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Protein Type Diet


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Characteristics of Your Metabolic Type

Many Protein Types share similar characteristics. However, if you're a Protein Type, that doesn't mean you're like everyone else in your metabolic category in the way you react to foods, your strengths and weaknesses, your energy level, the strength of your appetite, and so on. After all, you're unique on a metabolic level!

Nonetheless, here are some typical tendencies you may have in common with other Protein Types:

Strong Appetites

Protein types tend to have strong appetites to the point of being ravenously hungry a great deal of the time. You may feel the need to eat frequently, though you're also likely to have a hard time feeling satisfied with meals and snacks. In addition, you probably have a tendency to overeat sometimes, perhaps even stuffing yourself to the bursting point, only to find that you're still hungry.

Cravings for Fatty, Salty Foods

Protein types typically gravitate toward rich, fatty, salty foods like sausages, pizza, and roasted and salted nuts. However, if you stray too far from these heavier foods and consume too many carbohydrates, you may quickly find yourself craving sugar. The likelihood is that the more you eat anything sweet, the stronger your cravings become. And sugar most likely causes your energy to drop or makes you feel nervous and jittery.

Failure with Low-Calorie Diets

You may have tried to lose weight by cutting calories, only to find your weight either increased or stayed the same. Or perhaps you've had the willpower to try radical measures like fasting or the "grapefruit diet," but were astonished to find that your weight actually increased despite these severe deprivation approaches.

Fatigue, Anxiety, Nervousness

Characteristically, those with your metabolic type have energy problems of one kind or another-either lethargy or a "hyped-up" kind of superficial energy. In other words, you might have low, "flat" energy, and be prone to feeling apathetic, depressed, listless, and sleepy. Or you might feel "wired" or "on edge" on the surface of things, while feeling exhausted underneath. When you feel anxious, nervous, jittery, or shaky, eating probably makes you feel better.

If any of these situations describes you, it's a clear indication that you're pumping the wrong kind of "body fuel" into your "engine of metabolism."

Dietary Emphasis for Protein Types

As a Protein Type, what you need is a diet comprised of relatively high amounts of protein and fat compared with carbohydrates.

But, all proteins are not created equal. You need to focus on certain kinds of proteins-those high in fat and high in purines. As you'll see in the food list I've prepared for you, there are many type of foods that are rich in purines.

More than any other kinds of foods, purine-containing foods are oxidized (converted to energy) at the proper rate for your metabolic type.

At the opposite end of the spectrum from purine proteins are carbohydrates. People with your metabolic type need to minimize the consumption of carbohydrates, since they're converted to energy to quickly. The heavier proteins and fatty foods effectively slow down the too-fast oxidative rates of most Protein Types.

For many years, popular wisdom has held that red meat and high fat diets are bad for human beings. But this is simply not true. The truth is, any food can be good for you and any food can be bad for you. Everything is dependent on your metabolic type.

If you happen to be a Protein Type, you definitely need a high protein, high-fat diet in order to lose weight, feel energized both physically and mentally, and stay on an even keel emotionally. Over the longer term, this same diet, if properly followed and tailored to your metabolic individuality, can prevent you from developing all kinds of serious degenerative diseases-cardiovascular problems, immune deficiency, blood sugar abnormalities, osteoporosis, arthritis, digestive disorders, and many other chronic illnesses-all of which are rooted in metabolic imbalance.

Important Tips on Your Allowable Foods...

Eat Protein at Every Meal

Eating sufficient protein at every meal will maximize your energy and trim your waistline, and assure peak performance. Failure to do this can lead to chronic fatigue, diminished well-being, and emotional imbalances such as depression, anxiety, and melancholy. Many people make the mistake of eating carbohydrate alone at a meal or snack. This is especially undesirable for your metabolic type. It will only worsen your imbalance, tend to increase your fat stores, and intensify any food cravings, particularly for sugar or other sweets.

