by the advancing armies and navies of the Union. Needful diversions of wealth and of strength from the fields of peaceful industry to the national defence, have not arrested the plough, the shuttle or the ship; the axe has enlarged the borders of our settlements, and the mines, as well of iron and coal as of the precious metals, have yielded even more abundantly than heretofore. Population has steadily increased, notwithstanding the waste that has been made in the camp, the siege and the battle-field; and the country, rejoicing in the consiousness of augmented strength and vigor, is permitted to expect continuance of years with large increase of freedom. No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy. It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and one voice by the whole American People. I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens. And I recommend to them that while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessings, they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to His tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty Hand to heal the wounds of the nation and to restore it as soon as may be consistent with the Divine purposes to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquillity and Union.



In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Seal of the United States to be affixed.



Done at the City of Washington, this Third day of October, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, and of the Independence of the Unites States the Eighty-eighth.



By the President: Abraham Lincoln

Hi there, I have been following Peter's A eating plan for the last 6 years, with brilliant results. I also use the ABO eating plan exclusively in my clinic, also with very good results. My question is academic...I am currently conducting a research project on patient compliance to diet/exercise programs and whether these programs lead to longer term lifestyle changes and ultimate health rewards. I am somewhat biased in my beliefs on this subject, but sadly my own experience needs to be backed up with other studies as well. Can you please direct me to any such studies on the ABO diet? I look forward to hearing from you. Thank you very much. Regards, Cally (P.S. Please send Peter my best wishes, I admire his work and know how important it is. I met him during his visit to Queensland a few years ago).





Hello, Cally ~ I'm posting your question here to alert Peter to your request ~ as a nonprofessional, I do not have his access to resources and research that you are seeking. I do want to thank you so much for sharing your experiences on the BTD plan and with your patients! I'm heartened each time I hear of another clinician using Peter's work in professional practice. If you have a minute or two, I'd love to see your clinic in our Practitioner Registry ~ here is the link to the entry form, or just drop me a message and I'll be glad to enter it for you. Once again, kudos on your pioneering work there in Queensland!





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Is there a link between blood type B positive and candida? I have both. The reason why I ask is the foods I'm supposed to eat as a B and candida patient overlap. Eugenia





Hi, Eugenia ~ Type O individuals, and all nonsecretors, are disadvantaged with a susceptibility to this condition ~ it's possible you are a nonsecretor, who appear to make up at least 50% of Candidiasis sufferers although they represent only 15-20% of the general population. I'm glad the food sheets you've been given fit well with the B plan. The customary GP recommendations are not designed along blood type needs, but rather for "anyone" with a Candida overgrowth, so in this case you're fortunate! Please let me know if you want any further suggestions for intestinal re-balancing. I hope your condition improves, and soon!!



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Heidi, The question and your response on August 20 made me think of a similar question I have had concerning fish. LR4YT recommends that frozen fish should be avoided, as the content of polyamines in it is much higher than fresh fish. I have found it difficult to locate a good local source of fresh beneficial fish for my families O blood type. I have found a very good and convenient source of frozen cod fillets that I have been using for several months. I really like the packaging because the fillets are individually sealed and frozen so I can easily thaw what I need for the next day. My question is am I better off eating or not eating the frozen fish if I don't have a source of fresh fish? In other words, how serious is the polyamine issue in frozen fish assuming that I am very compliant with my BTD and eat the frozen fish maybe on average once every other day? Thank you Don





Hi, Don! The fish you're eating has the oils and proteins intact, and I want you to keep eating it because it is an important part of your O diet. :-) Anyone who depends on frozen fish (and there are many of us who do), just take a teaspoon of black cherry or elderberry concentrate before the meal ~ routs out those pesky polyamines a treat. If you have some ProBerry3 liquid on hand, take a teaspoon of that. Tastiest flu-chaser and polyamine hound ever designed. :-D By the way, I got your note about the secretor tests for your family. Wow, ALL type O Rhesus-negative secretors! You are blessed indeed!

~:-> ( << does that little face look a bit envious? :-D )





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Dr. D'Adamo, I have recently been diagnosed with Crohn's disease. According to the book "Controlling Crohn's disease the natural way" by Virginia Harper, who healed herself from this disease (20 years without any symptoms), a good option for me would be to start a microbiotic diet (that is the way she got over the disease). The microbiotic diet emphasises the use of sea vegetables + fish, but avoids meat all together. I am a -type- O and am really wonderong if meat would decelarate my healing process, because it is very difficult to digest for me at this moment, my digestive tract is quite sensitive. Could you please give me some advice on this. Thank you so much for your time! I more than appreciate it! Catheline







Hello, Catheline ~~ If the diet mentioned in the book (which I have not read) is "microbiotic," not "macrobiotic," then I am not familiar with it. Do bear in mind that the vast majority of off-the-shelf how-to-cure-yourself protocols do not take into account the biological diversity of the human population. Virginia Harper may be a type A or AB secretor. You may be a type O nonsecretor. Her approach may have worked wonders for her and yet do little or nothing for you. However, type Os are encouraged to eat fish, seaweeds, green vegetables, with small quantities of whole grains such as rice. Be sure to get adequate fresh flax and olive oil each day, following the portions and frequencies listed in Live Right 4 Your Type. Use her protocol, but observe the type O avoids. Eat as much fish (and eggs) as you need. Also, you may find the advice I passed on regarding colitis in a previous column to be highly effective in your case. Scroll down to the portion printed in blue ~ that's the relevant part. Good health to you, Catheline, and please let me know what works or doesn't work for you. Take care! :-)



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Thanks once again, everyone!! Picked out yer T-day turkey yet? :-D

It is soothing to the digestive tract, and good for stimulating digestive juices. For those reasons, it can peripherally aid weight loss through promoting good digestion. :-)

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Hi, Firstly thank you for a wonderful book! But I'm a bit confused with some things: Are soya products bad for type B? Can I TYPE b) have soya lecitin, soya beans, soya sauce and flour?And what about Tofu ice-cream? Another question. Can type As' eat eggs /whites/ yolks? The website says neutral but one of the recipies (vineager free mayonaisse) says AVOID egg yolks? Is eating just the whites a good alternate? The book and the website differ from eachother sometimes, which one is more up to date? Thank you very much for your time in helping me. sylvia

Yes, soy products are not recommended for type Bs due to a recent discovery that soy has an adverse effect on the integrity of the B antigen. Eggs are neutral for type As ~ the caveat in the recipe is based upon an older generation of blood group food lists. The website contains the most recently-updated information. :-)

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I've noticed discrepancies between some food lists in the Eat Right 4 Your Type hardback and the smaller Blood Type list book. I am AB Negative, have been enjoying the benefits of the Blood Type diet (following it since January 2002) and just curious about discrepancies between two books, i.e., Misc. Beverages: List Book: Highly Beneficial: green tea, red wine Neutral: Beer, White Wine, Seltzer Avoid: coffee,liquor,soda,tea Eat Right: Highly Beneficial: coffee,green tea Neutral: beer, seltzer, club soda, red & white wine Avoid: Liquor, soda, tea Also all vinegar is to be avoided in List book - in Eat Right, vinegar is neutral, avoid white vinegar. Thank you, Mary

Hello, Mary ~ The small, individual blood type book is the one to follow if you do not plan to find out your secretor status. It has the latest listings. Thanks for writing!

