Diet Wise: Is One Diet Right for Everyone?

[ycb2002y2]

I just began reading a book called Diet Wise by Dr. Keith Scott-Mumby. It is very interesting. He talks about how foods that may seem healthy can be toxic. He seems to argue that there is no one diet that fits all persons. Each person has there own genetic makeup that either can handle certain foods or not. Even what seem like healthy foods like carrots or eggs could be something that your genetic makeup does not agree with and cause mild to severe allergies and subsequent disease. I will keep all posted on what else I find out in the book. Maybe it has something to do with some of our symptoms. But, like I said it would be individual for each person. Probably no blanket statements like wheat is always bad, or carrots are always good. He is going to get into the elimination diet, but I haven't gotten to that part of the book yet.

 

[Gloria123]

I really agree with this. My chiropractor did a test called the ALCAT which is a blood test that picks up your food sensitivities (tests for 100 foods). Everyone is totally different. Wheat may adversely affect one person, and be totally fine for the next. I read once that dairy is particularly difficult for northern Europeans to digest genetically, for instance.I will read this book!Thanks,Mitra

 

[ycb2002y2]

I am in the 6th chapter of the book and it is full of great information. The allergy test your chiro did is good, however it can have many false readings. Mainly false negatives. For example, the test may not show that you are allergic to oranges, but maybe every time you eat an orange you experience some kind of physical malady (acid reflux, nausea, migranes and yes even BFS). Sometimes the offending food can stay under the radar. Either b/c we don't know how to test for it, or it is not actually producing antibodies that we can detect. The only reliable way to actually see if you react to a certain food is to test the actual food on yourself. No doctors poking you with 100 needles, just a simple elimination diet. I have not gotten into the elimination diet portion of the book, but I am very eagar to get started implementing it.

 

[ycb2002y2]

Mumby explains the cave man diet (hunter and gatherer) in his book. Basically, before agriculture was invented you had the hunter and gatherer diet. The cave man would eat berries, nuts, and stuff he found naturally growing without man's coersion. The cavemen would occassionally kill a wild animal and eat it. Now we introduce agriculture (farming) and humans begin to ingest things they were not intended to. Milk for example was originally supposed to be used by infants of the species it was born from. When infants grew older they didn't need it milk anymore. What other animal on Earth drinks the milk of another species of animal, especially at an older age. It's quite strange if you really think about it. Other foods that were introduced with agriculture were wheat and eggs. Guess what some of the biggest percentages of allergies are: wheat, milk, and eggs. That is why you will find these listed as allergens on boxed foods that contain them.

 

[AllGoodHere]

ycb2002y2 - the elimination diet was very helpful when we were trying to determine sensitivities in my young children. It isn't easy to do, so many don't follow through to conclusion, but it certainly saved us a lot of grief. In one case what was being thought of as a developmental problem was actually a sensitivity to red dye - once it was removed the 'problem' disappeared. Really glad I found an old fashioned & methodical allergist rather than one solely into medical testing. Of interest also is the article posted here recently about Protozoa infection - most people improve on a low fat diet because the organisms need fat to proliferate. The researchers think that perhaps we have always had these critters in our blood but it is now - with increased age span and more people eating (and not burning) excessive fats that it is becoming more of a problem. Time will tell with that one.j_sageurge - Yes for sure, as it has often been said 'the brain is the most powerful organ'. You can take this many ways but IMO you can use your your mindful intentions to assist your progress regardless of what it is you need to achieve; health, sports, anything that involves not only yourself but your energy in relation to others. And the opposite of course - to our detriment, creating a toxic environment. There have been many supportive studies done on this from athletes envisioning their moves and succeeding to positive outcomes in diseases helped by attitudes of the patients. We are all guilty of allowing our negative thoughts to interfere with our lives to some degree & even if you accept this view, it is not something that is easy to have an awareness of as you go through your day-to-day activities.

 

[ycb2002y2]

AllGoodHere- The article on the protozoal infection is very interesting. I read it on another thread. I actually went to the guys website that wrote the article and found that his lab does all sorts of tests. Some of the tests are only preformed by his lab, and are considered expiremental. Very interesting though. I have started the elimination diet. I am doing pretty well with it, but it is hard to give up chocolate. I am basically eating fruits, vegetables, beans, nuts, fish, turkey, some beef, and water. I am cheating on one aspect of the diet, I am eating brown rice and nonprocessed oatmeal. I have given up chicken, eggs, wheat, corn, potatoes, and milk. It is amazing when you start looking around the grocery store how much of the food is just the same stuff rehashed. It is almost impossible to find any sort of boxed food that does not have eggs, wheat, corn, potatoes or milk in it. I am pretty much staying in the produce isle. I am eating wild caught canned fish (salmon, sardins, mackerel, and yellowfinned tuna). It is hard to stay away from all the additives and preservatives, too. And people wonder why American's are becoming less healthy, look at the crap we put in our bodies!

 

[AllGoodHere]

Well, for both of my kids when they were very young, it really cleared up some problems by doing the elimination diet. My daughter had a high sensitivity to red food dye (she still does to a lesser extent - haha no red koolaid shots) and my son to citrus oil. Good thing they were too young to question the food choices as yes, I agree, it is not easy to eliminate all the additives, etc. Rice crackers and homemade mayo with tuna for lunch - not that yummy without all the extras! It is hard if you do not cook and are not used to making everything from scratch. Neither of their sensitivities is unheard of if you talk to a pediatrician, allergist or a nutritionist, and neither would have shown up in allergy testing. We totally did not expect the results in either case but it saved us some grief. We started adding things back in one by one after a few weeks to look for a reaction and it surprised us all (docs and me although the docs had seen it before they expected more common problems). Good luck with it.