Last year I was diagnosed with hemochromatosis, a genetic disorder that my body adsorbs too much iron (ferritin). I had to go and get weekly blood draws to reduce the amount of iron from my system. I was told I would have to do this for the rest of my life, (not fun or pleasant) until I came across a book called Eat For Your Type. I am A+ blood type and followed the A blood type diet. My iron levels actually normalized from this diet and it has been a year since my last blood draw. My hematologist  cannot understand how I am keeping my iron levels down with out blood draws and is skeptical that a diet can control this. I just keep telling him you are what you eat! I think any one (including doctors) who shoots this diet down should try it before they have an opinion. It is also saving me big bucks because I have a very deductible health insurance plan.
I replaced dairy with soy, I still eat eggs once or twice a week. My main source of protein is chicken or turkey which I eat twice a day. I make my own breads with brown rice flour, oat flour, salt, yeast, ground up prunes, olive oil and water. The bread does not rise much, but is very tasty, almost molasses like flavor.
I avoid wheat, corn, corn starches, corn syrups, night shade fruits and starches,  table sugars - white - brown - , molasses and transfats.
I eat pinaple, kiwi, carrots, grapfruit, and broccoli daily and make them the largest portion size on the dinner plate.

Interesting post and timely.  Several years back I found out I carry one of the genes for this and at that time my iron level was not high enough for me to need to draw blood but I was told to monitor it.  I've been largely following the blood type diet and my iron has dropped also.  I kept wondering why as I was told it would go higher after menopause which I have since gone through but the reverse has happened.  So perhaps it is the Blood type diet.  

I realise that we have a similar diet.
I have to admit I was never a bit red meat eater and was more a chicken and fish person. I found out I was gluten/dairy intolerant in 2003, plus a bunch of other food sensitivities and dropped that them from my diet.

What made you stop eating wheat, corn, corn starches, corn syrups, night shade fruits and starches,  table sugars - white - brown - , molasses and transfats.

the A diet is a quasi vegetarian diet and vegetarians have trouble obtaining iron from food so it would make sence your iron levels went down. Iron in blood is reduced by oxylates in green vegetables, coffee, green tea, phytates in whole grains and surprisingly soy protein...pretty much sounds like the A diet

Quoted Text

Last year I was diagnosed with hemochromatosis, a genetic disorder that my body adsorbs too much iron (ferritin). I had to go and get weekly blood draws to reduce the amount of iron from my system. I was told I would have to do this for the rest of my life, (not fun or pleasant) until I came across a book called Eat For Your Type. I am A+ blood type and followed the A blood type diet. My iron levels actually normalized from this diet and it has been a year since my last blood draw. My hematologist  cannot understand how I am keeping my iron levels down with out blood draws and is skeptical that a diet can control this. I just keep telling him you are what you eat! I think any one (including doctors) who shoots this diet down should try it before they have an opinion. It is also saving me big bucks because I have a very deductible health insurance plan.

I replaced dairy with soy, I still eat eggs once or twice a week. My main source of protein is chicken or turkey which I eat twice a day. I make my own breads with brown rice flour, oat flour, salt, yeast, ground up prunes, olive oil and water. The bread does not rise much, but is very tasty, almost molasses like flavor.
I avoid wheat, corn, corn starches, corn syrups, night shade fruits and starches,  table sugars - white - brown - , molasses and transfats.

I eat pinaple, kiwi, carrots, grapfruit, and broccoli daily and make them the largest portion size on the dinner plate.

Sometimes we are looking for miracles.. here is one for sure.. who would have thought??

with all that talk of blood I guess you are O// did you do the secretor test?  What diet are you following? which book did you start with ? Welcome!!!!!

I am blown away!! all the best to you and so many THAKS for sharing your story..

Here we see so many such stories, but yours is blowing me away.. wheeeeee.. It's one for Lola to put on 'Garlands for DrD'..... by the way Lola those postings are becoming fab! thanks Lol!!!..

So oxylates can be helpful. I did also start drinking green tea few years ago, and past 8 months switched pretty  much to whole grains.  So maybe that is what is helping.  
thanks

FrostedCupCakes, what a wonderful testimonial you have given! I love hearing this kind of stories. Yours is super encouraging! Keep up the good work!

You might consider donating blood once in a while.  It will lower your iron levels and help someone else.

kick your guidelines up a notch with swami!

find out your secretor status, subtype of A and MN status if interested, by getting a serotyping panel done


More information on SWAMI diets can be found at:

http://www.dadamo.com/clinic/swamigenotype.htm
http://www.dadamo.com/program_advanced_subtypes.htm
Read about the non secretor issue
http://www.dadamo.com/knowbase/newbie/a.htm

you have come to the right place!

more on Hemochromatosis  
you are not alone!
http://www.google.com/custom?h.....omatosis&spell=1

Quoted from Lin

I realise that we have a similar diet.
I have to admit I was never a bit red meat eater and was more a chicken and fish person. I found out I was gluten/dairy intolerant in 2003, plus a bunch of other food sensitivities and dropped that them from my diet.