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Giving up wheat is a HUGE challenge. Can you make some recommendations for some "Bready" or "Pasta style" Brands? Cathy

Sure! "Food for Life" and "Nature's Path" for breads (Ezekiel, Essene, and 100% single-grain breads among which to choose based on your type) ~ Pastariso and DeBoles Organic rice pastas (spaghetti and a number of other shapes!). My very demanding type A, Bryan, insists that the rice pastas taste much better than the wheat-based commercial brands... he wouldn't dream of eating that semolina stuff anymore, just because of the flavor! So, I'll bet you won't be disappointed there. :-)

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I've been cooking and eating charcoal grilled fish and smoked meats for 30 years - mainly stuff like slow smoked beef and grilled fish of wide varieties. I'm O. Assuming I stick with Type appropriate meats and fish, what are the BTD Diet ramifications of smoking them, if any? Our household has all 4 types represented and I do nearly all the cooking, so I'm interested in the effects on all 4 groups, not just O. Emmett

Hi, Emmett ~ Peter has posted his views on smoked/cured foods in the past, which I referred to in my Halloween column. The advice applies generally to all types, but since you're cooking for one of those demanding four-type families (HOW do you do it??), I'll add that types A and AB are statistically more prone to stomach cancer than type O or B, so I'd try to limit them to one smoked meal per month, and Os & Bs to one per week for health reasons -- just to be on the safe side. And I commend you for rising to the 4-type daily cooking challenge! :-D

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thanks once again to everyone!!! :-D

Anna! Yes, it is very, very common. And it's a great sign! Your body is thanking you for your new diet! Now it has the opportunity to get rid of all the old poisons and impacted, dead matter lining your intestinal tract. In fact, it's an indicator of good health to have a bowel movement soon after eating in any case. Congratulations on getting rid of wheat and dairy, by the way! No small feat. These changes are just the beginning of the benefits of this diet... do savor every new development and "surprise" positive side-effect. and write in with them, OK? :-D

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Hi, I've read your books and have been on the diet for 3 weeks. I am an O+ and have given up wheat and dairy products. I've been mostly a vegetable and fruit with protein person for years. I am about 15 pounds overweight and have lost about 5 pounds. When social events occur, I go off the diet and seem to gain back some of the weight and then lose again when I get back on. I don't seem to be going much beyond the 5 pounds. Also the book Live Right 4 Your Type and the little book for Type O Foods and Supplements have different lists of foods. Please advise if (1) losing slowly is reasonable and (2) what the difference is between the two food lists. Thank you. Winona

Hi, Winona ~ Well, three weeks isn't long at all. This diet works from deep areas outward, and sometimes weight loss is the last step in that process. Going on, then off, then back on any diet will make it more difficult to attain your goals, partly because it exacerbates insulin resistance. The five pounds you lose once takes far less time to go than the five pounds you're trying to lose for the 15th time. However, here's a way to step on the gas a little: EXERCISE! As I am wont to repeat myself, Exercise is Fully 50% of the Plan! And while you are waiting for that bodyweight to leave, check how your clothes fit. You can be gaining muscle and losing fat (and a pants size or two) even though the scale seems stuck. :-) About the food lists: Live Right is designed on two different subtypes ~ secretor and nonsecretor. The "Little Books'" lists really are hybrids, formulated to balance the benefits for those who may not know or plan to find out their secretor status. Hope this helps!!

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Hi, I am type O , dont know secretor status. Ive been on diet for almost a week and feel tired and alittle light headed. have lost 3 lbs. I take 6 mg ativan a day for panic attacks. i am also allergic or at least very sensitive to b vitamins so am only taking calcium mag suppliment and a oliveleaf extract capsule daily. walk 40 min daily except sun. I am concerned about the lightheadedness iit makes me feel not well. My pulse is 62 today and is normally 70 i am 61 and have low BP too 100/60, this is normal for me, I see a Naturapath who prescribed the diet. But hasnt had a lot of patients on it yet. Any info much appreciated. Thanks, Boni

Hello, Boni! Another newcomer to the Blood Type Diets! Welcome!! I'm not familiar with "ativan," so please ask the doctor who prescribed it if lightheadedness is a side effect. The drug aside, you may not be eating enough! You didn't mention how much or what you eat, but as a type O with naturally low blood pressure myself, I can tell you that eating a good protein-based breakfast (and lunch) is a major key to feeling good all day ~ and that drinking a couple of glasses of water between meals is great for energy levels. Let me know more about what you're eating ~ what kinds of grain if any, anything with sugar in it, etc. Take care, and keep with it! This plan will definitely come through for you!!!

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Dear Heidi, I enjoy your column immensely and read it every day - your positive attitude is wonderful. I submitted a question about two or three months ago and have yet to receive an answer. I know you're up to your eye balls in questions yet to be answered, but please let me know by e-mail if I need to seek help somewhere else. I had previously submitted the question to Dr. D'Adamo, but then he had to quit taking questions in order to free him for writing his new book, so by now I'm really anxious for some answers! In case you need to look up my question again, I had asked for some advice on what supps to take or foods to eat to improve my very unhealthy finger nails - they have pronounced vertical ridges and split easily, also the cuticles are very dry and hang nails have always been a problem. Inlcuded in the information I submitted was my blood type, secretor status and a list of supplements I'm currently taking. Believe me, I'm more concerned about what the status of my finger nails indicates regarding my over-all health than I am about how they look, although pretty fingernails would be nice : ) Thanks for your consideration, Becky

:-D Becky, thank you so much! Yes, I'm only caught up about three-quarters of the way through August, although I do sort in some more recent questions ~~ but I'm stepping up the pace!! :-}

You wrote earlier: In August of 2000 I had a mineral check done through Great Smokies Diagnostic Laboratory. The results indicated lower than reference range levels of chromium, cobalt, and manganese. In addition to adhereing to the diet, I've been supplementing with Methyl 12plus, Phytocal, Polyvite, Deflect, Fucus, Ester-C, organic flax oil, magnesium with silica, and have recently added horsetail shave grass and gotu kola. I've seen no improvement.

I agree that the nails are more than just decorations! Becky, could I impose upon you to write once more? Post a message to me containing three or four days' listings of what you eat and when. Note what your exercise activities and schedule are, and when you normally sleep & wake. How long have your nails been like this, and do you remember any triggering event? I'm posting all this here because I'm sure others will write in with some personal experience and advice! Between all of us, we'll get it cleared up, don't you worry!! :-)

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As a Type B person, I've been following Dr D'Adamo's directives with the Membrane Fluidizer Cocktail most mornings for several years. I recently purchased the Complete Blood Type Encyclopedia, and was surprised to see under the listing for Lecithin(p.518) that type B's should AVOID it! Is this something new? Now I'm confused! L.S.

AH! That error is MINE! :-) In copy-editing the food lists, I changed that entry, on the certain assumption that "soy granules" meant "lecithin." It did not mean lecithin, it referred to an old cereal listing. Well, it slipped through! Lecithin is fine for everyone ~ we've corrected it in the TYPEbase 3® database. Hope this alleviates the confusion, and my apologies!

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Tell me about horseradish. I understand it is good for me as an O. However, all the recipes I find call for prepared horseradish which has the vinegar in it. Any suggestions? I have a big ugly root in my refrigerator vegetable bin and am not sure what to do with it! Anyway to preserve it without vinegar - like freezing maybe? Thank you. melinda

:-) That big ugly root is what real home cooks and chefs use for horseradish! Scrub it off and use a grater to add however much you need to a dish. Warning - keep your face (eyes!) well away from the grating process, as this stuff packs some chemical "heat." It does not withstand freezing, but the fridge is fine, as long as you keep the root moist. Fridge air tends to be quite dry, and horseradish prefers 90-95% humidity with a temperature of 32 to 40 degrees Fahrenheit for longer-term storage. It is a fabulous taste... enjoy it!!

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Dear Heidi, You have probably thought of this already, but could it be possible to have a TV Cooking Show, preferably with a high profile chef with street cred (such as Jamie Oliver), for instance. You would provide hime with the recipes and theoretical background so that hopefully he (or whomever is the talking head) would present them in a convincing manner. Cheerio, Jenny

Oh, I dream of it, dear. Anyone "close-in" with one of the TV cookery chefs or management? I imagine that some market-minded soul is already planning such a show, or at least will feature the BTD at some point on a program now running. If anyone has a lead we might follow up, or needs our support, just sing out! :-) thanks, Jenny!!

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and, very sincerely, thank you all!!!

