There is a blog by Suzanne dated Dec. 3, 2011 : "Type O is NOT grain free" which I hope that the O's will read and take to heart.

I know some of the type O's might not like to hear it, but I mentioned on another thread that Dr. D'Adamo has written that type O's do need grains for colon health; he has a great article on amaranth regarding this. I have found nothing in his work that mentions that O's should not consume grains. I found this confusing when I first joined the site and type O's recommended no grains because when I came across this information, I thought it was because it was one of Dr.'s discoveries.

I have not gained weight from eating grains, I eat amaranth and oat bran (the bran is fine, I am a Secretor). Interestingly enough, out of curiosity I ticked off having cancer in my SWAMI to see what the changes would be and amaranth got upgraded from beneficial to a diamond! So now I eat it every morning. I have more energy, mental clarity and stable weight since re-introducing the grains.

I eat no grains at all now and enjoy the ability to feel satieted after a meal, and avoid blood sugar crashes-that 'shaky starving' feeling. I can be ok and still funtioning after not eating for 4/5/6 hours if necessary. When I ate grains I would be hungrier after the meal than before, and it would be a constant battle against this insulin reaction in my blood sugar. I have the same response to anything with cane sugar, fruit juice or several fruits eaten together on their own-(which I also now avoid) so I guess my body is very 'carb/sugar' sensitive. I am very slim but do notice a little fat appear around my middle when I have eaten even a portion of grains. I know there are other Os like me on the forum, also Os that seem to require some servings of grains daily to feel 'satisfied/full.' So each to their own. Having said that there is nothing nutritionally in grains-you can't get in other food stuffs, and our O ancestors would have eaten very little or no grains.    

Actually Dr. D explicitly states in LR4YT that grains are the "achilles heel" of Os and that Os do poorly on *most* grains.  

On page 168 of LR4YT he suggests using squash, sweet potatoes, root vegetables and pumpkin instead of beans, wheat, potatoes etc as a weight loss key.  Just because he doesn't mention rice also doesn't mean that rice shouldn't also be counted.

I'm a Hunter genotype and have brown rice as a super food.  I don't eat it much I admit because it doesn't work that well for me.  Oat bran & oat meal aren't much better; I think both have a tendency to increase my body fat but you know I could just be imagining things.

A more paleolithtic way of eating is not entirely a bad idea for many Os & yes, most Os should be mostly grain free.  Grains are hard to digest, don't contain a lot of nutrients, and are too high in carbs.

All of our grains are soaked overnight for the next day and/or larger batches are sprouted and dehydrated for easier digestion.

My husband is a Hunter and he follows his SWAMI recommendations, has a very physical job and does well on grains. He follows his portions which are less than mine and mainly keeps to eating brown rice. I'm not sure but I would think to some degree SWAMI trumps the information in the previous books. That has been my understanding in speaking with friends who are naturopathic doctors.  

Someone quoted Dr. D on this forum as stating that O's should eat their serving of grains because colon cancer is an achilles heal for O's and the serving(s) of grain help to moderate that.  I am not sure where Dr. D wrote it or when.  It would be great if someone who is familiar with that quote could give the reference information.

I don't eat much grain at all in the normal sense of the word which i think most people on here mean i.e. wheat etc.


I eat quinoa once a week, white rice once a week and amaranth and the like, once in a blue moon. I'm not afraid of the grain at all, I just don't much care for the more unusual grains, which need to be mixed to be edible for me.

If I eat a bit of grain whikle out or visiting or by accident, that makes up for it lol

Below is the quote from Dr. D, quoted in Suzanne's blog.  Again, does any one know where and when this was written by Dr. D?

Quoted Text

"Grain and legumes are about the only sources of phytates, which are anti-oxidant mineral chelators. There are pros and cons to phytates (some people would argue that they block mineral absorption) but they do have fairly potent anti-cancer effects in the colon, which in the case of GT1 Hunters is a bit of an Achilles heal."