Emphasize High-density, High-purine Proteins

Purines are special substances derived from a class of proteins called nucleoproteins, which play an important part in the energy producing processes in body tissues. They have particular benefit for protein-type metabolizers and directly contribute to balancing their body chemistry. Note that any animal, fowl, and seafood protein is permissible in your diet. As higher-density proteins, animal proteins are preferable to the vegetable proteins. But due to the special needs of your metabolic type, you fare better on high- and medium-purine proteins. These are all the foods listed in the meat/fowl and seafood columns in your Allowable Foods Chart. Most people in your metabolic type category require a higher purine protein with every meal. Lower-purine or lower-density proteins like dairy, legumes, and nuts are not a substitute. You should notice that if you eat low-purine, low-density foods as the primary protein source at any meal, you won't feel as satisfied, nor will your performance or energy be optimal. On the other hand, incorporating the higher-purine, higher-density proteins into two or three of your meals on a daily basis will supercharge your diet with the ideal fuel mixture for your engines of metabolism.

Snack as Needed

If you snack, be sure to include a protein food. It's best for your metabolic type to never eat carbohydrate alone. Any protein can be used for a snack, but stick with what works best for you. You may find that nuts or dairy work well for snacks but are not adequate protein sources for main meals. On the other hand, if nuts or dairy snacks leave you hungry or craving something sweet, or cause a drop in energy or mood, you likely will need heavier proteins for snacks as well. Learn to listen to your body!

Be Cautious with Carbohydrates

Any plant-based food-grains, vegetables, or fruits-are carbohydrates. But there are different kinds of carbohydrates and they don't all affect your metabolism in the same way. For example, some carbohydrates are higher in starch and some carbohydrates are lower in starch. Starchy carbohydrates break down easily into sugar, which means they hit your bloodstream quickly. This can cause a strong insulin response from your pancreas, which can lead to increased fat storage and blood sugar problems like hypoglycemia. Over time, excess insulin secretion can contribute to more severe disorders such as: allergies, asthma, alcoholism, atherosclerosis, cancer, carbohydrate addiction, heart disease, chronic fatigue, depression, diabetes, insulin resistance, glucose intolerance, hypertension, obesity, and peptic ulcers. Carrots, potatoes, squash, bananas, and all grains tend to be high in starch and must be carefully regulated. Thus, grains, starchy vegetables, and fruits are your "caution carbs." For this reason, Protein Types do best limiting starches and need to emphasize the non-starchy vegetables as their primary source of carbohydrates.

Beware of Bread

Limit bread intake, both in quantity and frequency, as much as possible. If possible, opt for sprouted-grain breads like Ezekiel or Manna brands. Unlike regular breads, sprouted-grain breads won't inhibit calcium absorption, thereby disrupting your calcium balance-a critical consideration for your metabolic type. When you do eat bread, always use butter, as it will minimize any potential adverse blood sugar fluctuations.

Go Easy with Grains

Use only whole-grain products. Do not consume any refined grain products made with white flour or enriched flour. All baked foods should contain only whole grain flours. However, avoid wheat and wheat products as much as possible, since wheat breaks down into sugar faster than any other grain and therefore has a disruptive influence on insulin metabolism. But don't worry-most any other grain is fine for your metabolic type. Here's a tip: Try using spelt instead of wheat, since spelt shares many of wheat's desirable attributes for baking but not wheat's influences on insulin. Keep in mind, though, that all grains are starches, which means they readily break down into sugar, so they should be used sparingly. For this reason, cooked whole grains are preferable to products like breads and crackers. The worst offenders for your metabolism are refined grains of all kinds.

Closely Monitor Fruits

Because Protein Types tend to be fast oxidizers or parasympathetic dominants, they're predisposed to low blood sugar problems. This means you're not likely to do well on fruits, which are high in potassium and sugar. However, most Protein Types do well on avocados and olives, and limited amounts of apples, pears, and bananas that are not fully ripe. But you're likely to run into big problems if you attempt to eat fruit by itself.