Hello, Joao ~ Acne starts (as so many diseases do) in your intestinal tract. The type A diet (yoga is great for this purpose, too!) will eliminate toxins and thereby promote healthy skin. The quantities of nuts, seeds and oil recommended for type A is not excessive ~ but more important, the types of oil, nuts, etc. on your Beneficial and Neutral list will actively improve your digestion, and thus your skin. Keep reading, and give it a good try... I think you'll be very pleasantly surprised! :-)

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I am type A, my partner is type O. My question is about sheep milk products. There is nothing specific in the current literature, i.e. the four books by Peter d'Adamo (including the most recent Encyclopedia), on the subject of sheep milk, cheese, yogurt etc. I acknowledge the references that I found through the On the Diet page, but they still do not resolve my questions about the suitability of these products for As and Os. Can you please clarify? An email response would be much appreciated. I heartly applaud the wonderful work that Dr. D and all of you are doing! Thank you so much, T.Y.

:-) T, we have absolutely no rating for sheep milk products. Technically, "unknowns" may be considered "neutrals." Logically, "sheep dairy" is so close in nature to "goat dairy" that I personally view them as equivalent. Absent specific testing of sheep milk and sheep cheeses, that's as clear as I can be! and I'm so glad you're pleased with the books and the site!! :-D

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Hi, I'm wondering if you can help. I'm an A pos blood type and apparently soy sauce is OK for me to have according to the blood type diet, but wheat is not. Many soy sauces in Australia list wheat in the ingredients. Is this considered a problem? Also, what is the Amreican term for the vegetable beetroot? I can't seem to find it listed anywhere in the Blood Type Diet book. Beetroot is a bright red vegetable that grows in the ground and is sort of roundish an shape and size of a fist. I would be really grateful if you could respond. best wishes, justine.

Hello, Justine ~ Look for organic wheat-free tamari. I believe San-J is a popular international brand, you may be able to find that one. It is less of a problem for type As than for anyone else, so if you cannot find or order wheat-free tamari, just pick the best one available to you.

Beetroot? Here's one:







The leaves look like spinach or chard, most like what we call "swiss chard," very dark green with ruby-red stem and veining. The root is the deepest red, and will produce berry-like stains. Same as your beetroot? :-)



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I am A Positive-with sinus problems, tired all the time. Looking for the Foods for A Positive to eat & to avoid. Can you help me? Juices? I have migranes. Anything you can help me with will be appreciated. What is a secretor? barbara

Hello, barbara ~ have you read either of the books Eat Right 4 Your Type or Live Right 4 Your Type? They contain full food lists. Also, go to the TYPEbase 3® link (it is also on the front page of this site, www.dadamo.com) and search for individual foods there ~ that is our MOST up-to-date listing. Your migraines could be due to a number of different foods you're now eating ~ write back once you've had a look at this diet plan, and let's see what we can do! The information on secretors is right here, just click the link. Take care, and write back!

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:-)

Hi Heidi, I love your column, read it every day. Thanks for the great info. My question is regarding the liver... I've been on the O diet for 3 months and now take Deflect and Polyflora. I've had great results but I believe that my liver is still having problems. I constantly have a yellow colour to my skin which fluctuates from dark to lighter, many times after eating I feel tired, and when I eat butter, nuts/seeds or oils I get pimples on my face. I've had blood tests to check my liver and they came back okay. I'm considering doing a liver/gallbladder flush with olive oil but have heard of people having gallstones get stuck and require surgery. I'm wondering what you think of the liver flush or if you have other suggestions. Thanks so much. Amber



Hello, Amber ~ glad you like the column! I had great results from the gallbladder flushes I did, as did several of my friends. Most people I've heard from who have performed several flushes over a period of weeks had no difficulty of any kind and were very satisfied with the results. From the public reports on various health forums, message boards, etc., the only common problem I've seen is that individuals who approached the flush with trepidationa and anxiety seem to have a little more trouble getting the oil & juice down, keeping it down, and going to sleep afterwards.



I am not an expert on gallbladder flushes ~ Julia Chang is. Read her wonderful Conquering Chronic Health Problems Without Drugs or Surgery site thoroughly -- repeatedly, if necessary -- until you feel confident enough to proceed. For anyone who wishes to break up the stones before the flush, she offers Gold Coin Grass which works exactly as advertised. Enjoy your reading, and let me know your experiences if you decide to do it!



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groupA: you recommend to eat snails,but in France,we prepare them with butter.but butter for me is forbiden.does the lectine from snails neutralize from the butter? i am on the diet bood group.I have to go live in the west indies definitively.But the local products are not tested in your book.So it will be difficult for me to follow this blood group over there. Some friends of mine in guadeloupe know your books very well;and would like to follow this way of life (some of them begun already). life is very expensive in guadeloupe,and it will be a big advantage to be able to eat local food.what can you do to help us? . there are a lot of products in the west indies which are also eaten in africa and asia. If we were able to test them it will be useful for a large part of the population. merci marika



Hi, Marika ~~ If you miss your butter, use ghee (clarified butter) instead. All the taste of butter, but none of the "avoid" part ~ great for all types. Peter's BUTYRATE AND GHEE column gives basic instructions on its preparation, and some insight into its health benefits. I like snails with a little garlic-scented olive oil and salt!



Testing new foods requires significant money and professional effort ~ We hope to have more foods tested as time goes on, but I doubt we'll ever get to all of them worldwide. Just use common sense and try to find similar foods to the ones on your Beneficial and Neutral lists ~ but the most important thing is to just do your best, be content with that, and focus on the rest of your life. Hey! Have a beautiful time in Guadeloupe!!



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Hi Heidi, I would like to be able to supplement my B-type diet with some of the B-specific products that you offer. However, looking at the catalogue I find all the products very desirable and interesting but it would cost me a fortune if I tried them all! What would you suggest as a basic starter kit? I am a young, 56 year old female who does a lot of heavy gardening with the resultant aches and pains. I am in very good health, but with chronic insomnia (for which I have taken a sleep therapy workshop) and I am trying to lose about 15 lbs. I would also like to get a basic starter kit for my O-type husband who is also in very good health and is 56 years old and an avid soccer player. He suffers from mild sleep-apnea and snoring! Thanks for any help you can offer. Laurie



Greetings, Laurie! Here's what I suggest for you:



PolyFlora-B

Phytocal-B (if desired)

Methyl12 Plus (first thing in the morning, then go out & get some sun in your eyes!)

Cortiguard with your evening meal.



For your husband, eliminating wheat and dairy should keep the snoring at bay.

PolyFlora-O

PolyVite-O (if desired).



The basic starter kit for both of you, really, is the PolyFlora. I suggest the Methyl12 Plus and the Cortiguard for your sleeping difficulties ~ but you might designe some visualization exercises to be done just before bedtime for now, since type Bs frequently benefit so much from this kind of practice. See what you think, and keep me posted!



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My blood type is A. I just started the diet a few weeks ago. This week I introduced Spelt Bread. I loved it. Although, I am afraid that there is a problem with it. I have felt extremely tired this week, it almost feels like a cold. I have been blowing my nose also. Does this sound like the same symptoms that whole wheat gives due to its mucas forming properties? I have had it every day this week. I have tried the Ezekiel bread before and that gave me terrible heartburn. What bread is the most friendly in the A body that rarely has side effects? Thank you, Robin



Probably 100% sourdough rye, although what you're going through sounds as if it might be a Candida problem rather than a digestive reaction to specific grains. This question is difficult to answer without a 7-day diet sheet and a few tests, but a safe do-it-yourself way to determine what's going on is to eliminate grain and sugar for a week, and see if you feel better or worse. (Fill up on vegetables, both the leafy and the starchy varieties, and take a tablespoon of flax oil each day. And remember that warm lemon-water in the morning!) If you're feeling better at the end of the week, then add one kind of grain, one serving, and monitor your reactions. Take a couple days' break and try another grain, and so on.



If you're tired, cranky and craving sweets after being off them for a week, use the anti-Candida protocol for As in the BTD Complete Blood Type Encyclopedia. Please let me know how this works for you!



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I am a Type B. I am peri-menopausal and therefore was trying to increase my consumption of Soy products: specifically, soy milk. However I see that I am supposed to avoid soy milk on the BTD diet. Do you have any suggestions for a reasonable substitute to help with the peri-menopausal symptoms, or may I continue to consume the soy milk in reduced quantities? Angie



I would suggest instead of soy: flax oil, and maca root, both daily. Put them both in a smoothie with fruit and/or yogurt or other cultured dairy product of your choice ~ Twice daily, if you like. Try this for a week or two, and drop me a note on your progress!



