As we traveled yesterday, we could literally see how longitude, altitude and distance from the coast impact fall colors. If you plan a vacation to see the changing of the seasons, be flexible. During late September and early October, there will be color somewhere, you just have to drive until you find it.

On the coast, just a few isolated trees had changed. As we drove inland, the color got better and better. When the road went down into a valley, the trees would be mostly green. When it would climb over a pass, the trees were changing. In a few weeks people driving our same route, will find bare trees on the passes, and color in the valleys. In his research before the trip, HH had read that New Hampshire, Vermont, and part of Japan have the best fall colors in the world. I can't explain why that is true, but the closer we got to the New Hampshire border the more brilliant the color.

We got off the main road and took State Highway 16. The colors were breathtaking. There was a beautiful view around every bend in the road. We saw 11 wild turkeys scratching for food in fallen leaves.

Our Strong Son had planned to take a mission trip to Guatemala the same week we had planned to be in New England, but his trip was cancelled. Since he had already arranged for someone to cover his patients, he decided to take a vacation instead. In route to see friends from Physical Therapy school, he was going to meet us for three days. We picnicked for lunch, anticipating dinner with him in Littleton, New Hampshire.

We ate at the Littleton Diner. A note on the menu mentioned a gluten free item. Over the years, I have found it virtually impossible to explain the BTD to servers in restaurants. I've had a little better success if I say that I have a wheat allergy. But the term "gluten free" seems to have taken hold. Several television personalities have talked lately about going gluten free. I think there is a "one size fits all" book out that says everyone should be gluten free. I wasn't interested in their gluten free selection, but when I told the server that I wanted the roast beef dinner, but I wanted it gluten free, she was very cooperative about making substitutions. I thoroughly enjoyed my roast beef (no gravy), carrots, and baked beans.

It was raining when we woke up - a dreary day with low clouds. There didn't seem much point to getting out on slick roads when we couldn't see the scenery. I had work to do for clients, so I went to the hotel's sitting room with my computer, while HH watched TV.

We had lunch at the Log Cabin Restaurant just outside of Bar Harbor. As we approached the door there was a carving of a black bear in yellow rain gear. I thought it was funny, and took a picture, but I'm afraid the rain has dampened HH's sense of humor. HH had lobster roll and clam chowder for lunch - very New England. I ordered a Western burger. It was Black Angus beef with grilled mushrooms bell peppers and mushrooms. The irony of eating Western burger on the East Coast didn't hit me until later. With my burger I had a side of Cole slaw.

The hotel manager was trying to be positive about things we could do in the rain. One of the famous features in Acadia National Park is called Thunder Hole. The terrain is just right, so that when a wave hits the rocks it sounds like a clap of thunder. The manager said that the bad weather had made the water in the bay choppy, and that Thunder Hole might be exceptionally loud.

HH and I decided that we would like to hear it, even in the rain. So we loaded up our parkas and drove into the National Park. Incredible - the rain stopped. We parked near a beautiful overlook to photograph the rocky Maine coast. There was a trail that led from the overlook to Thunder Hole, so we started walking. Thunder Hole was indeed amazing. We kept walking almost to Otter Cliff, then backtracked to Sand Beach. We walked for a couple of hours photographing on delightful view after another. We got back in our car and the rain returned.

We were blessed, and we knew it. Thank you, Lord, for a break in the rain.

We headed up the coast to Bar Harbor. There is not much fall color in Maine. This is a huge disappointment to HH. I keep telling him that if the color was at its peak on the coast then we would have missed it completely in New Hampshire and Vermont. He is not comforted.

After two sedentary days - one on the plane and one in the car we had planned a long afternoon hike in Acadia National Park. But the sky was cloudy and the mist threatened to turn to rain. I put my parka over my camera and we took several short walks. One was on top of Cadillac Mountain. In spite of the clouds, my pictures of the bay and the islands turned out great. Another was around the Marina in Northeast Harbor.

By far the BTD highlight of the day was lobster for lunch. We stopped at Angler's Restaurant in Seaport, Maine. They had a special on their Lobster dinner. It came with salad, vegetable of the day and potatoes. The vegetable of the day was green beans, so I asked if I could have double green beans instead of potatoes, and they were agreeable.

Every other time I have eaten lobster, it has come on my plate whole. The chef at Angler's separated the lobster in 4 pieces. I joked with our server, saying that I was glad they had pity on a Texan who wasn't experienced with lobsters. I enjoyed every bite.

HH does not like picking food out of shells or off of bones, so he had a crab roll instead.