Use Juices Judiciously

Vegetable juices, as long as they're freshly made, are allowed in moderation-but don't have more than one glass, three to four times per week. It's best to use a combination of starchy and nonstarchy vegetables such as carrot, celery, and spinach. Use a reduced proportion of starchy vegetables like carrots, since they're too sugary. Do no consume fruit juices at all. Fruit juices, or even excessive amounts of vegetable juice, will strongly imbalance your metabolic type and lead to weight gain, food cravings, blood sugar fluctuations, energy disruptions, and a desire for sugar. Avoid canned juices of any kind.

Freely Use Fats and Oils

The subject of fats and oils and their effects on human metabolism has been extensively researched and documented. An in-depth discussion of them is beyond the scope of this book (for a complete discussion, see Fats and Oils, an excellent book by Udo Erasmus). In general, what you need to know is that fats and oils in their natural state are not bad for you and eating them will not produce high cholesterol or heart disease any more than any other natural food. Fats contain fatty acids that are essential for good health, efficient immune function, normal hormonal production, cellular respiration (energy production), proper cell membrane permeability-in short, for life itself. Whether a food is good or bad depends both on the quality of the food and on the metabolic type of the person consuming the food. Fats are no exception. Unlike other types, Protein Types need to support their metabolisms by consuming liberal amounts of natural oils and fats. But never consume margarine, hydrogenated oils, or fat substitutes, as research is uncovering the fact that these substances can have a serious negative impact on your health! If you must buy packaged foods, read the labels to make sure they do not contain these substances. Use only real butter (organic if possible) and natural cold pressed oils that have been properly manufactured. Recommended brands are Omega, Flora, or Bio-San, widely available in health food stores. Other good sources from which to derive your quota for fatty acids are from nuts, nut butters, and the animal-based foods listed in your Allowable Foods Chart.

Certain foods really aggravate your metabolic imbalances and should be avoided. You may have strong adverse reactions to these foods, or if your metabolism is less sensitive, the reactions may be slight or even nonexistent. Or your reactions to these problem foods could vary from time to time. All these possibilities are common and reflect yet another facet of metabolic individuality.

Keep in mind that the effects of nutrition are cumulative. The more you ingest a food, the stronger the effect becomes. So even if you don't display any noticeable adverse reactions, it's still best to minimize your intake of the following foods whenever possible.

In short, stick to your allowable foods. But, if you simply must eat something not on that list, be aware that the following foods are particularly undesirable for your metabolism.

Alcohol

In any form (beer, wine, hard liquor), alcohol is a form of poison to your body. When you consume it, your body must detoxify it and neutralize its adverse effects. From this standpoint, it really isn't good for anyone. But as a simple sugar, alcohol is also the worst kind of fuel for Protein Types, particularly if you're a fast oxidizer. Instead of providing a steady and prolonged conversion to energy, ingesting alcohol is akin to throwing gasoline on your metabolic fire-it produces a quick energy burst but is followed by an energy crash. Similarly, if you're a parasympathetic Protein Type, you might experience a temporary lift from drinking alcohol, but the result will be only a worsening of your metabolic type's natural inclination toward low blood sugar, along with excessive insulin secretion and increased fat storage.

Allergenic or Reactive Foods

Your Allowable Foods Chart provides recommendations for foods that will specifically support your metabolic type. This means that they contain the right balance of nutrients for your type. Whether or, not you are currently reactive or allergic to any of these foods is a completely different issue. If you have known reactions to any recommended foods, leave them out of your diet temporarily, but try them from time to time. As your chemistry changes, so too may your food reactivities. This is the experience of many individuals who have, properly customized their diets to match their metabolism.