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Dear Heidi, I'm following the blood type diet (O+, I don't know about secretor/non-secretor) I hade some big improvement about digestive troubles, but my doctor says it's my impression and that my problems could be psychological! It's curious ten years ago any doctor would have laugh at you if said this! Now, when they don't know what to say, they say it's all just into your head! It's not easy to find wheat-free food, especially if you work allday and come back home just for dinner. I sometimes indulge in common bread or pizza, because I like them and it's fast to buy them just outside the office. I noticed that when I do so, I have a pain/burn in my low abdomen, very similar to the pain I had one year ago with recurrent cystitis (Escherichia Coli, treated with massive antibiotics) and my mind got a little bit confused! Going back to work it's harder... Recently I had some itching and irritation in the anus zone. Which is the relationship, if existent, between Cystitis (especially after intercourses), Leaky Gut Syndrome and Periodontal Dermatitis? I've tried some Lactobacillus Acidophilus, but I'm not sure it's good for me. I used to be vegetarian and to have Seitan (wheat gluten) for protein, which I stopped. I'm only 30 and I want to behave properly concerning my health! Helly



You're right, Helly ~ it is not in your head! It is in your "other brain," or gut brain (ganglia) where the bread and pizza are setting off your body's signals to stop eating them ~ that's the confusion and dizziness. Get in touch with Stacktheme (email info@stacktheme.com) and get hold of the Encyclopedia and some PolyFlora-O (probiotic) and ARA6. Especially after the big dose of antibiotics (your intestinal creatures have never had a chance to recover) you need the probiotics and ARA6, and a strictly O diet. Use the weekends to prepare food you can eat during the week, and start with a wheat-free diet on Friday night so you'll have a couple of days to adjust. I know how hard it is to do this as an office-worker!! All I can say is, it will only get harder and illness will ensue unless you take control of your health now. You CAN do this, and all the other symptoms you've described will improve as you go along. Take care, dear, and keep in touch!!!



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My Husband and I have only been on the diet 3 days however we are both so tired !!! I have A and my hubby has AB. We feel fine except for the tiredness. Thanks, Georgie



Hello, Georgie ~ Stick with it for two weeks, and you'll be through the transition. Because your foods have changed, your intestinal flora and fauna are readjusting, and this can cause grogginess. Drink plenty of water between meals, get a little extra sleep, and hang in there! You're doing fine!! :-)



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thank you for blessing me with your hopes and your trust, everyone ~ have a beautiful day!

Hello, Zenah! Grapeseed oil is still considered "unknown" since we have not yet tested it for ABO-reactivity. If you wish, you may use it as a "neutral." :-)

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How is a green olive different from a spanish olive??? Doug

"Spanish olive" refers to the unripe and mold-susceptible green olive which has been pitted and stuffed with pimiento, then packed up with sodium alginate, calcium chloride and guar gum in salted water. "Green olive" is our term for a whole, unpitted and chemical-free green olive, preferably one bought from a reputable grocer (in other words, fresh & mold-free).

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I have ordered the supplements from Dr. Dadamo for type A. Do these supplements take into account secretor status? I am type A non secretor. Thanks Lisa

Absolutely! They are designed to accommodate secretors and nonsecretors alike!

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Heidi, how does one find out more information about their bloodtype, beyond what can be done with the home testing kit? Do regular labs do this? Maddy

Well, type As and ABs can get their A or B subtype (for purposes of the diets, only type A2 has some bearing). All of us can get our Lewis type, which usually corresponds to secretor status, as well as the MN subtype. There are some 20+ subtypes for which labs can test, but very few of these results have any relation to diet and lifestyle ~ and some of them are costly.

And yes, most labs are capable of performing these tests, but your doctor may not see any reason to order them. Southwest Naturopathic Medical Center have made things easier for us by designing a blood panel kit for collection and the requisition form to send with it to their lab ~ all you need is the blood draw. They are in Scottsdale, Arizona, phone number 602-970-0000 and fax 602-970-0003. Call or fax a request for their kit if you'd like to get the full panel. They test for ABO, A subtype, Rhesus, Lewis, and MN. :-)

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We have purchased most of your books and would like to ask a question. It is: Any stukdies done showing the actual cholesterol (HDL/LDL)#'s that correspond to the 4 different types of blood? Thanks, Shirley

Hi, Shirley ~ blood type does not dictate cholesterol levels, so for example: one type A could have a far lower level than someone who's type B, and another type A could have a higher level than that type B. A person's cholesterol "set-point," or level beyond which dietary intervention is inefficacious, appears to be a hereditary trait quite separate from ABO type. In general, though, type Os can be "OK" with a slightly higher total cholesterol reading (say, 220) than type As (who might be far better off at 180 or under), for instance.

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1. Is it a medical fact that different blood types have varying levels of acid in their digestive/elimation tact? What are the statistics for type A versus type O? 2. Is there medical proof that people with Blood Type A have more cancers in the digestive/elimation tact then other blood types? What are the statistics? Stephanie

Hello, Stephanie ~ Well, that would be a lot of statistics to type out here. May I suggest Live Right 4 Your Type's Appendix A (pp. 329-350), which is a list of scientific references for disease and digestive function as correlated with ABO type. Online, you can go to the homepage here (www.dadamo.com) and look in the lower right corner of the page. If you choose "Disease" there are eight links to more pages and more statistics & research. Then go back and choose "Physiology." Nine "modules" there. I think you'll find what you're seeking!! :-)

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I went from overactive Thyroid (Radioactive Iodine) to underactive Thyroid function. After two years my medication is doing the job but I'm still not the same person. My body went into a menopasual state (at 35) and I am battling weight, poor libedo etc. What natural things can I take while I am on artificial thyroid (Armour 2g per day) to help w/moods, love life,etc. I should also mention that altho I am over weight I skate an average of 7-12 miles a day and I cannot get the weight under control(apx. 20 pounds over weight)I am working on the diet and odly enough that was the easy part.What am I doing wrong? Debbie

Debbie! I've tried to contact you via email without success. Could you write again and let me know your blood type? For now, investigate the supplement "maca," a Peruvian plant for which the root only is used to make a rather tasty powder ~ just take as suggested on the package. It is very helpful for hormone and libido issues, for both sexes. PennHerb sells a great-quality Maca ~ they're at www.pennherb.com. I'll wait on the blood type (and give me a basic rundown of your diet, too) to see if we can tweak the eating part of the plan at all. Thanks, dear!

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Hi Heidi, thankyou so much for your informative column. I log on everyday to see whats new. Here in New Zealand more and more people are becoming convinced of the positive benefits of being "on the diet". I am a type O - non-secretor trying to be 100% compliant due to a myriad of long term health problems. Making great progress but don't want to mess up! My question is- when using aromatherapy oils, would using oils extracted from substances that are avoids eg cinnamon, orange, have a negative effect as they are absorbed through the skin and into the bloodstream. How about using them in a vapouriser? Thanks, Angela

That is great news about you Kiwis down there! ;-D and I am thrilled to hear you're seeing results from the O-non diet!! About the oils ~ The restrictions in the food lists apply only to ingested substances, i.e., stuff that passes through the digestive tract. Topical preparations and ambient scents don't count ~~ unless they produce noticeable symptoms like rash or breathing difficulties, lightheadedness, etc., they're fine for all types! :-) enjoy!!

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What's the straight scoop on dried fruit? On the one hand I read how good it is for you and on the other hand that you should stay away from it. I am a type A who lives in a part of country with long cold winters, and not much access to good, fresh fruit for much of the year. It's complicated by the fact that in the smaller urban communities there is even less access to good fruit in the winter than there might be in the larger cities. I had hoped that dried fruit would help meet my daily requirements (3 fruits a day per Dr. D'adamo's first book). Please help. Chris from Illinois.

Hello, Chris ~ must be getting chilly up there at the moment, eh? :-) The dried fruit to avoid is sulphured, sugared, preservative'd, or pesticide'd. If you use certified-organic dried fruit with no additives, you'll do perfectly fine. For millennia, our ancestors have dried fruit and other foods for use when those foods were out of season. The latter-day health-conscious objections to it revolve largely around those additives that our ancestors didn't use. Enjoy!!

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Hello, I'm a Type A who is just getting started on the Blood Type diet, and I need some guidance as I navigate my way back to health. 1. Dr. D'Adamo's "Live Right 4 Your Type" states that Type A's should consume 3-4 servings of fruit and fruit juice per week. Should this be 3-4 servings per day? Also, I was thinking about consuming a ratio of 3 servings of fruit to 1 serving of fruit juice. Does this sound appropriate? Cheers, Andrew

, also linked at the end of the "Library" section on our home page! :-)

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Where can I get diet updates. I bought the book quite a while ago and am sure that addtional foods have been added or deleted since I've purchased the book. I've been on the website that is suppose to have them but cannot locate them. Thanks, John

food database. Between the two, you'll be right up to date with the best!

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Even though a number of supplements have been noted in Dr. D'Adamo's books as being more beneficial for a particular blood type (or for a subgrouping of blood types), is it safe to say that all supplements can be beneficial to all blood types? Or, are there centain supplements which should be avoided by one type over all others? Since I am new to this (as an A+ blood type), I want to be sure that I am not taking any supplements (herbals, vitamins nor minerals) which can be toxic for my type. Andrew

as a reference.

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Since I have not been able to find any reference to this in any database nor book, is heavy whipping cream (from cow's milk) acceptable for a type A+ blood type? If not, would such cream from goat's milk be acceptable, since goat's milk is neutral for type A? Andrew

Heavy cream is indeed an avoid for type A. Goat's milk cream? that sounds great! Because of the fat content, I conjecture it would not rate better than "near neutral" for you, but until we have a decision on it from "on High," it is technically neutral! Let me know how it tastes! :-)

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Hi Heidi, I am an A+ secretor & a great fan of Japanese & macrobiotic food. Most times I can eat this sort of food but have a query as to whether I can eat umeboshi plums (pickled plums) and kuzu (thickener made from the roots of the kuzu plant). Umeboshi plums seem great for digestive problems so was wondering whether I could include them in my diet. You are doing a great job. Thanks Helen

Thank you, Helen ~ :-D Kuzu or "kudzu" root I have no listing for, so it may be considered a neutral food. Ume plums, in small amount, should be OK for you... again, it is by lack of any rating that we can use it as a neutral. I do recall that this is not a particularly vinegary preparation ~ they are very salty, but one does not get the mouthful of vinegar that a big bite of a Kosher dill pickle, for example, will produce. Do enjoy them... in moderation, OK?

:-)

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1) Can you please explain why shellfish such as shrimp, crab, scallops, etc. are "avoids" for type A? What effects do they have if consumed? 2) Have you had or heard of many successes treating Fibroid Tumors with the ERFYT plan? Any information would be appreciated - it is not for me, but for someone I am trying to "convert". Thank you for your time! Michele

snails, is just as powerful... but O Happy Day, it happens to act beneficially on the type A immune response to certain cancers. It's not a shellfish per se, but fills in admirably! Oh, and if you are a nonsecretor A, scallops are neutral... a little good news, perhaps?

Regarding your fibroid tumor question: If you mean uterine fibroids, yes, and for general health including disease aversion, she would be very wise to begin her ABO plan as soon as possible. Not knowing her type or age, there is little I can offer specifically at this time. I can tell you that the BTD Complete Blood Type Encyclopedia mentions that uterine fibroids are most common in types A and AB, and it lists protocols for treatment. Get hold of it for your friend, I am sure it will help her!! :-)

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I am a type A and have been on the diet for nearly a year I have lost a little weight but am struggling although I do appropriate exercise 4 times a week, avoid all avoids and eat plenty of HBs especially fruit and veggies ( lots of pineapple and pumpkin seeds especially). I have been reading more on the site and am starting to understand that it maybe that I am producing too much insulin due to eating certain foods eg carbs. I understand that foods such as wheat can cause this and have reduced my wheat intake. However on a list in the NAP seciton of the site it says soy can cause this, I thought this was a HB for As and have been trying to eat lots of tofu so I am rather confused that this coudl be the cause of why I cannot loose the weight. Please oculd you explain and perhaps suggest the foods I should avoid due to this reason. Is there anythign I can do to reverse the affect of increasing the insulin production except take A type deflectors which I already do. Thank you so much I am desperate to loose weight as it is really affecting my well being mentally as well as physically. Kind Regards Eleanor

Hello, Eleanor! Soy and grain are good foods for type A ~ but there are portions and frequency to consider. If you are an A2 subtype, and/or a nonsecretor, you would do best on less soy & grain, and more fish & poultry, than your A1 secretor ABO-mates. If it would be difficult for you to obtain the Saliva Secretor test from this site, you can go right ahead and just limit all grains to 5 servings per week, all beans to 3 servings per week, and eliminate any sugars or refined flour. Add a tablespoon of olive or flax oil to your diet, per day. And try eating turkey or chicken 3 times per week and fish up to 5 times per week. Have an egg or two every other day. And fill up on beneficial vegetables, especially dark leafy greens, onions, turnips, parsnips, and celery. Give it a week or two and see how you are doing! (Then drop me a note on your progress!)

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I'm a fan of the blood type diet but one thing worries me. Dr. D'Adamo says each blood type evolved thousands of years ago to digest a particular diet and I believe him, but isn't evolution an ongoing process? If a person shields their body from any food that it finds stressful isn't that going to deprive it of the chance to adapt and evolve to a wider diet? From what Dr. D'Adamo has written, it sounds as though blood-type A people adapted rapidly to a diet of mainly grains after aeons in which human beings got their protein from meat. Surely if generations of type A's ate shellfish, for example, type A's would start being born who did fine with shellfish? I'm thinking of food that occurrs naturally in nature here, not man-made pollutants like chemical pesticides etc. which I don't think anyone could adapt to. Also what do 'secretory insufficiency' and 'flocculates serum proteins or precipitates something else' mean? Congratulations on your wonderful column! Olympia

Thank you, Olympia! There's no need to fear that lack of stress will stunt our evolution, we have plenty (;-)) but rather that too much stress lays the foundation for disease and shortens our lives. Actually, he theorizes that the earliest peoples were predominantly type O ~ but type A and B were present, if in smaller numbers. As large land animals were hunted out and agriculture developed, the idea goes, those who could better handle a diet of grains, vegetables and little meat flourished. A nomadic herding existence in high altitudes suited other types better than lowland farming. Environment did not create type, it only limited or abetted its population growth. Yes, people swiftly learned to depend upon agriculture for a steady food supply, but that is not to say every type prospered upon such a diet. I can tell you personally that here we are in the 21st Century, yet I never adapted to grains! When I stopped eating them (especially wheat), and started eating red meat, my health improved greatly. Some foods stimulate antibodies by virtue of their "alien blood type" qualities, and shellfish is one of those foods for As. "Secretory insufficiency" refers to lower levels of protein-digestive or other secretions ~ therefore that food is not recommended for that time. Flocculation and precipitation are when the red blood cells clump up together in response to a substance toxic to the cells. Hope this helps, and thank you again for your kind remarks!

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I have been having allergy for 8 years. I finished just about all allerry medication now nothing is working . Finally last 2 weeks I have been following blood type " O " diate from your book and I am doing much batter. The question I have is in your diats amount of water for week 4-7 serving 8 oz per week that is 8 oz maximum per day. Is this correct. Please advise me on this matter. I will be very glad. Thank you very much. Anwar

Great news, Anwar!! That text should read, 4-7 servings per day, not per week. Thank you for writing! :-)

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i was wondering if there is any relationship between potatoes and taros? as an O type, i can eat sweet potatoes (with no concern), but was wondering about the taro. is this okay? thank you.....and btw...i love the diet and the book.... jake

Glad you are enjoying the diet, Jake. Use the

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Hello I am taking the Polyflora 'O' professional probiotic, the polyvite 'O' professional multivitamin and the phytocal 'O' mineral formula. I also follow the type O blood diet. I would like to know if I could safely use the harmonia ABO friendly green drink as a breakfast drink on top of what I do currently? Also can I use the deflect 'O' lectin blocker as a sort of an "after the fact pill" that will heal my body if I occasionally eat an avoid type food? Silvia

Sure, absolutely. Yes to both! Deflect-O® will help by luring away lectins that would otherwise have attached to your tissues. It does help heal by scrubbing old, lectin-damaged cells over time. :-)

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we've found out we're 0 negative. What relevance does +ve & -ve have in the d'adamo scheme? mossey

For Rh-negative Os and Bs, it means a bit more meat and a bit less grain than the Rh-positives of either type. The difference is around one serving per week for each category.

