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Congratulations on your upcoming wedding! Shea, for this special occasion, a little reg'ler cake will do most folks no harm... but if you'd truly prefer a BTD-compliant wedding cake, let's give it a shot! I do hope this column "hits the air" in time to be of some help to you. :-D



Depending on your tolerance of grain, sugar and dairy, whether the cake will be homemade or ordered from a baker, and the size of your guest list, there are a number of options to consider.



(1) White spelt is an excellent substitute for the wheat flour used in cake recipes. If your organic grocer doesn't carry organic white spelt flour, it can be obtained through the Purity Foods or Frankferd Farms sites, for example. It is an avoid for nonsecretor Os, but if you "test-drive" some spelt bread before deciding on your wedding cake recipe, you'll know if it'll pass muster for you on this one occasion. We don't want the bride doubled over due to the wrong cake grain!! There are spelt cake recipes galore on the Internet and in cookbooks too numerous to list here, so if you can enlist the cooperation of the baker, you're set!



(2) Eggwhite-based batter is another way to get round the wheat problem. Many commercial bakers will make a genoise, or "flourless" cake for you. Because these cakes are softer, moister and of a more delicate texture, it may affect your original design -- wider than tall may be necessary in order to avert collapse! Nut flours (almond, walnut, hazelnut) take two minutes to make in a blender, and are great additions to genoises for the "stand-up" texture they confer, but if your guest list is too large to ascertain whether any person may be allergic to nuts, it may be better to use another method rather than risk a case of anaphylactic shock at the reception. :-} As with spelt, there are scads of flourless cake recipes on the Net, and in a multitude of cookbooks. Browse, pick & choose as your heart desires.



(3) If you'd like an alternative to sugar, consider vegetable glycerine, a remarkable, lectin-free liquid sweetener made from coconuts. Get this: it actively stabilizes blood sugar levels rather than bouncing them around as refined sugar does. It's magic in baked goods -- tastes like sugar, no odd or overpowering flavor or aftertaste like stevia or molasses, and adds loft and moisture. NOW and Heritage are two brands which come to mind. Your health food store may carry one or both, and in any case they can order some for you. At the moment, Harvest Moon has the 16 oz. NOW product on sale. :-D



(4) Buttercream frosting can be made with butter or ghee, sugar or veg gly, and your chosen flavorings (almond, lemon... vanilla is neutral for O secretors now, by the way!). Glaze is a snap with veg gly as the base.



"Sucrose" is the two-molecule simple sugar that we know as... well, as "sugar." :-) It is present in many whole foods along with its companion elements. The immense quantities of refined varieties of sugar in the average American diet are contributors to type II diabetes, immune dysfunctions, and a load of other ailments. No lectin is involved -- it's rather a metabolic tolerance issue. But again, most people deal with small amounts without adverse result. Let your own body be your guide. :-)



Fruit is best eaten alone, on an empty stomach. When eaten with other items, grains in particular, it tends to push its way to first-in-line in the digestive queue. That said, many people have no trouble with fruit/meat combinations in meals, and some enjoy fruit/grain/dairy desserts without complaint. Test your own reactions eating it with or after foods of various kinds, and look for discomfort or gas -- if present, you may be better off including it as your day-starter.



I wish you all the best, and truly hope these notes will contribute to a very happy and healthy wedding day for you and your husband ~ and many joyful years to follow! Good Luck!!

I love this one size DOESN'T fit all diet. I have been doing the A+ blood type diet for just over four years now and am so thankful to be feeling better and doing better.

I went probably 5 or 6 years getting abnormal paps. My last two were normal. I have ALWAYS had problems with digestion--from grade school on. Lots of heart burn and constipation starting from the 4th or 5th grade at least. And to this day, have a problem with bad breath and strong offensive orders when I go to the bathroom, but no more constipation or heartburn.



IS THERE ANYTHING I CAN DO to correct these current and on-going problems? And what tests might be good preventative measures? (I did go off my diet on Labor Day and enjoyed two helpings of potato salad. I had heartburn so bad that night that I began to be concerned--and then I remembered what I had done. Before the blood type diet I ALWAYS had terrible heartburn and had "learned to live with it". I certainly believe that your information is saving/prolonging and enhancing my life.)



Two years ago I had a 10-times enlarged parathyroid removed--high calcium in the blood. The surgeon said that I more than likely had the problem for many, many, many, years. I am now 55 years old and have also been taking natural hormones for five years. I take your Phytocal A now, have started walking again 30 minutes every day (quit just before the surgery because I was so exhausted all the time), and will be ordering your snail product this next week.



I recently sent off your secretor test after I found out that I had gone into the osteoporosis level. I just got the results back a few days ago and am a non-secretor. I noticed that the soy foods are neutral for non-secretor A's. Does that mean that A's that are non-secretors don't have such a sigificant challenge with female cancers? Or is there less protection for us?



