DIETARY
SYSTEMS AND CONCEPTS
By Dr. Lawrence Wilson
©
April 2016, L.D. Wilson Consultants, Inc.
All information in this article is for
educational purposes only. It is
not for the diagnosis, treatment, prescription or cure of any disease or health
condition.
Theories about what
and how to eat abound. Each theory
helps some people, so books have been written extolling many of them. As one who specializes in this area, I have
worked with over 60,000 clients.
Some have followed different systems before I worked with them, and I
often ask for their feedback. This
is a report on my observations of which work best today, and why.
The article is
divided into dietetic and medical diet concepts, general popular concepts and
metabolic typing concepts. This
does not include all
the popular diet systems, but they represent a good sampling of those that are
most current today.
DIETETIC AND MEDICAL CLASSIFICATIONS OF FOODS AND NUTRIENTS, AND
DIETARY CONCEPTS
THE FOUR FOOD GROUPS
This
is an older dietetic concept suggesting that one needs to eat from the meats,
grains, vegetables and diary groups of foods. I do not find this concept useful, as it says nothing about
quality. Nor does it take into
account individual differences, food allergies, yin and yang and many other
distinctions in the foods we eat.
Even the federal
government and the dietitians who came up with this concept have largely
abandoned it. Having said this, it
is not a false concept. It simply
needs updating because of the huge variation in quality in our foods today.
THE FOOD PYRAMID
The
food pyramid is a newer dietetic concept that has replaced the four food groups
in government food programs. The
base of the diet pyramid is the grains, with a smaller amount of vegetables,
with an even smaller amount of proteins and at the top, the smallest amount of
fats.
This dietetic
concept is incorrect, in my view.
Vegetables should be at the base of the pyramid (the most important
category), with proteins next, and either fats and oils next or perhaps complex
carbohydrates next. Also quality
of the food is not emphasized enough.
Recently, some changes were made to the food pyramid to exclude trans
fatty acids and refined sugars, but many shortcomings remain.
RECOMMENDED DAILY ALLOWANCES (RDA) OR MINIMUM DAILY REQUIREMENTS (MDR)
These
two similar dietetic concepts assert that certain groups need a set amount of
each nutrient in order to be healthy.
This idea is very inaccurate and not worth much, in my view, because
individual needs vary too much.
They depend on oneÕs age, weight, height, lifestyle, illnesses,
metabolic type and much more. The
idea is helpful in one regard.
This is to bring to peopleÕs attention that they are not even getting
the minimum required daily amount of many nutrients such as calcium and vitamin
A. This is sad to have to say, but
many, many people, especially teens, for example, do not even meet the RDA
levels of these and other nutrients.
Dr. Weston Price,
DDS, studied healthy tribes around the world. He wrote Nutrition
and Physical Degeneration.
He found that all the healthiest tribes obtained 4-10 times the
recommended daily allowance of the major vitamins and minerals than American
obtain. I do not agree with all of
Dr. PriceÕs recommendations, as they are 100 years old and the state of the
world has changed a lot. For
example, it is simply not safe to eat raw food today very much due to concerns
with parasite, in particular.
Eating too much fat is also not healthful today. However, overall, Dr. Price was a wise
physician and researcher. Thus one
must question the adequacy of the recommended daily allowances.
The
RDAs and MDRs are far too low, in my view, as they
are based on averages of ÒhealthyÓ people, many of whom are getting ready to be
diagnosed with cancer or diabetes.
So I do not make use this concept.
OTHER DIET CONCEPTS AND SYSTEMS
ORTHOMOLECULAR NUTRITION
This
term was coined by Nobel prize winner, Dr. Linus
Pauling. It asserts that one
must obtain the correct amount of a nutrient that each individual needs, and not just
some average or set amount. Drs.
Pauling, Hoffer, Williams and others found that some
people needed 1000 times the amount of vitamin B or C, for example, than other
people.
Reasons
for the wide variation could include difficulty absorbing nutrients, metabolic
imbalances, genetic or metabolic types, the presence of illness, toxic
chemicals, stressful lifestyles or other situations that use up more nutrients.
The
orthomolecular concept is a great improvement over the one-size-fits-all idea
of recommended daily allowances or minimum daily requirements. It recognizes biochemical individuality
and the importance of one's lifestyle, digestion, stress level and other
factors that influence biochemistry and nutrition.
Although
the concept is excellent, it does not in itself help one determine nutritional
needs. This leads us to a number
of nutritional systems that can help determine individual needs based on
various concepts, tests or other assessment methodologies.
THE ATKINS, ZONE AND PRITIKIN APPROACHES
The Atkins
Diet. Dr. Robert Atkins was a
cardiologist who popularized a high-fat, low carbohydrate diet. While heavily criticized by the medical
and dietetic community, recent studies have confirmed some of his ideas. He was, in fact, an excellent doctor,
based on the testimony of many people I trust. Extraordinary book sales also bear testimony to the value of
the diet, which turns the food pyramid on its head.
The
Atkins diet, as it was called, emphasized high fats and oils, very low
carbohydrates and some vegetables as the basis of the diet. Fruit was also excluded for the most
part, as are all sugars. The
strict version of his diet was ketogenic, which means
it caused the body to begin to burn some
of its proteins for energy, which is helpful for a few people and
definitely causes weight loss and other benefits, especially for those who are
hypoglycemic and some diabetics.
The
Atkins type of diet is helpful for fast oxidizers who require more fats and
fewer carbohydrates. However, we
do not agree with all the recommendations, which include some lower quality
foods. Everyone also needs many more
cooked vegetables than he recommended.
For details, read The Atkins Diet.
The Zone diet, based on the books
by Barry Sears, PhD, is based upon making a balance between protein, fat and
carbohydrates in the diet in a ratio of 30:30:40. This proportion of foods is supposed to reduce inflammation
and keep the blood sugar more balanced all day long. It is a more balanced approach than Atkins. It is, however, limited in a number of
ways. For more details, read The Zone Diet.
Pritikin Diet. This is a very low-fat approach to
diet. It is an inadequate diet and
somewhat dangerous, and not worth discussing any more than this. Since Dr. Pritikin, there have been other low-fat approaches, all of
which suffer from the same shortcomings as the Pritikin
approach. Fats are very important
for our health and should not be sharply restricted.
GAPS, WESTON PRICE, AND PALEOLITHIC DIETS
These
are described in separate articles on this website, as follows:
1. GAPS diet. See The GAPS Diet.
2. Weston Price diet. See The Weston Price Diet.
3. Paleolithic diet. See The Paleolithic Diet.
MEGAVITAMIN THERAPY
Megavitamin
therapy is the use of doses of isolated nutrients far above daily needs to
produce specific symptomatic effects.
For example, many physicians use high-dose intravenous vitamin C to kill
viruses or bacteria, or as a chelating agent. Another example is the use of several thousand
milligrams daily of niacin for schizophrenic symptoms or dilation of peripheral
vessels.
High-dose vitamin A
may be used to stimulate the immune system and to help fight infections and
cancer. High-dose garlic, taurine or vitamin B6 can help lower blood pressure. Calcium and magnesium in high doses may
relax a person and assist sleep.
This
concept uses isolated nutrients in a drug or pharmacological way. As long as one understands this, it is
fine and can be helpful as symptomatic remedies. However, that is all it is. This is not about balance or correction of underlying
imbalances.
For this reason,
megavitamin therapy is never my first choice, but may be lifesaving in an
emergency or as a temporary measure.
A VARIETY OF FRESH, NATURAL, ORGANICALLY GROWN, LOCALLY GROWN FOOD
IN SEASON
A
concept many holistic authorities agree on is the nutritional superiority of
food that has not been overly processed, sprayed, refined, overcooked or
otherwise damaged. This I find
to be true as a general principle.
However, this idea can be exaggerated by people who, for instance, will
only eat uncooked food. Here are
exceptions to the idea of all raw, all natural, unprocessed foods:
á
Freezing vegetables near the farm can preserve some nutrients that
may be lost in long-distance transport.
Freezing some fish and meats may also preserve them if this is needed
and fresh is not practical.
á
A few canned items such as sardines are a good food as they are an
excellent source of calcium and omega-3 fatty acids. Sardines are mainly wild caught fish, and they are cooked
and packaged immediately, helping them remain fresh and safe.
á
Some foods, such as grains, must be cooked or
they are hard or impossible to digest.
Most other canned and boxed items are not as good today.
á
Fermenting certain foods such as soy and others
gets rid of certain enzyme inhibitors and the phytates
they contain. However, fermenting
foods often adds aldehydes to them, which makes them
quite toxic. Please read Fermented Foods on this site for more on this important
topic.