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I"m brazilian. I"m not sure about the classification of my ancestries, because my ancestries came from Italy, Portugal and Brazil. Are they classified as africans, caucasians or asiatics? I hope your answer. Thanks a lot. Hilson

Hello, Hilson ~ That's hard to say. One way to determine this is to do a little family research, and see how far back your various European ancestries can be traced. Without knowing your family history, it sounds as if Caucasian is probably your predominant bloodline, so go with that one if nothing else presents itself definitively. It is not a major consideration with the diet, just a refining guideline. If you're still unsure but feel that Caucasian does not fit, drop me another line with more details! :-)

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and many thanks to ALL for writing!!

Jacquelyne in the UK is working on a cookbook along BTD principles. She gently reminded me today that she’s had a handful of questions outstanding for some time now... :-} I know we have a multitude of readers from the UK, as well as fish, liver, curry & cheese fans either side the Pond, so, here we go!



Can I count sheep's cheese, yogurt, fromage fraiche, etc the same as for goat's cheese?

Certainly. Goat milk, sheep milk ~ the differences are so minor as to be insignificant when encountered by the human digestive tract.



Calve's liver appears in your lists but why has lambs' liver and that old favourite chicken liver been neglected. Should we all avoid? Also when you speak of curry powder are we talking about garam masala? And what are the ingredients. Over in the UK curry powder (I believe unknown in India) can consist of a whole variety of things. Please help!

If an animal’s muscle meat is neutral or beneficial for a given type, the organ meats thereof rate neutral or better ~~ due to the concentration of vitamins and other nutrients in that "fifth quarter" of the animal.

"Curry" has a place in the food lists because it is a spice combination found in every U.S. supermarket spice rack. The components tend to vary little from brand to brand, so the rating was based upon the standard ingredient list on the average product found in the supermarket. There is wiggle room, as you can see in the Live Right 4 Your Type lists, since some blood groups who do great with turmeric (the largest ingredient in most store-bought "curry powder") do far less well with some of the other ingredients, and vice versa. Yes, we are technically talking about garam masala, but truly a mild and middle-of-the-road commercial variety most commonly composed of turmeric, ginger, coriander, cumin, fenugreek, pepper, clove, cinnamon and garlic ~ and although you didn't ask this, we certainly do not mean "curry leaf" which I’ve seen in the UK but never here.



Can I assume that the listing for shrimp would also apply to prawns?

Sure. Shrimp, prawns... or "scampi" in Italy. All those little shrimp-similar crustaceans.



Me again, sorry! Does skate (order Rajiformes) or ray (order Myliobatiformes) feature in your testing? Or is this a fish only found in British waters? Can it be classified? Many thanks!

I’ve eaten skate in the U.S. (delicious!!), from New York to Florida. There are 20+ species swimming in our coastal waters, all loosely called "skate," most indeed belonging to the genus Raja. I’m sorry to report we have no listing for skate or rays, and I would not conjecture about them at this time as is sometimes my wont. Until they are tested and rated, they may be technically considered "neutral," and goodie for me cuz I adore them.



We have a fish in the UK called red mullet (or goatfish or surmullet), is this any relation to your red snapper? Then there is also grey mullet - is this what you call mullet in the Encyclopaedia?

Our "mullet" is Mullus auratus, also your "red mullet," "goatfish," and "surmullet." Same fishy. We, too, call it "red mullet," and that is what we most commonly see on our fishmonger’s ice-pile: plump little red-silver guys, perhaps five to seven inches in length. Your "gray mullet" is Mugil cephalus, a slightly larger and stouter creature (a bit rough-hewn round the head) sometimes called "striped mullet," and not as readily available here on the Eastern Seaboard – but any of the Mullus and Mugil genus can be considered identical to our "mullet" for rating purposes. Our red snapper is a much larger fish, genus Lutjanus ~ and several species applicable, depending upon which State one fishes from: the far western islands of Hawaii, the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean, the coast of North Carolina. They’re all red snapper to us!

Here’s a nice portrait, with measurements, of the fish I see everywhere here in the Northeast: ~ Lutjanus campechanus, on every NYC menu!



I thought that porgy (neutral A/O and beneficial B/A was the same as scup (neurtral O/B/AB and avoid A) according to various websites and yet there are different in the Encyclopeadia. The name Stenotomus chrysops seems to point to both. But my real question is - is this fish (or one of them) any relation to the UK Bream as I have never seen porgy or scup over here? Many thanks

"PorGEE, I’ze your woman now... I is, I is, and....".. whoops, slipped into a Gershwin moment there. Here’s our humble "porgy:" Chrysophrys auratus which our government would like us to call "squirefish" and which everyone calls "porgy" anyway. It is, for us, a Pacific catch, reaching so far west in its range that it has managed to pick up the nomen Australia Red Seabream ~ but has not, I fear, reached so far as your eastern shores! Never eaten one, sorry to say, and from its demeanor I'd wager we're neither of us missing much. Now, your S. chrysops IS our "scup" ~ wish I had another attractive pic for your comparison, but it is not such a large-scale food fish here (where all these delightful food ratings were born) that the FDA site would waste bandwidth on its image. :-> I strongly suspect your "bream" is our "Atlantic pomfret" (or just "pomfret" or "bream") ~ Brama brama ~ sounds like bull but it ain't. Oh ~ and we’re so special over here in the Colonies that we have a "Pacific pomfret" as well: Brama japonica. Whole lotta fishin’ goin’ on! But of course all this is of little help to you, since I’ve no snazzy pic to offer nor any rating for B. spp. Another neutral international fish for the record, and who can say we might not benefit from a bit more neutrality in this tumultuous world of ours? :-D

Jacquelyne, thank you for your questions... and the reminder! :-> Best of luck in your work, and DO keep in touch!! :-D

Several readers have expressed an interest in home-cultured foods and have requested references on how-to and what-to-do-what-to, etc. ;-)

One approach is the use of kefir-grains. I suggest a thorough reading of "Dom's Kefir In-Site" pages, linked here and here. The process sounds quite complex at first glance, but is quite understandable and doable after a few passes through the text and a couple of test batches at home.

In the beginning of January, 2001, "Marlese" posted to the old message board some tips on cultured nuts/seeds she'd picked up in Natalie Cederquist and James Levin's book, Vibrant Living. I would also suggest taking a look at the book, since she mentions there are a number of different kinds of foods used in their recipes. I've reproduced her post in full here below:

Cultured Live Food Recipes: LONG

Posted By: Marlese O+

Date: Wednesday, 3 January 2001

Claire West asked for these, but I thought other people might be interested, so I’m posting here. I’m going to post the original recipe, and then each blood type can feel free to substitute avoids with HBs and neutrals. Cultured live foods have living enzymes, airborne lactobacillus, and lots of other good stuff. It’s also good for people who have difficulties digesting nuts because the culturing process breaks down some of the proteins and fats and pre-digests the food to a degree. I’m very allergic to nuts, but have absolutely no problems eating them this way. Except that they’re still fattening. Very fattening. It’s easy to overeat them in this form, but they do have nice milky feel which us O’s can miss sometimes.

I got all of the recipes from Vibrant Living by Natalie Cederquist and James Levin. When I was eating raw, I would use recipes from this book when I started getting bored. As an O, I simply couldn’t thrive on a vegan diet, and wasn’t willing to eat raw meat (except for ground beef, of course). But the raw movement has come up with lots of nice ways to eat seaweeds, fruits and veggies without destroying their benefits by cooking them. I’d recommend the book to anyone and am grateful to Claire for making me dust it off. I had forgotten some of this great stuff.