I LOVE the tier one and two. I try to do as many tier one beneficials as possible. Under the Neutral/General section for fish for the non-secretor, can you tell me which beneficial fish would be on the tier one list? Also is sugar on the tier one or two for non-secretors? Again, am so thankful for such great research in such an easy to read format that is so basic and gives each person a hands-on in our own health care. I had encouraged my sister who's O+ and has fibromyalgia to use your program and was really happy for her that she is doing just that. One of my brothers does Jinsinjitsu healing and also goes by your work. Other friends and family members are being helped as well. Can't thank you enough! Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!!!! I appologize for taking so much time to "get to the point" and want to thank you SO much for taking your time to read this AND to give me your input!! Sincerely, Diana!

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DEAR Diana ~ You are so very kind. I can't take credit for the books, which I didn't write (Peter and Catherine will hear your praises!) but I personally truly appreciate your message, and I'm blessed by your spirit and great good humor! thanks, dear! ~:-)



First, I expect you will find that following the nonsecretor diet will eliminate the bad breath and digestive odors. However, some digestive aids may speed the process: gentian extract, taken as directed on the bottle (1/2 hour before a meal), or pineapple (whole or the juice) 1/2 hour before a meal. You won't have to take them forever, but try to do so for a month or two before any meal containing protein (vegetal or animal). For now, I wouldn't suggest any medical tests; you can resolve this on your own. Be sure to maintain a regular schedule of meals, yoga or meditation, and mild outdoor exercise -- and get a couple of glasses of good water between meals. The odors you notice indicate there is some toxicity being thrown off by your system, so the changes in diet and continuing beneficial activity are the keys for you.



Second, re soy and the A nonsecretor diet: Soy presents a great quandary for type A nonsecretors and type B women with a history of cancer. Why? Because just about EVERYWHERE in the alternative medical news, women are told to eat soy for cancer prevention. That's the one-size-fits-all version. Thanks to Peter, we're free of that paradigm. In our specific understanding of these effects, the phytoestrogens in soy are not the near-magic-bullet for you that they are for type A secretors. Instead, get to know intimately your individually-designed nonsecretor diet. It will do for you what needs to be done to maintain and enhance all aspects of your health.



Finally, regarding the Tiers System: it applies to secretors, not to us. As you've noticed in reading through the food list, nonsecretor food values vary within the tiers, so that some of your beneficials and some of your avoids appear in the Neutral Tier. Some of your neutrals appear in Tier I or II, which are designed along the secretor Beneficial and Avoid lines. In short: we're special. Take note of the values listed for Nonsecretors: that's our Tier. The Nonsecretor Tier, if you like. It overrides all other factors, and is ideal for our needs.



Thank you for the heartening news of your family, and I hope you continue to enjoy the great benefits of this plan. Keep in touch, and thanks again, Diana!

Heidi, This isn't a question for you to answer, but a request that you talk to someone about changing the margins on the website. Whenever I try to print out info, whether your Q&A or those of Dr. D'Adamo, the right-hand margins cut off some letters, even whole words. Then I have to laboriously go through and hand-letter in the omissions. And that is time-consuming and very aggravating. Also, if the material is something I want to show my doctor, for example, it looks mighty unprofessional. I originally thought it was my small printer, but not so, because I am just now on my husband's larger system, and the same thing occurs. So it must be the margins on your site. Please see what you can do to solve this problem. It might be a little insignificant, but I surely am not the only person facing it. Thanks for your work and blessings be heaped upon you! Ruth



I think it's been fixed as of today, Ruth ~ thank you for the suggestion, and for your kind blessings!



Hello Heidi, I love your column. However, each time I click your collumn's link to the "official change log," I get a notice that the page cannot be found. Any suggestion? Thank you, Eva



The URL is http://www.dadamo.com/lr4yter.html -- I'm not sure which column contained the link that doesn't work, but I'll correct it if I find it ~ thanks! :-)



Has "Eat Right for your type" been published in Spanish? If so, where is it available for purchase. Thank you, Ana



Both Eat Right and Live Right are available in Spanish, at least in Argentina. See the International link just under the Eat Right 4 Your Type heading on our home page for the availability of international editions. :-)



I have tried to get information regarding "Subtype" from the webpage, specifically "RH incompatibility and schizophrenia" to no avail. Can someone somewhere send me the information that is available with regard to the previously mentioned site as it may relate to my son. (I realize this may not be your department, but I would appreciate it very much if you could find the time to send this request on to the appropriate person so that I may access this information) Thanks a bunch! Deb



Dear Deb: I reviewed the Ask Dr. D'Adamo page you noted, but couldn't ascertain what information regarding subtype you're seeking. Have you tried the "subtype" link at the bottom right corner of the home page? If this doesn't provide what you need, please let me know!



Hello Heidi Somewhere I recall you making a reference to the Practitioners registry. Could you change my listing? I am listed under Healing Garden Clinic. Kenneth Carlin, ND 919 3rd Street, Suite 102 Langley, WA 98260 (360) 221-5596 Thanks - Ken



Hi, Ken ~ thanks for updating your entry! By the way, the NCNM Alumni Referrals database also lists you in Seattle ~ just a note! :-) I've made your changes in our Practitioner Registry Database. We truly appreciate your support!!



Thanks to all for their hints, tips and suggestions ~ always glad to hear from you!