á
Cooking many foods has advantages that are
discussed below and in the article Raw Foods on
this site.
Locally grown
is a fine idea, provided it is done well.
The soil or farming method may be superior somewhere else, in which case
locally grown may not be best.
Eating food in season makes good sense, as it is usually
fresher. However, one's needs may
vary and food from elsewhere or out of season may be helpful at times. Thus, these ideas are great general
principles, but that is all. In
other words, if they are made ÒdogmaÓ one can run into trouble. This is true of most of the concepts we
will review.
Organic or
sustainable agriculture is a concept whose time is coming. It is only the logical and sensible
thing to do to preserve the earth and the food by not exposing either to highly
toxic pesticides, insecticides, fungicides and more. Many people do not realize that even organic farmers may use
a certain amount of toxic chemicals and even toxic metals in their fertilizers
and sprays. So it is not a
foolproof scheme, but a step in the right direction.
RAW FOODS AND JUICES
Raw Diets. A popular theory is that one's food
should be eaten raw, or at least a large percentage of it. This includes raw salads, fruit, nuts,
seeds and soaked grains.. Some
people also eat raw meat, milk, fish and eggs.
The results of this
type of diet are not good, no matter what anyone claims. Here are the problems with it:
1.
Cooking kills a myriad of bacteria and other organisms found in foods,
particularly in meats, eggs, fish and other foods that spoil easily. Today our food comes from all over the
world, and especially from poor nations where food is not clean and those who
grow and process the food are often from an unclean culture. This accentuates the idea that one must
be careful about eating uncooked food.
2. Cooking also
breaks down fiber in foods, making a lot of nutrients, especially minerals,
more available. Minerals are not
damaged by cooking, contrary to what some say. This is particularly the case with grains and root
vegetables. These are almost
impossible to digest raw if they are very fibrous or very starchy.
3. Cooking changes
the quality of food. Heat and salt
add yang energy in Chinese medical terminology.
4. Cooking also
concentrates the minerals in many vegetables, allowing one to eat a lot more of
the food. Obtaining more minerals
is often much more important than the loss of a few vitamins and enzymes due to
cooking. No one advocates
overcooking food, by the way, which is definitely damaging.
5. Humans cannot
digest cellulose as well as cows, horses and other grain and root eaters. This is just a fact and not to be
debated. These animals also eat
huge quantities of raw food, which is necessary because it is less
concentrated. Few people want to
spend their day eating all day.
For
all these reasons, I do not recommend all raw diets and I feel they are quite
dangerous, in fact. The clients I
work with who have followed raw food regimens are, without exception, mineral
deficient, even if they drink vegetable juices, because they are not absorbing
their nutrients well enough.
6. Eating raw foods
is much less grounding than eating cooked, warm food.
Juices And Blended Foods.
Somewhat related to the raw food concept is the idea of consuming juices
and blended ÒsmoothiesÓ and other blended drinks. I do not recommend these at all, as explained below.
Juices are helpful
to concentrate the minerals, vitamins, enzymes and other ingredients in
foods. However, limit it to 10-12
ounces of carrot juice daily for adults, less for children, and definitely none
if a child is below the age of about 7.
Drinking more
vegetable juice than this, or drinking fruit juices and smoothies, in
particular, have the following problems:
1) Extremely
yin. Yin today is very
unhealthy. It also slows or stops
development, a prime goal of nutritional balancing science. See below for more on yin and yang in
foods.
2) Smoothies and
juices are often hard on the digestive system. They can easily upset the stomach and upset the blood sugar,
which is far worse. The
recommended carrot juice should always be taken alone, and not with other food
for this reason.
3) They are very
watery, which dilutes the digestive juices.
4) Juices may
concentrate anti-nutrients. The
fiber in whole foods serves to buffer the effect of certain toxins contained in
all foods. Juicing eliminates the
fiber and in some cases the toxins are much more easily absorbed.
5) Smoothies are
almost always terrible food combinations.
They are usually awful concoctions of protein powders, isolated nutrients,
fruits, juice and other things that do not mix well in the stomach. One is often better off with fewer
items and real food such as a whole egg rather than powders and pills.
Blended Salads
and other blended foods and drinks.
Please strictly avoid all blended salads, smoothies, shakes, frappes and
other blender drinks. Their
problems are 1) they are too yin, and 2) the water dilutes the digestive
juices, and 3) they be bad food combinations.
