Dear Readers,

I have just written an article on Dietary Guidelines which I'm sharing with you first (below). It answers many questions which I am often asked, and I hope you find it useful.

In my September 2013 Newsletter I summarized the most defining characteristics of the Blood body type. This month I present the Blood body type in depth - what is unique about their personality, and how they relate to themselves and others. (Other prior newsletters are available in the Newsletter Archives.)

Blood body types are generally the bringers of harmony in conflict situations. White Angelica essential oil helps transmute disharmony into balance or harmony. When unsuccessful, Blood body types may feel Crushed - an emotion that is transmuted with the Harmony essential oil. Both of these oils are detailed below.

As always, I hope and trust that these newsletters help you enjoy a happier, healthier life.

Health and Happiness,
Dr. Carolyn Mein

Dietary Guidelines

The Blood Body Type

White Angelica Essential Oil

Harmony Essential Oil

The specific foods that are supportive to each of the 25 body types are listed in the Body Type Profile and Diet booklets, which are also available as an ebook, and the Quick Reference Cards.

The foods listed in the various categories are listed for natural, whole healthy foods. Unfortunately, many foods in the USA have undergone changes that the human body is unable to recognize and process.

Wheat has been hybridized to become softer and more fluffy, making pastries and cakes lighter, but in the process, increasing GLUTEN and stressing the digestive system. Corn has been genetically modified (GMO) to kill insects that would eat it by destroying the digestive system of the insect and thus the insect. Unfortunately, this process also damages the digestive system of animals and humans who eat this GMO corn.

If your digestive system is extremely strong and only a limited amount of GMO corn products are eaten, you probably will not be aware of their effects, but if your system is sensitive, you will want to avoid them. Soy is difficult to break down for most body types. Soy is almost all GMO. It contains casein which is found in dairy and difficult for many people to digest.

Dairy is pasteurized and contains casein. If you are fortunate enough to have a good raw source, evaluate according to your body type. Dairy, primarily milk and cheese, are often produced from cattle that have been fed GMO corn, so check your sources. Imported, aged cheeses, sheep or goat cheeses can be good choices. Butter or ghee is an excellent fat source that most people digest well. Kefir is a good probiotic source, that can be used to re-establish the intestinal flora after the ingestion of antibiotics.

It is possible to experience the effects of antibiotics if you eat commercially raised chicken or meat, like you would typically get when you eat out. Drinking 8 ounces of kefir over the course of 1 to 4 days, will re-establish the food source for the Candida Albanians to maintain a harmonious gut environment. Frequency varies, depending on your system and level of exposure.

Sugar: Your intestines are covered with thousands of species of bacteria. The good bugs, or probiotics, work with your body to maintain good digestion. One of the ways the balance of good bugs and bad bugs can get thrown off is by eating too much sugar. When the gut's delicate ecosystem is thrown off, the bad bugs take over and this can result in many chronic illnesses and symptoms. Too much sugar in the diet may lead to diabetes, and is also responsible for a wide-range of health problems. These may include allergies, chronic inflammation, joint problems, digestive symptoms, mood and brain disorders, plus the growth of yeast. Too much yeast in the gut may cause chronic fatigue, loss of energy, general malaise, inability to concentrate, irritability, bloating and gas, frequent bladder infections, and other problems.

Sugar ideally should be limited to 6 tsp or 25 grams per day. This includes natural sugar that is found in fruit. One of the ways we inadvertently get a lot of sugar in our diets is in fruit juice, including smoothies. Dried fruit contains concentrated sugar, and even though it is good sugar, it is easy to mindlessly over-eat, so be aware.

How do I know if I would benefit from eliminating these foods from my diet?

If you suffer from:

• Inflammation and chronic pain
• Migraine headaches
• Digestive trouble including IBS, bloating, diarrhea or chronic constipation
• Thyroid issues
• Autism, ADD or ADHD, or
• Allergies - there are 245 diseases currently associated with food allergies

you might want to start by eliminating the foods that produce the greatest amount of irritation for the greatest number of people.

These foods are:

• Sugar - particularly refined, white sugar cane
• Gluten - highest source is wheat. If you are extremely sensitive, you may want to start by eliminating all grains. White Basmati rice is the easiest grain to digest and a good place to start when you are reintroducing grains to your diet
• Corn - Blue corn is often a good alternative as is organic popcorn
• Soy - almost all soy is now GMO
• Dairy - except for butter

If I eliminate all these foods, what am I going to eat?

Primarily Protein and Vegetables, along with good fats. However, even here you need to be aware. Common vegetables and fruit that are now GMO are zucchini squash, alfalfa, sugarbeets and papaya.