Basic Sun Almond Seed Cheese

½ c raw sunflowers (if subbing, use lean seed like pumpkin)

1 c raw almonds (if subbing, use richer nut like pine or filbert)

2 c clean (spring or filtered) water, or Rejuvelac (recipe below)

1 teaspoon(t) white miso

1. Grind the nuts into a powder (I use Vitamixer but blender might work), toss in water and miso and blend till mixed.

2. Pour mixture into a glass jar, cover with a towel, and let it sit on your kitchen counter for 8-20 hours. The longer it sits, the more of a sour flavor it gets. I like 10 hours.

3. If you used a regular blender, there will be "whey" on the bottom and "cheese" on top. Just scoop off the cheese and store in fridge (to make it even thicker, line a mesh colander with cheese cloth and let sit draining over a bowl in your fridge for a day). If you used a Vitamixer, the whole thing will be a softer sort of cheese.

Dream de la Cream (holy cow, does this live up to its name)

1/3 c raw macadamia

2/3 c cashews

½ c almonds

1 c clean water or Rejuvelac

Same as steps 1-3 above, only don’t let it sit more than 8-12 hours. This is a more delicate mix, probably because of the higher fat content, which will spoil if left out too long. But it’s delicious.

Seasoned Nut Cheese

1 c almonds

1 Tablespoon(T) nut butter

1 T Golden or white miso

¼ c chopped onion

1 chopped garlic clove

2 t umeboshi plum (I’m not sure if this is OK for O’s, but I don’t add anymore. Can substitute a pinch of sea salt)

optional: herbs like basil, oregano, cumin, dill, dulse etc. Fresh is best, but in a pinch, can grind dried herbs in mortar and pestle first to release flavor.

1. In glass jar or bowl, cover almonds with water and let soak overnight (8-12 hours) on your counter.

2. Drain almonds and toss into blender or Vitamixer with the rest of the ingredients.

3. Pour into glass container, cover with towel, and let sit on your counter for 6-10 hours.

REJUVELAC—stinky and hard to get right, but it has tons of B vitamins, enzymes, lactobacillus and lots of good stuff. Some people even claim to like the taste. Weirdos. I think it’s good mixed with other stuff like cold soups or juices. If you use it to make seed cheese, they culture a lot faster.

½ c wheat berries

6 c clean water

optional: ¾ c raisins

1. Soak the wheat berries for 24 hours.

2. Sprout the wheat berries for 2 days.

3. Toss sprouts in blender with 1 cup water and chop to break them up. If you’re using a Vitamixer, resist the temptation to blend; CHOP ONLY. If you’re going to add the raisins, now’s the time to do it. The sugar helps the taste and fermentation process. Add another cup water and blend a bit more.

4. Pour the mixture and 4 cups water into a large enough glass jar, like an iced tea jar, cover with a towel, and let the whole thing sit on your counter for 3 days. Stir it twice each day.

5. At the end of the third day, it should smell sour like lemons and sauerkraut. If it smells bad, DO NOT DRINK IT. That means that the unfriendly bacteria have taken over. This is what makes it difficult to make. There are so many variables over a three day period that it’s hard to control each batch. I spoiled my first few batches, so don’t be discouraged. I think everybody did. If the batch is good, it helps you detox and aids in food digestion. Start with 1 cup a day and work up slowly from there (don’t rush because you’ll detox too hard).

6. Strain off liquid and store in fridge for up to 2 weeks. There are lots of recipes for using this stuff, like blending it with fruit into smoothies. It’s kind of bubbly and mixes well.

7. If you want, you can take the strainings from the last batch, add 6 more cups of water, and let it ferment for 3 days, stirring twice a day like before. The second batch is lighter in taste.

I hope these suggestions get the home-cultured-foodies off to a great start! and, thanks, Marlese!! :-)

I get a few cards & letters each week, from every corner of the world, requesting information on where to go to get a secretor status test.



There are two ways of determining one's secretor "type." The "gold standard" is the salivary inhibition, or SALIVA SECRETOR TEST ~ its accuracy closely approaches 100%.



This test procedure was developed in conjunction with Great Smokies Diagnostics Laboratories here in the eastern United States, and is not generally available worldwide. While North American Pharmacal can send you the test in the U.S., it is advisable to follow the recommended collection and shipment procedures to the letter if you are sending your sample during warm weather or from very far away (Hawaii, for example). There are some exceptions as to whence NAP can accept these orders: namely, New York State and Canada, due to laws in force that prohibit the shipment of saliva across those borders. To order the saliva secretor test from NAP, click here!



CANADA: Francoise Ouellet has been facilitating secretor test orders for Canadians for over a year now. She lives quite near the U.S. border, and has legal means of requesting, delivering and shipping the tests. Her French BTD mirror site can be found at www.abovie.com, and her email address is sherbrooke@abovie.com. Yes, she speaks English! :-) She is a devoted friend, and this service is only one of the many she has performed over the years for our BTD family.



GREAT BRITAIN and EUROPE: NAP products, including the saliva test, are distributed in all EEC countries by Stacktheme Ltd., the official NAP European distributor. Continental customers may wish to contact Stacktheme Europe for expedited customer service and delivery.



SOUTH AFRICA: Contact the "Western Cape Blood Transfusion Service" at (021) 507 6300 and ask for the Serology Department. They perform both the saliva test and the Lewis test.



The second way to find one's place in the secretor/ nonsecretor universe is to request your "LEWIS TYPE." This is a blood test, and laboratories around the world are equipped to do it on the request of your doctor or clinic. You may well find that your physician or clinic lab head has never heard of it. Don't let that deter you. Contact the lab who usually performs tests for your physician, and ask them to explain it to your ol’ doc there. The labs will know what Lewis typing is.



AUSTRALIA:



Over a year ago, I heard from two Australians who had tracked down the LEWIS test at labs near them. Analytical Reference Laboratories in Melbourne (phone 03 9328 3586, contact name Colm Benson) had plans at that time (February 2001) to offer the saliva test sometime in the future, and now just might be that future. :-) For now, ARL do offer the Lewis test and can coach one’s GP in its significance and interpretation.



General Diagnostic Laboratories, also in Melbourne. Their address is 68 Burwood Highway, Burwood -- consult the local telephone directory for their phone number.



Western Diagnostic Pathology, 74 McCoy St in Myaree WA 6154 (contact Tracey Dickson, 08 9317 0864) is another Australian lab familiar with Lewis typing (and with the Blood Type Diets).





Now, once you’ve obtained your Lewis test result, here is the key to its interpretation:



Le a- b+ This is a Secretor!



Le a+ b- This is a Nonsecretor!



Le a- b- (rare) This is a Lewis Negative person, who may be either a secretor or nonsecretor ~ saliva testing necessary to be sure. Peter recommends these folks use the nonsecretor diet, since their particular health concerns tend to coincide with those of nonsecretors.



Le a+ b+ (VERY rare) Like the Lewis Negative, the Lewis Positive (double positive?) person would need the saliva test to determine secretor status conclusively.



OK! Wherever in the world you are, there is probably a laboratory within hailing distance to help you discover your place in the secretor/nonsecretor yin & yang. Do a bit of "continuing education" on your doctor, contact labs direct if need be, and Good Hunting to you! :-)

---

Hello, Anna! I'm pleased to hear your immunity is up!! But don't be puzzled by what the drugs are doing (or not doing): treatment of Candidiasis through medication almost always leads to a relapse. Drugs cannot address the cause, of course, and that's our byword here ~ but most significantly, it worsens the situation by killing a bunch of beneficial, protective critters along with the overgrown Candida albicans organisms (who are present in healthy people as a normal state of affairs, but at far lower numbers). Then you're right back where you started, with the stage set for those feisty C. albicans to take over once again. The motto of "anti-candida" drug therapy is: Kill Them All ~ Let God Sort Them Out. It's as if you've put down the insurrection by overpowering all the rioters, along with all your own guards and the rest of the innocent populace! Guess who's going to get up first, brush themselves off and start growing faster than ever?? As Peter wrote so succinctly in the BTD Complete Blood Type Encyclopedia, "Ironically, one of the primary factors in recurrent yeast infections is long-term overuse of antibiotics." Let's explore the life-enhancing (naturopathic) approach.