VEGETARIANISM
Vegetarianism
is the avoidance of animal-based foods.
There are several kinds of vegetarians:
1. Those who only avoid red meat. This is not healthful in my
experience. Lamb is a wonderful
food, eaten at least once or twice a week by most people. A little naturally-raised or even supermarket
beef is okay too, though not as good as lamb by any stretch of the imagination.
Red meats are the
best sources for zinc, sulfur-containing amino acids and other vital
nutrients. Some say falsely that
meats are not Òhigh nutrient densityÓ foods. This is ridiculous.
They are one of the best high-density nutrient foods. Red meats are also more yang, which is
helpful for almost everyone today.
All vegetarian diets are more yin in Chinese medical terminology and
this is harmful in almost all cases.
In terms of yin and yang, the worst diets are the raw food vegan diet
and the fruitarian diet, described below.
2. Those who avoid red meat, chicken and turkey, but will eat fish
and perhaps shellfish, for example.
This is a even worse than the above, in terms of nutrient
deficiencies. Sadly. most fish,
except for about 3-4 cans of sardines or herring weekly, are much too high in
mercury. Shellfish are even worse,
with high levels of mercury, arsenic and cadmium in many cases. As a result, these people often become
quite poisoned with mercury.
Unfortunately, it is not wise to have fish as your primary animal
protein today for this single reason.
Some companies claim to sell low-mercury baby tuna, for example, or
other fish. In my own research, this
is better, but still a problem.
Wild-caught fish are no better, though they may be cleaner in other ways
in some cases.
3. Lacto-ovo vegetarians. These people choose to avoid all flesh
foods, including fish. They eat
eggs, cheese, milk and yogurt.
This diet is far more deficient than a diet that includes fish, poultry
or red meats. The only good from
this diet and the ones below is that mercury toxicity does not occur as much,
in most cases.
4. Vegans. These people avoid
all flesh, as well as all dairy, eggs and often even all bee products such as
honey and bee pollen. This diet is
even worse than those above, and always leads to ruinous consequences
eventually in my experience. It is
just a matter of time. I did it
myself and work with many who have followed a vegan diet. Unfortunately, it is becoming more
popular as a way to lose weight and feel good for a time. Some tolerate it better than others, and
it does require getting off junk food, so people will feel better for a while.
5. Raw food vegetarian or raw food vegan. This is far worse than the diets above. Our digestive system does not break
down raw vegetable fiber enough to absorb most of the minerals in the
vegetables. Also, salads and
fruits take up the stomach capacity, so one eats much less of them than if they
were cooked, which concentrates the food and allows one to eat more of it. Also, some raw food is contaminated,
especially in restaurants, and spreads parasites and other diseases. Never eat raw food in restaurants, I would
suggest. Raw food is even more yin
than vegetarian food, and this is another serious problem with it.
For more on these
topics, read Vegetarianism.
6. Fruitarians. This is another
suicide diet, in my view. It is
completely deficient in nutrients, extremely yin, too high in sugars, damages
the teeth and bones in all cases, and very unbalanced in many ways.
METABOLIC TYPING DIETS
This
is a very important concept in nutritional balancing science because it works well,
in my experience. It is the
concept that people need different diets based on their body type or metabolic
type, as it is also called.
There
are many systems of metabolic typing.
These range from ancient Chinese acupuncture classification of people
based on the 5-element theory, yin and yang, and the macrobiotic classification
of yin and yang, which is different, and the ayurvedic
metabolic classification based on three basic types – pitta,
vatta, and kapha.
There
are also many Western scientific systems such as classifying people by the
Hippocratic 4 types, or by their blood type, or morphogenic
types such as adrenal types, thyroid types, pituitary types, and others. All seem to have some value.
Nutritional
balancing uses a very simple typing system based on the work of Dr. George
Watson and others in which there are two basic types, fast and slow
oxidizers. This works extremely
well, though no system is perfect.
Two types correspond to the Taoist yin and yang system in many ways, and
it is a simple system to learn and apply.
Fast oxidizers
basically need much more fat in their diets, and much less carbohydrates. Slow oxidizers do not do well on much
fat and feel better on more protein and some complex carbohydrates. Sweets are generally bad for both
metabolic types, especially fast oxidizers. Slow oxidizers seem more able to handle some sweets, but
they are very damaging for them as well.