We are staying at a charming old whiteboard resort that has a gazebo overlooking the bay and an outdoor hot tub. By nightfall the rain had started in earnest, so we didn't get to enjoy the view or relax in the tub. We picnicked in our room. I fixed HH a turkey sandwich with fruit. I enjoyed canned asparagus and salmon.

The good news is that HH's Mom's pain in her neck and her head is much better. The bad news is that she is refusing to eat more than 5-6 bites at a meal. Wednesday the nurses at rehab became so concerned that they ordered tests to see if she was dehydrated. Her mineral levels were so far out of balance that they sent her to the emergency room in an ambulance. After giving her IV fluids, she is now back in her room at rehab.

Months ago HH and I had prepaid for a vacation to see New England fall colors. One of HH's sisters had also prepaid for a vacation to Mexico during the same week. This leaves the other sister with all of the responsibility. That does not seem fair, nonetheless, yesterday morning we were at the airport. To our already high stress level we added airport security, a long layover in Chicago, rounding up luggage, and driving an unfamiliar car in the rain.

Three things we did right on our travel day.
* I packed lunch for both of us in our carry-on bags. Airport food is more BTD friendly than it used to be, but it is expensive.

* I put a wrap around neck pillow in my carry-on. It let me sleep comfortably on the plane.

* When the Southwest Airline flight attendant came to take our drink orders, I asked if I could have water in a bottle. She said that they didn't have bottles, they had cans. I had never had water in a can, but it tastes really good. I stashed a can in my carry-on for our layover, and that helped keep me hydrated all day.

One thing that I should have done was walk around the airport more. I had work to do on my computer for a client, so I spent more time sitting than I should have.

This morning we start up the coast of Maine. We are ready to rest and relax!

About one year ago I woke in the middle of the night with severe pain in my right kidney area. I broke into a sweat and was in pain for about 20 minutes or so. The pain subsided and my body calmed down. I changed clothes and went back to bed. Nothing happened after that, so I just chalked it up to muscle spasms.

Back in March, my right side kidney area flared back up and this time it lasted for a few days. It was very uncomfortable but with ibuprophen and heat, it subsided and life went back to normal.

Three weeks ago, I started having painful urination and my wife and I thought it might be a urinary tract infection or something similar. After a weeks worth of antibiotics the pain had went away but came back even worse within a few days. That’s when the pain in my right kidney area came back. I then went to my doctor to get a urine test which showed blood in my urine. My keytones were high too, but with the O diet, that is to be expected. I started drinking way more water and cranberry juice to see if it would help the possible infection. The extra fluids did the trick but I was urinating every 20 minutes and very urgently at that!

After a couple of days of that, things seemed to get better. The kidney pain died down and the level of blood in my urine dropped to the point it was no longer painful to urinate.
With all of that, we decided to find out if I had a kidney stone and set up a catscan for this past Tuesday to find out for sure.

Well I found out I have a kidney stone that has made its way into my bladder. That would explain the improvement, but I’m not out of the woods yet. I now have to “filter” my urine to try and catch the stone so it can be tested to see what kind of stone it is.

All of this begs the question, why am I making stones? I’ve been following the O Diet for over 12 years now so what could be going on? I might be consuming too much protein which is one of many causes for stones. I do consume my fair share of Sea Salt that I use in my trail mix and put on my burgers. That can also be a cause. Uric acid stones can happen too, but I doubt that is the reason.

If it is because I am consuming too much protein, I am going to have to cut back by 25-50% which is going to complicate my daily food consumption routine. The problem is that when I don’t eat enough protein I get hungry faster and usually make poor food choices. I am weighing my options at this point, but I don’t have any ideas on something that’s easy to make and can take with me for the day for my small frequent meals.

I will report back when the stone passes or something else changes.

Los días otoñales, fresco y chispeantes ya se dejan sentir, recordándonos intensificar nuestro sistema inmune, siguiendo los protocolos para lograr posicionarnos en "modo de lucha".

