Dr. Tom Greenfield

Hello, My son is blood type A non-secretor. I know that sucanat is an avoid. In many different organic products we find sweeteners like evaporated cane juice, dehydrated cane juice, granulated cane juice, invert cane juice, are they all like sucanat, an avoid for type A non-secretor? Is cane juice different from the raw form of cane sugar? I would appreciate any information about this type of sweetener.
I have started following the BTD for about one month. Thank you.

Marie Claire

Evaporated cane juice is often described as a healthy alternative to refined sugar, as it retains more of the nutrients found in sugar cane. Sucanat® (a contraction of SUgar CAne NATural) is a type of evaporated cane juice[1], which unlike blackstrap molasses, has a relatively high sugar content.

For an individual of blood type A who is a non-secretor of their blood type, foods high in sugar are not a good food choice, due in part to the fact that ABH non-secretors have a greater risk of both metabolic syndrome and also of diseases due to lower levels of immunoglobulin antibodies[2].

References:

1. Ashley. Evaporated Cane Juice & Unrefined Powdered Sugar, in: Blog: Sweet & Natural Published December 17, 2008
2. Secretor Status, in The Individualist Wiki.

Dear Dr. Greenfield,

I own the English original of "Eat right for your type". I recently bought a German translation for a friend. The lists of food stuff are not the same. E.g. in the type O beneficial fruit list it has cherries, blueberries and mangoes in addition to figs and plums. Did Dr. D'Adamo change the lists or were the German translators inventive?

Thanks in advance,

Best, Claudia

The German edition of Eat Right 4 Your Type, published as 4 Blutgruppen - Vier Strategien für ein gesundes Leben was published in hardback in 1998, and then in paperback in January 2001. The later German edition appears to have been updated with the new food lists that were available after new research for the American publication of Live Right 4 Your Type (and English The Eat Right Diet), the Complete Blood Type Encyclopedia, and online in Typebase 4. The American and English editions of Eat Right 4 Your Type have not been updated since they were published. Also read this clarification about differences between the books.

hello- I have been using the blood type diet for approx 4 yrs with great success. My blood type is A, and in Jan. I switched to the geno diet. I must say that the experience has not been good. I would hve considered myself to been in good shape, I eat great healthy and excercise almost 4-5 times a week. Since Jan I have had an eruption in the corner of my mouth that tingles. It is now after 5 months looking better, but the area remains sensitve. Now for the 3rd time since the end of April I have a itchy red rash on my face. It seems to last for 10 days, go away for a couple of days and then its back. Nothing I do seems to help, any suggestions?

The eruption on your mouth sounds like symptoms of the herpes virus. You can get this confirmed by your naturopathic or conventional doctor. As a short term measure the amino acid lysine can often help with the symptoms of active herpes infection. Long-term you should get your naturopath to address the focus of infection, which can be anywhere in the body.

You told us your blood group but did not say whether you are a secretor or non-secretor, and what your GenoType is - Teacher, Explorer or Warrior - all these make a difference to the detoxification process. When starting the GenoType Diet if you avoid the black dot foods for some time this will enhance the body's detoxification process. Sometimes detoxifying can bring on a healing crisis, which can take many forms depending on individual circumstances.

hi tom! i'm writing an article for teenagers, and am giving a very introductory picture of the blood type diet. can you give me a brief description of how, if at all, your rh factor affects your metabolism or food choices? it would really help me (and the readers)!

thanks so much,
adina

In the Rhesus blood group the main antigens are C, D, E, c and e (capital letters and lower case letters are different antigens). The Rhesus antigens come from two adjacent gene loci, the RHD gene which encodes the D antigen and the RHCE gene which encodes both the C and E antigens. There is no d antigen: Rhesus "d" signifies the absence of the D antigen (the RHD gene is usually non-functional or null), and that person is described as Rhesus (D) negative. Similar to non-secretor status, Rhesus negative is traditionally a "recessive" phenotype, which means in practice that if an individual has no functional Rhesus (D) genes, they are classed as Rhesus negative, but inheriting at least one Rhesus (D) gene will give that person the Rhesus (D) positive phenotype. The Rhesus negative phenotype is generally less common than Rhesus positive. Unlike the ABO blood group antigens, the resulting Rhesus blood group antigen is limited to the red blood cells.

Rhesus D incompatibility is best known as the main cause of newborn fatal blood reactions in the children of Rhesus negative women. Lesser known associations with the Rhesus blood group system are Natural Killer Cell (immune system) activity, transport of ammonia in the kidney and susceptibility to urinary tract tumours, myasthenia gravis, ovarian cysts and tumours, and spinal osteochondrosis. Offspring of a Rhesus positive mother may be more prone to hearing loss.

The question of Rhesus blood group significance is often asked in relation to the Blood Group Diet, but the Rhesus factor takes on a new and greater significance with The GenoType Diet: Rhesus negative phenotype can make a difference to individuals in both systems.

In Live Right 4 Your Type, individuals with Rhesus negative phenotype will find that there are specific recommendations for frequency of eating certain food groups: fewer portions of grain (blood groups A, B and O), fruit (blood group A), and more protein (blood groups B and O).

For an individual's GenoType, being Rhesus negative can mean the difference between being one GenoType or another. The GT4 Explorer is often Rhesus negative, which can change the entire diet and lifestyle advice for that individual.

Here are some questions about food status:

Dr. Tom, Hi
I'm a non-secretor O+, MN, Lewis a+ b- which I have recently found out and am still trying to digest (in more ways than one.) My question: what about goji berries (aka ninja berries, wolf berries, lycii berries)? I like to mix these with chocolate nibs for a quick snack. Any thought? Thanks, Jenn

and:

I am type A. I have been drinking Kombucha tea for quite some time. Is this good for my type?
Stacy

Both goji berries and kombucha are unlisted for the blood group diet, which means that they can be treated as neutral until further information is available. If you find out your GenoType and look in the GenoType Diet book or website you will find that your favourite unlisted foods and drinks may be listed there as a superfood or as an avoid!