Patty Dr D was referening to Amaranth with regard to that. there is a bog about it on here somewhere.

is this it?

http://www.dadamo.com/B2blogs/.....ND&submit=Search

That link is specifically regarding Aramanth & A's PC

My swami says not to be a "starchitarian", and I most avoid grains and starches, except for rice.  I eat some grains (amaranth) & beans on occasion, but I really feel better without them as they make me retain water - the carbs that is.  I get plenty of fiber in vegetables and fruits, and my colon seems to be functioning pretty well as long as I do that, but thanks for the reminder to be sure and get some compliant grains in as well.  Quinoa is a superfood for me but I rarely bother with it.  Maybe I'll make a quinoa salad this week.  

grains just trigger eating with something on it.. sauces creams cheeses or whatever .. there is my prohibition, Dr D gave me permission to remember that.. and thus stay away from any ..

I still get enough when I eat some grains out of the house.. the only place I feel safe to do so..

Grains make me want more.. but in truth, many things do that today 40 years after starting to diet.. yes I could eat everything more of, and be round as a bagel.. but knowing better keeps me on the straight and narrow..  

The only safe thing is to just not go there.. so grains  would be nice, but truth be .. I can not afford them.. maybe during my next life time..

I do love rice but only eat it once or twice a week.  Amaranth is only a neutral for me.  

Unfortunately, aside from rice, I get some grains I have either never heard of or cannot find in either the local health food store or WF such as  Fonio and Job's Tears, Coix spp., Malanga, Tannier, Xanthosom, and Teff.

The only ones I really can find and eat are rice,quinoa and once in a while millet in a bread I found.

I think O explorers fare a little better with compliant grains, at least looking at this thread and my own experiences.  Perhaps we need the energy for our sluggish livers.

It's important to not make the grain the center of our meal planning, but a little compliant whole grain is a good occasional side dish.  If it's plain, then I find I don't overeat it, and can focus more on the meat and veggies.

I am allowed 4 (small) servings of grains a day per Swami and I usually eat every one.

Possibly a good idea to get rid of all the grain and rubbish that we eat and then after a while re introduce it again and be sensible with it, good know if all the vegans, governments and politicians don't get real we'll all be eating grain and little else.

Quoted from Goldie

grains just trigger eating with something on it.. sauces creams cheeses or whatever .. there is my prohibition, Dr D gave me permission to remember that.. and thus stay away from any ..

I still get enough when I eat some grains out of the house.. the only place I feel safe to do so..

Grains make me want more.. but in truth, many things do that today 40 years after starting to diet.. yes I could eat everything more of, and be round as a bagel.. but knowing better keeps me on the straight and narrow..  

The only safe thing is to just not go there.. so grains  would be nice, but truth be .. I can not afford them.. maybe during my next life time..

It's not the grains doing that Goldie - It's the Ice cream

Quoted from Patty H

Below is the quote from Dr. D, quoted in Suzanne's blog.  Again, does any one know where and when this was written by Dr. D?

Written here:

http://dadamo.com/cgi-bin/Blah/Blah.pl?b-GTDdiet/m-1228587567/s-25/

December 10, 2008

Quoted from C_sharp

Written here:

http://dadamo.com/cgi-bin/Blah/Blah.pl?b-GTDdiet/m-1228587567/s-25/

December 10, 2008

C Sharp, that is a very interesting thread.  I am so glad you found it.  I read through much of it tonight and plan to read through the rest tomorrow.  Thank you!

If you look at the current reccomendations to eat 6-11 servings of grains per day, then I'm "almost grain free." But I do still eat more grains than many people on this forum. SWAMI allows me two servings of grains per day. Some days I eat both servings (usually in the form of a double portion at dinner) and other days I eat only one serving. I could be satisfied on a grain-free diet, but then I'd need to eat a lot more meat and that's a very expensive way to eat. I can't afford (financially) to eat like that. Half a cup to a cup of rice on my plate and I'm satisfied with half the meat I'd otherwise need.

I think it's safe for an O to be grain-free for a short period of time, say to encourage weight loss; but then grains need to be re-introduced for long-term health in the maintenace phase.

Also, some O's find that they can't seem to handle any grains at all due to blood sugar issues. Those individuals should avoid grains, but for somebody just starting out, the default should be a small amount of grains each day, as Dr D advises. Even those who don't do well on grains may want to try them occasionally, maybe once or twice a year, to see if they "outgrow" their grain intolerance after doing some healing.

I know that people have individual health issues, and if they find relief from being grain free, they won't catch any grief from me.

I don't have a problem with people who want to experiment with any variation on the BTD or GTD or for that matter any other diet.

However, I think it is important to clearly state that Dr. Ds concept of the BTD/GTD is not grain free for Type Os.

Less grain than the average person's diet - certainly
Less grain than other blood types - yes.
High carb vegetables more important than grain - definitely
Wheat an avoid - absolutely
But none of that means grain free.  

Be grain free if you like.  But don't tell other Type Os that they ought to be or that Dr. D recommends it.

Thanks for the clarification Suzanne, because when I joined the forum, that issue had us quite confused.

Both my Hunter and I are much better with the inclusion of grains. I get more than he does.

I can understand if someone is on a candida cleanse that they would limit their grains...the cleanse I did 2.5 years ago had me on 50 grams a day...eradicated the candida though. I personally chose to do the cleanse for three months because it was very stringent and I wanted to be sure to eradicate the candida and never, ever have to do that again! I got way thinner than I liked and was hungry and miserable but it was a a sacrifice I was willing to do and everyday when I eat my fruit I am happy that I can eat it knowing I am not feeding candida.

I wonder if any blood type that do not do well on grains is because they have candida? When I had candida, I did not do well eating grains but ate them nevertheless as I did not know better. A gut that needs healing can have a hard time even eating compliantly until it is rebalanced.

Again thanks!

This is one Hunter O who does okay on grains - in fact I get quite a reasonable slab of the ol' grain pie on Swami under carbohydrates:

Portion Size: Grains, Cereals: half cup; Baked Goods: 1 muffin; 2 slices bread
Frequency: 2 servings daily.

I'm nearly 5'7" and weigh in at 125 pounds so I'm really quite lean.  I understand that grains don't work for all, especially us O's - for some of us though they're not too bad.

Having said all that - I don't eat nearly the portions that Swami allows me    I only have maybe a serving of some form of grain perhaps 3 times a week - that's by choice, as if I did eat more it wouldn't be a problem (for me anyways).

I know I"m not an O but I'm pretty much grain free.  Even buckwheat which I love raises my glucose.  Amaranth I haven't tested but it probably would too. I guess everyone is different.  I have to avoid grains, sugar and most fruit.

C-Sharp has posted a great link in the thread : "Environmental Sensitivities Questions In SWAMI"that I believe is quite appropriate for this thread.

The link is about a butyric acid study and its relationship to fiber such as grains, beans, sweet potatoes etc. Butyric acid is found in Dr. D's Intrinsia.

I have been taking Intrinsia for one month with amazing results, my gut feels amazing and look much trimmer without the usual bloat. Just ordered bottle #2. Was thinking of using this for 3 months and now with what I've read about it's overall pro-inflammatory use, insulin resistance, and other myriad of benefits, will use this forever!

Perhaps for those suffering from insulin resistance, diabetes, leaky gut and reluctance to consume grains for any number of reasons, this article may be of use to you. I myself in the past have had to be careful with insulin resistance. I do fine now with the GTD and I was taking Glycosia but quit in favour of Intrinsia as my gut needed healing and I am on a budget so could not get both. I am pleased with the stability of my blood sugar.


http://wholehealthsource.blogspot.com/2009/12/butyric-acid-ancient-controller-of.html

That link isn't working for me.