Good sources of fats include: whole eggs, nuts (such as almonds, pecans, walnuts and cashews), seeds (such as sunflower seeds and flax seeds - soak overnight or grind when you are ready to use), avocado, avocado oil, olive oil, coconut oil, and fatty fish (mackerel, tuna, salmon, and trout).

While salmon is an excellent source of Omega 3 fats, you need to be aware that Atlantic salmon is not wild caught, but farm raised.

Fresh young coconut water is the closest food to mother's milk. It contains fat, protein, magnesium and acts as a digestive aid. Beware of boxed, canned or processed coconut water; there is a big difference between these and raw fresh young coconut in taste, quality and absorption. Many stores will open the young coconuts for you. CoCo Jack is a tool sold on the internet which makes opening coconuts yourself easy. To store, pour the coconut water into a glass container with a lid, and add the soft coconut meat. The meat is soft soft you can scrape it out with a spoon. Coconut stores well in the refrigerator for 2 - 4 days or longer if you have a polarizing disc in your refrigerator which can extend the freshness up to 7 or 8 days.

Re-Vita is spiralina that has been fed minerals. It was developed as an answer for world hunger to be added to milk, and in this combination, reverses symptoms of malnutrition in a few days. I like to add 1 - 2 packets of the Lemon/Lime flavor to the juice of a lemon or two limes into a quart jar and fill it with water. This is great during or after a workout, to sustain your energy throughout the day, a snack, or as a cleanse.

As a cleanse, the Re-Vita lemonade can be drank exclusively throughout the day, or used as a supplement. Re-Vita is sweet and is listed in the Food Lists under Sweeteners. Add it to oatmeal "cookies", cranberries or rhubarb. Put it in your oatmeal along with nuts and butter; add it to butternut squash with cinnamon; or just put it in a spoon and eat it when you are looking for something sweet to help you digest your meal.

Is HARMONY something that is very important to you, something you are constantly striving for, yet - all too often - elusive? Are you emotionally sensitive to other people's emotions, to the point where you can have difficulty sleeping when you feel there is unresolved emotional conflict? Do you find yourself becoming emotionally expressive when you don't feel heard or acknowledged? If this describes you, you could be a Blood body type.

Core Emotional Issues and Life Lessons

A person's PASSION is what gives them the greatest sense of fulfillment, sense of value, joy or accomplishment. It's what gives life meaning. For the Blood body type, this is HARMONY. Harmony is the feeling that all is well.

The LIFE LESSON for the Blood, is "to bring harmony", which explains why Bloods often find themselves in areas of conflict. The challenge is to bring harmony into areas where harmony does not exist. Bloods are often aware of problems before the general populace, and can be like the yellow canary in the coal mines for identifying environmental stressors.

The MOTIVATION for change is Respect - from self and others. This means respect for self in seeing and appreciating one's own value, respecting others and being respected.

The essential oil for the feeling or experience of Disharmony is White Angelica. The other side is Balance. The goal is to transmute disharmony and in so doing bring about harmony. This results in a feeling of fulfillment, a feeling of knowing you are on your right path and fulfilling your destiny which is "to bring harmony." The way to transmute disharmony is through balance. Balance is achieved by looking at all sides of a situation, respecting other peoples' feelings, needs, and opinions as well as your own. The way to achieve balance is by being centered yourself, hence the affirmation "I am centered."

A common emotion that arises when life doesn't go as desired, is a feeling of being Crushed. The oil is Harmony and the alarm point is the blood point on the sides below the arm pit. The other side is Expand and the way to expand is "I rise". To expand is to increase your awareness to look at the situation from the other person's point of view. The tendency is to get locked into only your feeling and point of view, especially when you are tired or stressed. The way out of the feeling of being crushed is to rise above the situation and look at it from a higher perspective.

For this technique, see the demonstration video.

Motivation

What motivates the Blood body type is RESPECT. "Respect me, and I am motivated to do whatever needs to be done. " "Help me find ways to respect myself." When emotions intensify, there needs to be a harmonious resolution or negative energy builds, resulting in personal health challenges, inertia, or destructive behavior. The MOTIVATION for change and forward movement is respect.



Dominant Senses

The dominant senses for the Balanced body type are Physical and Emotional. Being emotionally based, Bloods are sensitive to the emotions of those around them and will often pick up on and express the emotions of others as though the emotions are their own. The emotions will range from tears to anger and will be expressed emotionally - verbally and/or physically.

Physical movement helps release emotional tension, especially walking.

Physical Characteristics

Some physical characteristics that will help you identify the Blood body type:

Often times, men will have a high forehead with a receding hairline. Their torso shape is average, as is muscular appearance. Height ranges from short to tall.

Women gain weight in their lower abdomen which may or may not involve the thighs.

Don’t know your body type yet?
Determining your body type is easy using my online body type test: