The KInd Life Community Forum

So it turns out I am allergic to guar gum. I found this out after a reaction to a coconut milk curry I made. This seems to be a fairly inconvenient additive to be allergic to for a vegan. I had to ditch a soy dream ice cream as well as vegan sour cream and vegan cream cheese. Does anyone else have a problem with this? Any suggestions....I really love imitation dairy products (daiya, follow your heart cream cheese, etc.) I guess the solution would be to create my own sauces, such as cashew sour cream. I have done this in the past but the taste is not as close to the dairy I miss.

Thank you for your response Amanda. I had heard of a diet based on blood types but never looked into it. I am blood type B. In terms of personality traits and the exercise that is most beneficial to me it is spot on, interestingly. In terms of diet recommendations, it may be correct but I'm not willing to make the switch since I'm vegan for ethical rather than health reasons. It says to limit corn, wheat, buckwheat, lentils, tomatoes, nuts. Unfortunately, these food groups make up a large part of my diet?? The recommendation was to eat eggs, lowfat dairy, and benefitial meats. I guess I can take this to mean I require more protein in my diet. I eat a lot of vegan proteins though. In fact, the person who cut my hair yesterday commented how thick it has become and that I must be eating a lot of protein.... I have been vegetarian for years and now vegan for a little over a year and I feel that I have more energy and thicker hair and nails than ever :)

I think I may be allergic to certain vegan food additives though. I think I need to make my best effort to wean myself of processed vegan foods and eat more whole foods instead, such as homemade cashew sour cream instead of the prepared vegan sour cream. Does anyone have any good recipes for vegan sour cream, cream cheese, etc.???

Kimmy, Thank you for your suggestion to use soaked almonds to make dairy substitutes..Ive only seen recipes with cashews so Ill have to try this. I feel like I must be the only vegan who thinks nutritional yeast tastes bad ha :( In terms of being type O and needing meat, I tend to believe that if you listen to your body it will tell you what it needs. If you feel satiated and healthy on a vegan diet then I don't think you need meat even if you are type O?

Hello Kim - the best people to explain Vata dosha are some of the Ayurvedic sites out there, ie www.jiva.com (from India), or www.getbalance.co.nz (from New Zealand). One can also sign up for their free on-line newsletters which give interesting info from Ayurvedic philosophy. Everyone has vata, pitta, kapha in them, but some people are governed by more vata, etc. A vata person, will usually be thin and if out of balance, will be underweight; they usually have wavy/curley hair, and a sensitive lower digestive system, plus can get anxiety / insomnia easily, if stressed. Good books availalbe in some libraries, or on-line! I agree that we probably don't need meat, perhaps Peter D'adamo mentions beat and oily fish, because Type O's need a lot of omega 3 fats in our diet. so I try and have sea vegetables/sea weeds every day, plus some chia seeds, walnuts, and lots of leafy greens. Plus it is best to get to know whch foods are high in omega 6 as too many of those can cause an imbalance in the body which can weaken digestion, eyesight, and cause depression, insomnia. I will only have chia and hemp seeds for now, and walnut/pecan/macadamia nuts until my digestive health improves. Also, nuts can be hard to digest after 2pm, so I only have little portions, and usually soaked around lunchtime when digestive fire is strongest! Too many nuts can be too acidic, and undigested food turns unto toxins in the body. best regards, Amanda

Hello JoAnne and other readers - thankyou for writing in JoAnne, nice to chat to a person from Canada. I live in Australia. I know what you mean about some of the raw foods and imbalance for a 'vata' person. I have borrowed the book, 'Conscious Eating' written by Gabriel Cousens M.D., borrowed from a public library, and he gives great info to help all types of constitutional types adjust to raw cuisine and raw food, this includes vata people; ie avocados with our salads, nuts/seeds soaked, and making seed/nut sauces and milks/smoothies, use of spices/herbs with food, etc. I may end up buying a copy of this book, as he covers so much, including macrobiotic diet, blood type diet, acid/alkaline balance. Gabriel also mentions he is a blood type O, kapha-vata person and he eats mostly or entirely, a LIVE raw food plant diet! This intrigues me a lot! My system is taking to the recipes quite well, it can take a little time for a person's system to get used to raw food dishes/meals, but I think it is well worth it, for the many reasons people adopt a mostly raw food diet; ie nutrients/enzymes destroyed by heat and cooking! It helps if I eat slowly and chew well! Also, some people are fast oxidizers - this has to do with metabolism and so the proportions of protein/fat/carbs at each meal needs to be different from the 'slow' oxidizers; Gabriel writes about this in some detail in his book, so I relate to what you say about carbs and blood sugar imbalances. I find fruits and sweeteners affect me a lot, but perhaps I am not having enough plant proteins and/or healthy fats with my meals, I would prefer to be eating a plant diet these days, and not any type of animal or fish proteins, or too many acidic protein. So, I will try and increase my sea vegetables, chlorella, spirulina, or brewers yeast. Not sure about bee pollen (not allowed in strict vegan lifestyle). Seeds/nuts are good sources of protein/fats. I am still learning and adjusting my diet/food. If there are other underweight/thin people out there who have been able to gain some muscle/weight; please write in and let us know, especially if you are a 'vata' blood type O person. Regards, and bye for now.