Pronto se aproxima la bien conocida temporada de gripe y resfriado y tomando algunas medidas preventivas reducimos de manera positiva nuestra probabilidad de contagio.
• Todos sabemos que la inmunidad comienza en nuestro intestino. Ingiriendo aquellos alimentos adecuados y benéficos de acuerdo a su fisiología, están ya tomando un paso importante para mantenerse saludables. Intensificar el consumo de alimentos benéficos, eliminando aquellos a evitar en su dieta.
• El estrés merma la inmunidad. Resulta difícil evitar el estrés, pero tomarse unos momentos para relajarse – encontrar 10 minutos al día para únicamente sentarse y cerrar los ojos, hacer algunas respiraciones profundas alternando el lado izquierdo luego el derecho de la nariz, así como la meditación, han demostrado ser medidas útiles y eficaces.
• El ejercicio aumenta la inmunidad! Encontrar una actividad que sea la adecuada y practicarla rutinariamente. Dar una vuelta a buen paso por la tarde en este clima fresco otoñal es una excelente manera de terminar el día relajado y disfrutar de la belleza de esta temporada.
• Evite los azúcares refinados y grasas saturadas. Aunque usted este comiendo de acuerdo a su tipo, a veces estos encuentran la manera de colarse en nuestra dieta – estar atentos y sobre todo, aprenda a leer ingredientes en todo lo que compra con empaquetado llamativo y con leyendas que engañan.
• Tome sus vitaminas y sus minerales, sin aditivos o derivados químicos así como productos comprobados científicamente para elevar su sistema inmune como ARA o ProBerry.
• Siga los lineamientos de etiqueta en cuanto a toser o estornudar, cubriéndose la boca y la nariz. Lávese las manos con frecuencia y evite tocar su cara.

El sistema inmunitario, cuando se encuentra en perfecto funcionamiento, tiene una capacidad notable para luchar contra la gripe y los resfriados. Incluso si una infección se llegara a manifestar, su sistema inmunitario fortalecido, contra ataca de manera eficaz al poco tiempo!

Desde la antigüedad, el saúco ha sido utilizado en el combate a la gripe. En experimentos realizados, el saúco realmente ha demostrado poder inhibir la réplica de toda cepa de virus de influenza humana, tanto la A como la B.

En estudios científicos utilizando extracto de la fruta del saúco se demostró su eficacia en el tratamiento de la influenza tipo B. Dicha investigación mostró que las personas a quienes se les administro el extracto de saúco mejoraron mucho más rápido que aquellas a las que se les administro un placebo.

¿Por qué funciona el saúco? Pues bien, los investigadores encontraron dos razones realmente. La primera es que las personas que tomaron el saúco fueron capaces de producir títulos más altos de anti-hemaglutinación para la influenza B (lo que significa que su sistema inmunitario funcionó mejor y ahora tienen un nivel más alto de reconocimiento en caso de que les volviera a dar "gripe").
La segunda razón es que el saúco inhibe la neuraminidasa (sí, exacto, la misma neuraminidasa contra la cual los científicos están gastando millones de dólares en el diseño de medicamentos).

Una importante pregunta que no ha sido debidamente contestada aun:
¿Sera igualmente eficaz el extracto de saúco contra las cepas de la influenza A?
La respuesta definitiva se basa en su método de acción, su capacidad en vitro y las observaciones clínicas, que ha venido realizando el Dr. D'Adamo, por medio de su suplemento Proberry y la respuesta seria probablemente que sí. Sus pacientes tomando el suplemento Proberry, mezcla de saúco, concentrado de arándano, cereza y manzana, parecen transitar fácilmente a través de la temporada de "gripe".

La palabra de precaución con que dejarles seria que a la hora de suplementar a diario el Proberry, más no siempre es mejor. Altas dosis pudiesen llegar a producir náusea. Si está tratando de evitar una "gripe" una pequeña dosis diaria podría ser muy efectiva. El Dr. D'Adamo recomienda el Proberry a todos y en especial a las personas con sangre tipo B y AB debido a su alta susceptibilidad al virus en general.

Por lo tanto, ahora que se aproxima la época de "gripe" recuerde su benevolente saúco!

I just talked to my Dad and he told me about his latest Doctor’s visit. My Dad is 83 years old and is in relatively good health for his age. He lives alone in Washington state and has a part time job at his church. My Mom died almost two years ago and had been disabled due to a stroke the two years prior to her death. My Mom had always taken care of the bills, the meals, and the cleaning. So after her first stroke my Dad had a lot to learn. He taught himself how to cook and pay the bills (the cleaning he’s never gotten very good at, but neither was my Mom ).

After my Mom passed, my Dad got more interested in his health. Like me he’s always leaned towards alternative healing, like vitamins, herbs, and foods that help the body. I haven’t been able to get him interested in the blood type diet, but I try to make suggestions when the topic of food comes up. Now back to his recent Doctor’s visit.

He was put on blood thinners a while back to help with his heart. I have my own opinion about that prescription, but we’ll let that go. He’s been on them for at least a year and they test his blood regularly to make sure his dose is correct. This week they found out that his blood had thinned too much and so this is what they told him to do.