MACROBIOTICS APPLIED TO NUTRITIONAL BALANCING SCIENCE
According to this
diet theory, which is an aspect of ancient Taoist philosophy, all food can be
classified as more yang or more yin.
In order to be as healthy as possible, one should balance the forces of
yin and yang in the body by eating foods that are appropriate for oneself. If one is more yin, for example, one
needs to eat more yang foods. Here
are examples of foods, moving from yang to yin:
Yang foods Yin
foods
salt, meats, eggs, poultry, grains, vegetables,
fruits, sweets, drugs
This
classification of foods goes along with the theory of yin and yang. For example, yang is more
contracted. Salt, found more in
meats, if placed in a wound, for example, will cause it to contract or
close. Yang foods are also more
warming and eaten in the winter months and more in cold climates. Eskimos, for example, live on more meat
and no fruit, as it does not grow much in the arctic. Those in tropical climates generally need more watery,
sugary food to help counteract the hot climate.
The
US army found out this theory works during World War II when they tried to feed
troops in the tropics and in the arctic the same rations. It did not work and the men became
ill. In cold climates, one needs
more warming or yang foods, while in the tropics one needs cooling or more yin
foods.
Grounding and
yin and yang. Yang is
generally a movement toward the earth, whereas yin is often, though not always,
a movement away from the earth and toward the sky. Grounding is a very important concept in nutritional
balancing for the development of the first center, and indirectly for all of
them. This is another reason to
eat a very yang diet, in fact.
Yin Qualities. Yin is cool,
expanded, more sugary, uncooked, and often broken up or shredded, as occur with
blending and juicing of foods.
Yin foods include
foods that grow on trees, generally, above the earth, whereas yang foods often
grow closer to the earth or under the earth such as roots and tubers. Yin foods include alcohol and most all
drugs and chemical additives to foods.
Fruits are very yin,
as they are expanded parts of plants and often are sugary and grow on
trees. Nuts and many seeds are
also quite yin. Roasting almonds
makes them much less yin. Some
vegetables such as tomatoes, potatoes, eggplant, peppers and squashes, among
others, are really fruits and are therefore far more yin than other vegetables
and even more yin than some fruits.
Salads are more yin
than cooked vegetables, while juices, smoothies and blended salads are even
more yin because they are uncooked, broken up or blended. For the same reason, grains that are
ground up into flour are more yin than those that are cooked whole.
Potatoes are an
exception, as they grow underground but are very yin. This has to do with their mineral content, which is another
factor. Minerals such as iron are
yang, while minerals such as potassium are very yin. The slightly more acid-forming minerals such as iron,
phosphorus, sulfur, zinc and others are more yang. the alkaline-forming minerals such as copper, manganese,
sodium and potassium are more yin.
Another yin quality
of food is its age. Very fresh
food is much more yang. Older food
is much more yin. Unfortunately, most
food today is grown far away and transported for several days before it is
eaten. This makes it all more
yin. Dried food is more yang, as
is frozen food to a degree.
Heating and cooking
food makes it more yang, as heat is a basic yang quality. Fermenting food, however, such as
making milk into yogurt or soybeans into miso or soy
sauce, is not as yang as cooking.
This is important, at times, for those who suggest eating a lot of
fermented foods.
Vitamins and
minerals are also yin in general.
However, water-soluble ones are more yin while glandulars
and fat-soluble nutrients are more yang.
Those that are naturally derived are generally more yang.
Toxic metals are all
yin in nature, as are most toxins.
Radiation from nuclear plants and medical x-rays are very yin. Cell phone radiation, and that from
computers, televisions and other appliances are also very yin. Most people born today are extremely
yin due to the influence of toxins in the environment, especially radiation
which is not seen or felt, but is very important for why we use the healing
methods we suggest today for most people.
A modified macrobiotic eating system. One can see that this is a very complex
system, but the basics are as stated above. Nutritional balancing uses this system, which one can read
about in a book about macrobiotics only.
However, I do not use all the macrobiotic principles because they were
designed for Japanese people thousands of years ago and things have changed to
some degree today. Therefore the
system has been changed, though not much.
For example, fish used to be an excellent food and is highly
recommended. Today it is mainly
toxic.
Also, macrobiotics
does not take into account the horrible yin conditions on planet earth today,
in my view. In addition, the diet
is restrictive and does not take into account various scientific observations
about iodine, vitamin D, the value of kelp, but not other sea vegetables and
the toxicity of most herbs today.
These are the major differences.
Also, macrobiotics
does not recommend much dairy products such as milk, cheese, yogurt and
others. I think this is mainly
because it is somewhat yin and they were not available or not used much in
Japan. However, the Caucasian race
handles them better and they are helpful for many people, so we include them.
Macrobiotics is also
quite rigid the way some people apply it, and allows too many toxic sea
vegetables, too much rice and not enough blue and yellow corn, and includes too
many beans, which have other problems for Americans, in particular.
Also, some people
believe that women, in particular, should be vegetarians according to
macrobiotics. I feel this is a
terrible mistake and does not take into account the needs of Caucasians and the
needs of our toxic times.
Also, macrobiotics
may recommend herbs that I have found to be toxic today, although perhaps that
was not the case thousands of years ago.
Be very wary of all herbs today.
Also, today all
foods are hybrids and this is another reason certain macrobiotic ideas such as
the virtues of brown rice, must be altered somewhat. Rice is not the same as it was thousands of years ago when
it was not hybridized and it was grown in a totally different traditional
manner.
I use this modified
macrobiotic approach to diet because it works well and need not be
complex. It is the reason to eat
more cooked food, more meat, grains and vegetables, and to basically skip all
fruit, fruit juices, dried fruits, sugars and chemicals.
Why everyone is more yin today than even 20 years ago when Michio Kushi taught basic
macrobiotics. Yin forces on planet earth are increasing rapidly such as
pollution, radiation poisoning, chemicals in the food, more spoiled and
genetically modified food, more mercury, an extremely yin toxic metal, more
medical drugs everywhere, even in the water supplies and food supplies, more
fluoride and chlorine added to drinking water and much more yin lifestyles.
Yin lifestyles. These include
staying up too late, not getting enough rest and sleep, using computers and
televisions that give off extremely yin electromagnetic fields, and other yin
habits such as too much sex in some cases, and victim thinking, which is also
very yin in nature. All of this is
increasing rapidly, especially among young people who are born yin due to
nutritional imbalances. This is
the reason for certain modifications in the macrobiotic system of diet.
Assessing Yin And Yang.
Yin and yang conditions may be determined by traditional methods such as
acupuncture pulse and tongue diagnosis, facial features, body shape, skin color
and other traditional measures.
However, the nature of the toxins in modern environments such as cell
phone radiation and nuclear fallout make these ancient methods less applicable
today in our experience. They are
still extremely valuable, but harder to measure accurately.
We find, however,
that hair tissue mineral analysis is helpful for this assessment, providing the
hair is not washed at the laboratory and the ratios below are followed
exactly. Here are the ratios we
use:
1. Fast oxidation is
more yang, while slow oxidation is much more yin. This must be modified by the other ratios below.
2. A low
sodium/potassium ratio is much more yin, while a high ratio is more yang.
3. A high
calcium/magnesium ratio is more yang, generally, but not always. This is more variable.
4. Higher levels of
toxic metals are more yin.
However, this is variable since most people have their metals well
hidden and they will not show up on any type of tests, often until they begin
to eliminate them during a nutritional balancing program.
5. Greater age is
yin, in general. Babies are yang,
for example, and that is why milk, which is fairly yin, works for them. As they become older, they become more
yin. Old people are also much more
yin and ill.
6. All illness, particularly cancer,
diabetes and other degenerative conditions, are more yin. However, each illness can be or a more
yin or yang type, depending upon its causes.
7. Overweight is
much more yin in most cases, but not all.
AYURVEDA
This
is an ancient Indian system of healing that classifies people into metabolic
types called doshas. There are three main ones and many variants, depending on
how sophisticated one wants to get.
Ancient methods of assessment are used, with all the problems of the
ancient methods, in my experience.
I donÕt use Ayurvedic methods and I do not recommend them, either. Of course, there is much wisdom of the
ancients, but problems as well.
One of the worst is that the herbs that are recommended often contain
toxic metals. This is in part due
to the herbs themselves, and also due to lax regulation of the herbal industry
in India and other nations where they are grown and processed. This can be very dangerous, especially
if one continues to take these herbs over more than a year or so. A good friend was irreparably poisoned
this way and is now living in a nursing home with AlzheimerÕs disease at a
young age. We traced the problem
to his Ayurvedic herbs that are high in toxic metals.