Caffeine

Avoid caffeine products as much as possible, including coffee, black, teas, caffeine-containing herbs, and soft drinks. If you do insist on drinking coffee, make sure it's organic and limit it to no more than one to two weak cups per day. Also, when drinking caffeinated beverages, make sure to eat some protein, as protein will, to a degree, help combat caffeine's adverse effects on your type. Bottom line: Caffeine is counter-productive for your metabolism, whether you are a fast oxidizer or a parasympathetic dominant. In fast oxidizers, coffee directly worsens the imbalances in their cellular oxidative processes, increasing their oxidation rate even further. In parasympathetics, the caffeine stimulation to the adrenals is akin to whipping a tired horse, as most parasympathetics have weaker adrenal function to begin with. Short term, this stimulation is pleasurable, but long term it only worsens the problem by further exhausting the adrenals.

Fruit Juices/Citrus Fruits

Fruit juices in general, and citrus fruits specifically, are best avoided. Fruit juices are too high in sugar for Protein Types. Devoid of fibre, the concentrated juice has a particularly powerful negative impact on your type. The flooding of sugar into your bloodstream causes a strong insulin surge that rapidly lowers blood sugar and increases fat storage. And next to alcohol, citrus fruit is probably the poorest choice of any food for you-whether you are a fast oxidizer or a parasympathetic dominant. Because citrus fruit is high in potassium, sugar, and citric acid, it directly accelerates fast oxidative processes, worsening the imbalances of fast oxidizers. In parasympathetics, citrus has the most powerful alkalinizing effect of any food and thus dramatically worsens their already too-alkaline body chemistry, leading to increased lethargy, depression, and fatigue.

Sugar

In significant quantities, sugar is not good for anyone. However, sugar is particularly bad for your metabolic type, so avoid or minimize it as much as you can. Be especially watchful for hidden sugars in processed packaged foods. Sugar is added to a great many commercial foods, and it can really add up if you're not careful, secretly sabotaging your best intentions to follow your dietary recommendations. By the way, by 'sugar' I mean all forms of sugar-processed and natural-including beet sugar, cane sugar, brown sugar, molasses, honey, fructose, maltose, dextrose, corn syrup, maple syrup, etc.

Foods High in Oxalic Acids

Oxalic acid is a naturally occurring acid in some foods that interferes with the absorption of calcium. Because calcium is particularly important for your metabolic type, you should avoid or minimize foods high in oxalic acid. These include black tea, blackberry, beets, beet greens, chard, chocolate, cocoa, cranberries, currants (red), endive, gooseberries, grapes, green peppers, plums, raspberries, rhubarb, strawberries, tomatoes. Apples, asparagus, and spinach are exceptions. The good news is that cooking destroys the oxalic acid, so items such as beets, beet greens, chard, cranberries, green peppers, rhubarb, asparagus, and spinach are all best eaten when cooked.

High-Glycaemic Foods

All carbohydrates-fruits, vegetables, grains-are converted to glucose in the body. Carbohydrates are categorized according to the rate or speed at which they hit the bloodstream as glucose, and are ranked accordingly in what is known as the glycaemic index (GI). High glycaemic foods such as grains and starchy vegetables hit your bloodstream much more rapidly than low-glycaemic foods like proteins and fats. That's why you need to carefully regulate high-glycaemic foods and place much more emphasis on those foods that are lower on the GI. Your metabolic type simply can't handle large amounts of foods that convert rapidly to glucose in your bloodstream. Whenever you do eat high-glycaemic foods, be sure to eat plenty of protein and fat at the same time to help slow down the rate at which high-glycaemic foods are converted to sugar. (Note: Check Chapter 9 for the complete glycaemic index. It's very important for all metabolic types to become familiar with the GI, but it's particularly critical for your type.)

