In the mid-1970’s I began to notice an extremely fascinating phenomenon. Patients who were struggling with various ailments such as allergies, skin disorders, frequent illness, and headaches would make a trip to Europe or even Mexico and while there would gradually experience relief. Their ailments would ‘magically’ disappear! For several years I recorded this phenomenon hundreds of times. What was additionally intriguing was the fact that this phenomenon was experienced by all of my patients when visiting a foreign country. Most of them were told by uneducated acquaintances that the relief they experienced was probably due to a lack of work stress.

Those who made this conclusion have not traveled very much. Traveling to foreign countries is very stressful. A trip to Europe, or anywhere for that matter, involves preparation, schedules, long flights in recycled air, prepared foods, unfamiliar places, language barriers, timetables that must be adhered to, delays, lost luggage, persistent accounting for belongings, keeping track of kids or spouses so no one gets lost, loss of sleep in unfamiliar beds and where is the bathroom? I gotta go really bad! There is also concern for the status of home and work when not present. Traveling is not stress-free and since a large percentage of travelers take days to recover after returning or get sick in the process, my opinion concerning traveling is that it is more stressful than a daily routine. There had to be another reason why the response to foreign diet is dramatically different.

Initially, I hypothesized that most diets during the 1980s in the US were not organic. It was a time when the term “organic” did not exist in grocery stores. People just bought what was available and since most foods were processed with numerous agricultural chemicals it stood to reason that this was the problem.

At this time, I was living on a small farm in Oregon. I had been an avid organic gardener for almost twenty years and was certain that my patients would be free of food sensitivities if they were to eat my produce. So I began taking vegetables to the clinic and dispensing them to patients with associated allergies. They were all enthusiastically willing to eat my organic produce to prove that chemically raised vegetables were the cause of their sensitivities. I was in for a surprise.

Every patient who consumed my organic vegetables still reacted!!? One patient, however, who was highly allergic to corn noted that he had no negative reaction at all. He even inquired if he could have some more. He loved it! This corn I realized was unique.

When I first began gardening, my Granny Goose encouraged me to plant Golden Bantam corn because it was a variety she was raised on. Since she was born in 1880, I felt a corn that has been around that long should be good. I realized eventually that Golden Bantam corn was an heirloom, not a hybrid. Because my patient did not react harshly to it, I postulated this was the reason.

Heirloom seeds, which are becoming more popular in today’s gardening market, perpetuate themselves. My Granny Goose saved all of their vegetable seeds to be planted the following year. Farmers and family gardeners up to the mid-1950s mostly saved their seeds. This was common practice. Fortunately, by the mid-1980s there were enough seed companies that still made heirloom seeds available.

The following year, I only planted heirloom seeds. When the crops were ready, I reluctantly initiated the experiment again. I must admit it was very admirable for my patients to willingly try to eat foods they knew might cause them to have allergic reactions. They did it anyway. The results this time were amazing! Not one patient was aggravated by the heirloom foods I was growing! I never planted hybrid foods again.

Hybrid foods are developed by crossing two types of the same variety. In agriculture, hybridization is used to create “healthier” crops that are more resistant to disease and insects. It is also used to produce new flavors. Nectarines, tangerines, and sweet corn are new flavors. These are man-made, but natural hybridization has occurred in local regions throughout history. Humans have been creating ‘better’ strains of crops for thousands of years and then continued to be grown. The problem with hybrids is the newness of the strain.

Our bodies must adapt to a new strain which I estimate to take at least three generations provided the strain does not change. This is the primary problem with hybrids. Every time a new hybrid is created, its molecular structure changes. The worst offender is the protein structure. Our immune systems and digestive capabilities must be able to process these new molecules. This takes generations of familiarity. Agricultural scientists are creating new strains all the time. As consumers, we never get a chance to catch up. Instead, we have immune reactions to the new foods. The worst culprit is wheat.