What made you stop eating wheat, corn, corn starches, corn syrups, night shade fruits and starches,  table sugars - white - brown - , molasses and transfats.

I stopped eating wheat because it is highly enriched with iron. I also found corn and corn products could be higher in iron and it was also raising my blood suger causing it to spike then plumet, making me gain stomach fat. Table sugar gives me a similar fattening effect, but I eat fruit instead it has a thinning effect on me, might be from the pectin? Transfats seems to fatten me up and raise my cholesterol so I stay away from it also. I find by eating peanuts and olive oil daily, it cut my cholesterol levels in half and stomach slims down (size 36 to size 31). It seems if you eat the right stuff you can shrink stomach mass with out changing body weight. I do not count calories I just eat until I am full, 5 to 6 meals a day.

Fantastic testimony & welcome!! Must tell my boss whose husband has hemochromatosis...

Quoted from Possum

Fantastic testimony & welcome!! Must tell my boss whose husband has hemochromatosis...

lol Like he'll listen! haha Worth a try though. When things make sense and are that simple most people just don't do it because it's too easy... or in their minds... too hard. Good luck! *crosses her fingers*

Quoted from RedLilac

You might consider donating blood once in a while.  It will lower your iron levels and help someone else.

People with Hemochromatosis are not allowed to give blood in Massachusetts I guess there are laws on the books that make hospital liable for giving tainted blood?

Quoted from christaalyssaA+

lol Like he'll listen! haha Worth a try though. When things make sense and are that simple most people just don't do it because it's too easy... or in their minds... too hard. Good luck! *crosses her fingers*

Yeah I don't hold out hope   This same woman won't even go to get her BT done, even though it is more than possible identifying inflammatory foods could help her chronic back condition... She has (to quote her) a degenerative disc disease & is often in such immense pain, enough to have to take days off unable to move...

Quoted from Possum

Fantastic testimony & welcome!! Must tell my boss whose husband has hemochromatosis...

You cannot make people change their ways. They have to discover it on their own, or you may end up sounding like a nagging parent or the health police.

Yep agree...I have actually stopped trying to be the health police

I would LOVE to actually BE the Health Police!!! lol There are so many people that I would love to give lectin damage fines and cuff them and take them to Dr.D. That would be an awesome job!

But alas... I will just gently share this great info with people that come to me wanting to learn. *puts away her police uniform*

Quoted from FrostedCupCakes

You cannot make people change their ways. They have to discover it on their own, or you may end up sounding like a nagging parent or the health police.

Ha ha ha, been there, done that, and BACKFIRED!!!  

Well, now I take a step back and just let people come to their own realization, one baby step at a time. Yesterday I made some inroads with my mom, who, despite the onset of various chronic illnesses, thinks that it is too troublesome and expensive to change what she eats (vs. taking prescription pills  ). I used the advice that Dr. D gave, which is to encourage people to eat beneficial food rather than putting an emphasis on the avoids. It seemed to have lowered her resistance. I also told her it is important to give the body time to heal gradually (as she might be discouraged if nothing seems to "happen" within a short time frame). As she was expecting a snow storm, I used the analogy that if she has three feet of snow at her door, it takes time to shuffle that away, as the snow wouldn't have piled up in just one night. So the same with her health. She needs to shuffle the lectins that non-compliant food has given her over the years, one step at a time. She asked me why nothing happened in the years before even though she was eating non-compliant food then? I told her that in her youth she might have been able to eliminate 90% of the "toxins" but all those 10%'s have accumulated over the years and are giving her problems now. I could tell that she agreed this makes sense. So now she is going to check out more compliant food and give it a try  .

I have a Type O friend who has hemochromatosis, and his Type A wife is one point away from being pre- diabetic, (whatever that means).

We have dinner and game nite with these folks at least monthly, and I regularly but politely decline certain foods because "it's not on my food list" (even some of the dishes that I myself prepare). Well... I'm naturally thin and healthy, so when I say I have a food list, and won't eat some of my own cooking...

Anyway... The wife's diagnosis is recent, so she's become really interested in what my "diet" is all about. They were over a few days ago and I showed them my SWAMI printout and boy, were they impressed! I spent quite some time explaining the whole concept, lent my ER4YT, and suggested they start with BTD's.

I'm looking forward to seeing if they try the plans and what experiences they may have. Are any of you a Type O with this condition? I'd love to cite a personal example for this gentleman. Thanks  

I just ppsted a free article on pre diabetes which is probably what she means by almost diabetic.

http://mail1.a4m.com/static/newsletter/Vagnini_Thera11.pdf

No, that's not right...She's one point from being pre-diabetic. I just submitted an edit. Oops  

the articles explains the confusion - have a look oxo

policychecker - I just PM'd you...