Foods High in Phytates

As Sally Fallon, Pat Connolly, and Mary Enig point out in their wonderful book Nourishing Traditions (Mega Distributing, 1-800-2311776), in every traditional culture in the world, for thousands o years, whole grains have been prepared by soaking or fermenting them prior to cooking. Modern science has revealed the wisdom o these traditions by discovering that all grains and legumes contain substances called phytates. Phytic acid is a chemical found in the bran portion of grains and the skins of legumes. It binds with calcium (and iron, magnesium, phosphorous, and zinc) in the intestinal tract, thereby preventing absorption of these minerals. When consumed excessively, phytates can cause serious mineral deficiencies, allergies, intestinal distress, and bone loss. Since you're a Protein Type, with an increased need for calcium, phytate products are particularly problematic for you. All grains contain phytates, but wheat, oats, soy, and soymilk have the highest concentration. What to do? Simply soak any grains (such as oat, millet, rye, barley, and quinoa) overnight before you cook them. You can also liberally use miso, soy sauce, and tempeh, since these are fermented products, and fermentation destroys phytates. However, tofu, soymilk, and soy protein powders are not fermented and do contain phytates, so you should limit consumption of these food items. Sprouted-grain breads, and sour dough bread with its long fermentation process, are also almost entirely free of phytates. All other breads are full of phytates and should be limited or avoided.

Foods High in Gluten and Enzyme Inhibitors

Grains contain hard-to-digest proteins like gluten. Insufficient digestion of such proteins has been linked to problems such as allergies, celiac disease (sprue), mental illness, indigestion, and yeast overgrowth (candida albicans). But here again, soaking and fermentation renders such proteins more digestible and their nutrients more readily available. So, sourdough breads and sprouted breads are preferable to other varieties. Soybeans also contain potent enzyme inhibitors that need to be neutralized through fermentation or soaking.

Your Macronutrient Ratio

This diet is easy! There are only two things you need to remember:

  1. Eat the right kinds of foods for your type and avoid the wrong foods for your type-in other words, stick to your allowable foods
  2. Eat the right proportions of macronutrients (proteins, fats, carbohydrates) at each meal

If you think of your food as fuel, then the proportions of proteins, carbohydrates, and fats can be viewed as your fuel mixture. If you get the right fuel for your type and the right fuel mixture, you'll have a powerful force at work. Your food will be efficiently converted to energy rather than stored as fat.

Here's your general macronutrient ratio:

Stick to your seventy percent/thirty percent food ratio whenever you eat, getting approximately thirty percent of your calories from carbohydrates, and about seventy percent of your calories from proteins and fats. Note that more of your calories should come from protein than from fat.

It's not necessary to be perfectly precise in terms of your percentages. When combining your food, just try to approximate as best you can.

It's unnecessary to measure out by weight everything you eat, or to calculate the number of calories in a meal. When you get the right balance for your metabolism, your appetite will naturally be satisfied, and the calorie issue will eventually take care of itself. So it doesn't matter whether you eat a small meal or a large meal or something in between. What is important is eating the right foods for your type and in the right proportions for your type every time you eat.

If you happen to be especially concerned with weight loss, or if you need to lose a significant amount of weight, I will explain issues regarding calories and food quantities in the chapter on weight management. However, it's very important to realize that:

Your weight will begin to normalize just by eating the right foods in he right combinations. When you balance your macronutrients properly, you'll lose weight if you're overweight and gain weight if you're underweight.

Try to eat at regular intervals and stick to the same mealtimes every day if at all possible. It's also important to eat when you're hungry, preferably before you get hungry, so snack if you need to. This will keep you from overeating and will keep your blood sugar on an even keel.

A helpful way to think about your macronutrient percentages is in terms of a plate of food. The majority of food on your plate should be protein and fat (two thirds) and the rest should be carbohydrate (one third), primarily of the nonstarchy variety.

A lot of people are very confused about how to eat a meal composed of thirty percent fat. But you'll notice that most of the proteins listed in your Allowable Foods Chart are also sources of natural fats and oils. This means that your requirement for fats can easily be met just by eating your protein foods and making liberal use of butter and oils on your foods.

The above was extracted from...

William Wolcott's book "The Metabolic Typing Diet".

This is essential reading if you are serious about overcoming ill health regardless of its manifestations.


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