In the 1920’s the gluten molecule in wheat was only an 8 to 25-section chain. With hybridization and genetic modification, the gluten molecule can be as much as a 10-million-section molecule! In addition, in the process of modifying wheat, new forms of gluten have been created one of which stimulates appetite and is being added to various grocery store products like chips and condiments. Our digestive tracts have not been able to keep up with the enzyme and immune requirements to process it. Consequently, food sensitivities and celiac disease are becoming more and more common. This is also happening with oats, corn, soy, brown rice, and numerous vegetable crops. The USA is gradually creating foods that are more productive and resistant to insects and diseases but are not healthy for us.

Most European countries still save their seeds, so when traveling to Europe we are served heirloom foods. No Reactions occur. Here are a few dramatic examples of this phenomenon. Over the years I have heard hundreds of cases of patients eating to their heart’s content while traveling and never having any difficulty at all and even losing weight.

A close relative of mine was traveling to Greece in a few months for a friend’s wedding. She suffered from food allergies so her diet was already restricted but she decided to go on a diet anyway to get in shape for the trip. In three months she managed to lose 12 pounds. Once in Greece, frustration led to surrender and she decided to eat whatever she wanted. During the three weeks they were in Greece she had no allergy reactions and she lost an additional twenty-three pounds!
Another patient had the worst food sensitivities I have ever recorded. She wasn’t even able to take most of the supplements I prescribed. I had to treat her mostly with homeopathic remedies. One day she mentioned she was off to Ireland to visit relatives. I was very excited for her because I knew from experience she would be able to eat almost everything. She affirmed she was going to do her best to stay on her diet. I said she had to at least try the Guinness beer. She refused. I told her to have the barkeep give her a little shot and sip it slowly testing for reactions. By the time she returned, she was drinking one to two pints a day of Guinness, and she was eating wheat, cheese, and milk products in the farmer’s markets without any negative reactions whatsoever! When returning home, she reacted to the first carefully planned meal, and all her allergenic symptoms returned!

Another patient with severe milk and cheese allergies went to Austria and discovered a cheese in a small village she could eat. Upon her return to the US, she found the same cheese in Whole Foods. Within minutes she reacted to it with stomach cramps and sinus congestion that lasted for two days! I didn’t understand this until another patient related a story involving her visit to Italy.

In Italy, a patient discovered this vineyard that produced a wine she had to have when returning home. Upon asking the proprietor if it was available in the US, he responded by stating she would never want his wine in the US because of the chemicals he is forced to add to export it! This circumstance was affirmed by an Italian patient of mine who complained he doesn’t feel good eating American food. Even the Italian wine he drinks makes him feel terrible, but not in Italy. There he can eat what he wants and drink the same wine without reacting. He was curious about what is the difference.

In the USA our food supply is mostly test tubes created and then produced utilizing modern agricultural standards. Consequently, we have all these new strains of hybrid foods that trigger our immune systems every time we eat them. This is not the case in Europe and other countries that save their heirloom seeds for planting the following season. We either need to keep things as they are and wait three generations or we need to begin planting more heirloom crops utilizing supportive agricultural practices. It is important to shop at farmer’s markets and identify heirloom varieties. Our only other solution is to move to where the real food is. In the meantime, there are a few supplements that can be taken to help balance the stress of adulterated foods.

American Diet Maintenance

BioCarb: Helps stabilize the acid/alkaline balance. Take 1 to 2 a day.

Pancreatic Enzymes (Pan 10X, Pancreatin 2000, etc.): this helps to fully dissolve the concentrated proteins resulting from hybridization and genetic modification. Take 2 to 3 a day.

NewLiv: Clears the toxins consumed. Take 2 to 3 a day.

Daily Defense: Neutralizes foreign food substances in the intestine and the lymphatics if they have been absorbed.

Quercitin: When eating causes intestinal discomfort, bloating, and gas, Quercitin helps prevent a histamine (allergy) reaction. Take 1 to 2 before meals.