The key to re-establishing a happy colony for your colon (and farther up) is to provide, and feed, the good guys who are struggling right now in a toxic environment. You see, it is they whose job it is to maintain your intestinal "balance of power." :-) Not to mention digest your food and ensure a strong immune system. Cultivate them and feed them right, and everybody's gonna be smiling.

To do so: yes, I would eliminate all wheat except for 100% sprouted grains or breads. If you're serious about getting things back to normal in a hurry, ditch all grains for a month or two. There's nothing in them nutritionally that you require for a perfect diet, and you can add them gradually later on when the yeast uprising has been put down. Second, emphasize those cultured dairy products, like goat yogurt, kefir, and sheep's milk feta and other goat & sheep-based cheeses. They contain protein, calcium and gut-organism boosters for you. Third, make your own fiber-rich "pesto" from a few tablespoons each of raw walnuts & flax seeds, a couple of handfuls of cilantro (the leaves of the coriander plant), three or four cloves of garlic, some olive oil, and a touch of sea salt to taste. Whiz it up in your blender, and take a tablespoon every day ~ it also makes a lovely dressing for salads or hot dishes when stirred into enough oil & lemon to produce the desired consistency. I'd make sure to get an abundance of dark green leafy vegetables every day, along with the beneficial meats and oils (include some walnut oil in salad dressings) and make use of warming spices ~ peppers, turmeric, local horseradishes, ginger.

Since you're in Malaysia, I'm sure you'll have to adjust these suggestions somewhat due to foods unavailable to you there ~ just do your best!

On the supplement side, the following are of great help: ARA6 powder, two tablespoons per day (reduce to one after a month, if desired), and the PolyFlora-B probiotic, both available from our site. If it's not practical for you to obtain these, try the following for 4 weeks ~ take a two-week break, then start again if things still haven't settled down: Elecampane (Inula helenium), 500 mg: 1 capsule with meals; Coriander seed (Coriandrum sativum) tincture: 2-3 drops, twice daily; oregano (Origanum vulgare) tincture: 4-7 drops, twice daily. And use a good commercial probiotic ~ type Bs do fine with most of them.

About the polycystic ovarian syndrome: Peter wrote this Ask Dr. D. response to a type O woman with PCOS, and as it happens, his explanation of the condition and advice on how to resolve it is perfectly applicable to type B (all types, actually), as well. His first suggestion is to follow that B diet, as you are doing! An excerpt:





Now to durian: we have no rating for it at this time ~ until we do, it may be considered "neutral," but if one is attempting to resolve any health issue, unlisted foods are probably better left alone for the time being!

thank you for writing, and I hope to hear soon that you're on the mend!!

:-)

Dear Dr D'Adamo, I am a registered dietitian and in reference to your "as I see it" piece, I cannot agree with you more. There are many RDs who feel as I do and we are trying to be heard. I have used your diet to help dozens of people. I work with an oncology dept of a hospital (and the general public as well) and we are encouraged to design and run studies. I would love to figure out a way to show my oncologists the legitimacy of the blood type diet. Do you have copies of your studies at Bastyr or can you tell me how to get them? I went to hear you speak in Ridgewood NJ several months ago. Many thanks, Stephanie

You said it, Stephanie! :-) What good news that the word is spreading among RDs... that is music to my ears. I'm posting your entry here to alert Peter to your praise, and your request! THANKS!



hi heidi, do you know if peter is considering having the stearates removed from his nutritional products. I feel this would make his products unsurpassed in the health field. Stearates and fillers can cause difficulties in sensitive people like myself and others I've spoken with. Would appreciate if you would pass this along to Peter as well as giving him my best. thank you. Regards, Robert C.

Hi, Robert ~ it's always so good to hear from you! I remember you're type O... I've had similar comments from only two type As, but there must be a small percentage (a good handful in terms of numbers) of people who are sensitive enough to have some untoward reactions to the fillers, so I thought I'd put your suggestion up here so that Peter & Martha may evaluate it for further study. I have seen first-hand over the years how deeply committed they are to excellence in all they do. Keep in touch! and thanks for your thoughtful note!!



Heidi, You recommended the book Meditation as Medicine again today in your response. I got curious and looked at it on Amazon.com then called the local bookstore and plan to go buy the book tonight or tomorrow. While I am there I might look for the book Jerky that you mentioned some time ago too. I am interested in trying to make jerky since I haven't found any free from avoids in the local stores. I was wondering if there are any other books that you or Dr. D'Adamo recommend. Winter is coming and I need things to read while I am curled up under a blanket in front of the fireplace ;-) Thanks, Don

Gee, thanks for the casual mention of your fireplace, Don. Now I can curl up in front of my sooty-flaky heating pipes here in NYC and imagine you there with a roaring fire. Wow. I thought you were my friend!!! ~~;-D Well, it's dangerous to ask me about recommended cozy winter reading. Do you like poetry? How about Seamus Heaney's The Spirit Level? Certainly the finest living poet, and far & above most of the dead guys. You might even start with his first tiny chapbook, Death of a Naturalist and work your way along. Pure joy! Next: Capitalism: The Unknown Ideal, by Ayn Rand. Revelations in pure reason, one upon another. Mind as Healer, Mind as Slayer, Kenneth R. Pelletier, Ph.D., which goes nicely with the CLASSIC: Hans Selye's The Stress of Life ~ not that stress will be weighing much on your mind, all cozy by the hearth there! :->

Peter? :-D



Have had a lot of pennies drop since reading LR4YT confirming conclusions drawn over a long period of trial and erring. Thanks for developing and sharing this information. Is there a source for a secretor test in Canada? Thanks, Bruce

Hi, Bruce ~~ I'm very pleased that you've found the best health plan of the 20th AND 21st centuries! Thank you for your kind words!! I'm not sure at this time where the situation stands with secretor tests in Canada, so I'm posting your query here. When I have an answer, I'll forward it to you... thanks again, and may you prosper! :-)



Dr. D. Hello, First I wanted to personally thank for you saving my life. I was diagnosed with RA 6 years ago (suffering for 10 years, since I was 21) I was unable to walk, my doctors gave up on me and told me to get a wheelchair and go on Chemotherapy. I told them to "buzz off". Finally after searching the Internet for years on end trying thousands of products - I found out I was O type and was allergic to all wheat products. After 1 week on the diet I was Pain Free! I took lots of Omega 3/6 with my Ultra Clear shakes. Now I'm eating lots of red meat and probably too much protein and not enough fruits/veggies and fiber. What do you recommend for constipation? I bought a vita-mix blender to help make veggie/fruit shakes to get more fiber. Do I need more flora? Thank you for any help. I prayed to god to take my life or find me health from the pain I went through - thank god for Dr. D and his family's research. --Take Care-- (On the O type diet for 1 year.) Kevin

Kevin, your spirit is so powerful, it jumps off the page! I'm in awe of your accomplishments. The fruit & veg smoothies/juices will probably take care of the constipation, but you can certainly add a tablespoon or two of freshly ground flaxseed (soaked for 15-20 minutes in enough water to cover) -- it's great not only for the EFAs, but for the fiber. Get some raw vegetables into yourself every day, and consider adding some prunes -- you can juice them yourself if you like. Two supplements that may speed your progress are the PolyFlora-O probiotic, and ARA6 which is a food for the critters and a fiber for the bowel, as well as a great anti-oxidant. THANK YOU for your great praise of Peter & family (I feel the same way! :-)), and I'm posting your message here to make sure they see it!!



Dear Martha and Peter, my life has been so enriched by your many kindnesses so inspired by your accomplishments, and so enlivened by your friendship and your trust... well, words just don't do the job. I'm grateful I am alive on this earth while you are. It has been a stupendous blessing to me and to countless others ~ who keep telling me about it. ;-) love, ^heidi^

:-)