I am sure that blood-type eating assists digestion. I find it hard to believe that it renders other digestive planning of no use. Let us consider a meal of mashed potatoes and meat. If some digestion of protein is to take place in the acid stomach certainly the presence of potato will not help the achievement of the proper acidity. OK---the body will muddle through and get the job done to some extent but if we are trying to optimize digestion why introduce this complication???----even if it is done every day all over the world.

Hi, Ralph! nice to hear from you! If my failing memory serves, you're type B, right?

The nice thing about Peter's blood type books is their emphasis on accessibility to the average person facing this science for the first time. You're right: the meat-and-potatoes (or -rice, or -bread, or -pasta) meal is on every non-vegetarian restaurant's menu worldwide, as well as being the convention for most home cooks.

Not only is this the customary meal plan in well-fed households, it is also a stomach-filling strategy for the poor. Small amounts of expensive meats, fowl or fish can make a satisfying meal if stretched with starch.

You're also perceptive in noting that protein digestion (supported by a more acid digestive environment) is not necessarily aided by the presence of foods which are better assimilated in a slightly more alkaline mix. This seems to vary widely by individual, with some reporting greatly improved digestion through separating starches from flesh foods, some who find that vegetable starch (even from potatoes) -- as opposed to grain starch -- is fine with meats, and others noticing little difference.

Anyone consulting a naturopath versed in ABO lore will come away with a far more specific set of recommendations than a popular health book could provide, naturally. For instance, an Indican test will disclose how efficiently your particular digestive system is doing its job. That's not a test we can perform at home. However, Peter's books clearly mark out the head of the trail, if you will, for the average reader. The journey itself can involve many byways, the choice of which is up to the goals and abilities of each person on the journey.

By following that path, other needed adjustments naturally make themselves known to us. It's been the experience of hundreds I've heard from... including myself.

However, in fairness, I think this calls for a column on classic food-combining this coming week. I hope to enlist the aid of some old friends! Stay tuned!!