• Stop taking the medicine for one week

• Start eating dark green vegetables to help thicken the blood (these had been removed from his diet when he started the blood thinners)

• Stop eating berries (that help thin the blood)

• Next week once his blood has thickened back up, start taking the medicine again

Am I the only person that thinks this is ridiculous? I mean if your blood thinned because you were eating well and taking helpful supplements, as he’s been trying to do. Why not just stop taking the medicine altogether? Why thicken the blood to only thin it again with medicine? I can’t help but wonder what his Doctor’s thought process was.

I wish I could interfere, but I know my Dad will do what his Doctor asks of him. And it’s not my life or my decision. So I just listen and hope that he continues to eat well. Thanks goodness they didn’t ask him to stop his supplements, which were probably helping.

An update on my health: I have really turned a corner the last four months. There seems to be a big change in my health (I’m being treated for Chronic Lyme disease). My pain has decreased greatly and I’m able to work and think better than I have in years. My strength is good but my stamina is still lacking (due to the trouble with my heart) although it has also improved. I can walk farther than I use to and I can garden longer. I’m feeling cautiously optimistic about getting well! But who knows, this disease is very tricky and takes a long time to recover from. And some of us have permanent damage, but I’m better than I was a year ago and so much better than I was two years ago. I owe much of my healing to the Geno Type diet (I have a personalized Swami) and the help I’ve received from others on this wonderful site. Thanks again to Dr. D and all the wonderful posters on the forum.

How many times do mothers tell their children, "If you do that, you'll break your neck." I know I said those words many times. I'll never forget the day when my Strong Son, a 7th grader at the time, came into the kitchen with his head cocked to one side. He had to confess that he had been jumping on his bed - something that was absolutely against the rules. He couldn't straighten his head. I took him for x-rays, and the radiologist was afraid to make the call. They sent the x-rays to a neurosurgeon who said his vertebrae were fine, but the muscles in his neck were in spasm. The doctor prescribed muscle relaxers, which didn't help his neck but had some weird side effects. So we stopped the medication and he wore a padded neck brace for several days. One morning he woke up and everything was back to normal.

Now I can smile when I think of that story. But my Honorable Husband's mother was not so fortunate.

A week ago she fell in her home and cracked two vertebrae in her neck. Fortunately she was not paralyzed. But she is in lots of pain. She was in the hospital for 5 days. During that time they observed that she was having trouble swallowing. After tests, they put her on a diet of pureed food and thickened liquids. No one knows whether the swallowing is a result of the neck injury or something unrelated.

She has terrible headaches. No one is sure whether the headaches are caused by the fall, the neck injury, or too few calories (because she does not like pureed food). She takes pain medication every 3 hours.

She was released from the hospital to a rehab center where she will get 3 months of physical and occupational therapy. She will also see a speech therapist who will work on her swallowing techniques. The therapists are optimistic about her chances for a full recovery - if she eats enough to keep up her strength and if she works hard in therapy.

HH and I went to stay with her in rehab for 6 days. He was there in the daytime. I was there at night and in the morning. That way we made sure we got to talk to all of the doctors and therapists.

Here are a few things I want to remember as I get older. Perhaps they will help you or someone you love.
* Don't be too ashamed or too busy to use a walker. HH's Mom is 91 and has arthritis. She has a walker. She uses it almost the time. But that particular day she decided to walk across the den without it.

* Pain medication is a mixed blessing. Without it she cannot make it through a therapy session. But there are side effects - noticeably anger and repetitive behavior.

* Nurses and nurses aides respond to kindness. When she smiles at them and says thank you, she gets better care than when she complains. She got better care because family was there to take on a lot of duties ourselves - like feeding her and standing by while she went to the potty.

* A strong, healthy 59 year old woman (like me) is not strong enough to support the weight of a helpless 91 year old. I had to call for assistance when she needed to be moved. I was very aware of the danger that I could wind up in the room next door if I was not careful with my own legs, neck, and back. Injuries can happen fast - and have serious consequences.

* It would be really, really hard to come anywhere close to the BTD diet in a hospital or nursing facility. Everything is sweetened - sometimes with sugar; sometimes with NutraSweet. The theory is that the patients will eat more if sugar is added to the food. There are wheat products everywhere. On the pureed diet, they smash up rolls, pancakes, noodles, cereal, and more. The pureed bread must be pretty bad - HH's Mom usually loves bread, but she refuses to eat it pureed. The thickener in the water and juice is made from corn starch.

Having experienced how much better I feel, and how much faster I heal when I eat right, I'm afraid I would seriously clash with hospital dietitians.