BLOOD TYPE DIETS
This
fairly recent idea states that one should eat according to one's genetic A,B,O or other blood type. There are several books such as Eat right For Your Type, by Dr. DÕAdamo, the man who set up this system.
It
is important to realize that this approach is a genetic approach. This means it has to do mainly with oneÕs physical DNA, and
not much else. It has a certain
amount of usefulness for this reason.
In contrast,
nutritional balancing is a soul
approach. This means that
it is less about oneÕs DNA and much more about oneÕs environment, upbringing,
gestational conditions, toxins in the environment, nutritional depletion, and
more. We find it to be far more
useful than the blood type approaches of all kinds. This is not a critique, but just an observation.
What
we find is that we must give people the food they need, and sometimes it does
not match what is recommended for their blood type. In these cases, we always give a digestive aid to help one
absorb and utilize what one needs properly. The bodies are so toxic and depleted, and the food so poor
today, even organic food, that we find that blood type diets are too
restrictive and simply not accurate enough.
When I heard about
this idea some 15 years ago, I began asking my patients to tell me their blood
type and I observed results with this diet system. It has merit, but not enough to warrant all the publicity is
has received. However, it points
out, for example, that those with blood type 0 must eat some meat. I do find that vegetarians with this blood
type often are the most ill, for example.
It is useful for this purpose.
However, it is an incomplete diet system and not accurate enough due to
all the toxins in the environment today that cause all manner of food allergies
and other problems that the system does not account for.
ACID-ALKALINE
This
popular concept contends that one must keep one's body is the correct pH range
by varying the diet and often by drinking alkalinizing water. The idea behind this dietary concept
has much merit. However, it does
not work well at all, in my opinion, for the following reasons:
1) Assessing tissue pH is nearly
impossible. Hair analysis, a
tissue test, is somewhat helpful, but not very good. Urine, blood, saliva and other tests are also not measuring
the cells themselves and are grossly inaccurate in too many cases.
2) Alkaline water is extremely dangerous, in my
experience. It is fine for a few
months and will cause positive changes because everyone is acidic today. However, it is a shortcut method and
platinum plates are used in the machines that eventually poison the person very
badly. Please stay far away from
alkaline water machines, at least all the ones I have seen such as Kagen and others.
3) To truly alkalinize the body, one must eat a
lot of cooked vegetables to replenish the alkaline reserve minerals, remove yin
toxic metals and chemicals that are yin, balance the oxidation rate and so
on. This is done in nutritional
balancing science very well, but not in most other healing systems.
OXIDATION TYPES
Dr.
George Watson first coined the term the oxidation types in his 1972 book, Nutrition and
Your Mind. He noticed that
most people could be classified into one of two groups based on their responses
to odor tests. He found that one
group had slightly more acid blood and felt better on some foods than others.
He
theorized that fast oxidizers burned fat better, and benefited from a diet low
in carbohydrates and higher in fat and high-purine
proteins. Slow oxidizers burn
carbohydrates better, and benefit from a diet higher in carbohydrates and low-purine proteins.
Physicians use questionnaires, blood tests, hair tests or other methods
to assess the oxidation rate.
I
find this concept useful, and closely related to the sympathetic/parasympathetic
idea put forth by Dr. Melvin Page and others who have worked on this
concept. However, I use the hair
tissue mineral analysis to assess the oxidation type, by the measurements
figured out by Dr. Paul C. Eck of Phoenix, Arizona. I was his pupil for about 14 years and have written
extensively about his research, which I consider primarily as intuitive and
empirical research.
This means he did
not sit with rats or mice, or even with that many human subjects. Instead, he was a clinician who
reviewed many texts on minerals, in particular, and observed the effects of
various foods, supplements, herbs and other products on hair tissue mineral
tests of over half a million patients, to derive his normal values and key
ratios that he used to assess sympathetic and parasympathetic states as well as
oxidation types. This is the work
I do to this day and I have been most pleased with the results. I also teach this work to anyone who
wants to learn it.
The oxidation types
are discussed in other articles on this website, such as by clicking on Fast, Slow And Mixed Oxidation.
ETHERIC NUTRITION
This
states that certain foods, herbs and other substances contain more ether or etheric energy.
These foods are meats, eggs, poultry, fish, cooked vegetables, grains,
and a few herbs. Foods that are
low in etheric energy are all fruits, beans, seeds,
nuts, sugar, refined foods and foods that contain manmade chemicals.
For more information
about this important dietary system, read Development And Your Diet.
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