"Statistics show that 60 percent of patients are now taking alternatives and most never tell their doctors."

Each of us is an individual, with particular nutritional needs, and we're unknowingly eating foods that are toxic to us.

95 out of 100 people are poisoning themselves and don't even know it. Are you one of them? (excerpted from the book 'Toxic Food Syndrome' by Jeffrey S. Zavik and Jim Thompson)

There is an old saying that some people live to eat, while others eat to live. But the tragic fact is most people are actually eating to die - or at least exist in a sort of living death.

When was the last time you made an excuse for something in your body that hurt, or when you simply lacked the energy to get up and go. Does the phrase, “I must be getting older,” sound all-too familiar? Or how about, “After 40, it’s all downhill from here.” What health problems have you simply learned to live with, while telling yourself, your family and others you are getting old?

Well, I have news for you about this old age stuff. In 1999, Franklin Mason of Mullins, S.C., ran the Grandfather Mountain Marathon not far from where I was living and writing this book. He covered the 26.2 miles, all up and down some of the steepest parts of the Appalachians, in 4 hours, 57 minutes and 31 seconds. What makes that amazing is he was 74 years old, and running a mile every 11.3 minutes! But wait – there is more to the story.

Mr. Mason was back in 2000, but didn’t finish quite as fast: it took him 5 hours, 1 minute and 6 seconds (at age 75) to cover one of the toughest courses anywhere. There’s more: he came back this year (2001) and beat his record for the past two years, finishing in just 4:53:06 at age 76.

Or consider Edith Autorino, who in 2000 completed the Ironman Triathlon in Hawaii. She swam 2.4 miles, bicycled 112 miles and ran 26.2 miles – and did it all in a record (for her age group) of 15 hours, 19 minutes and 20 seconds. Not bad for someone 70 years old, do you think?

So what gives? Here you are, nursing aches and pains and minor ailments all the time, and these folks are out running marathons when they are your age, or 10, 20, 30, 40 or even 50 years older. The answer is a secret I learned the hard way, but I want you to learn the easy way: many of the chronic conditions that are limiting you and taking the enjoyment out of your life are the direct result of what you eat. I’m not talking about food that is not nutritious; I’m talking about everyday foods, which are toxic to your particular system. Each of us is an individual, with particular nutritional needs, and we're unknowingly eating foods that are toxic to us.

Anyone who has enjoyed the movie 'Mrs. Doubtfire' will remember the scene where Robin Williams slips Pierce Brosnan some pepper, knowing he'd have a toxic reaction to it. In a few seconds, Brosnan's character is gasping for breath. That sort of food toxicity is obvious and dramatic. But most toxic reactions to food are subtle, long-lasting and life-damaging.

Take the case of Syndey Mackey. She suffered from food toxicities and asthma practically from birth. At age 3, her family moved to Arizona in a desperate effort to improve her health. Even so, she was hospitalized at least once a year for the next five years. Sydney was constantly sick and took lots and lots of antibiotics. If she stopped taking them, she immediately developed colds, which then turned into bronchitis and sinus infections. As an adult, after having a food toxicity test, she redesigned her diet with the help of her doctor.

"Within two weeks I felt so much better it was hard to believe," she said. "Symptoms disappeared that I hadn't even been aware of: various aches and pains I considered normal." When her kids brought home colds, she was able to fight them off for the first time in her life.

What did that test show? Sydney's system showed quite a few toxic food reactions to over 100 foods for which she was tested.

Food toxicities lie behind many chronic conditions. And here's some more news: chronic conditions are the biggest challenge people and the medical profession face.

Medical spending in the United States now exceeds $1.2 trillion annually. Of that, 75 percent is spent on chronic conditions, those ailments - the migraine headaches, arthritis, hyperactivity, ear infections, excess weight, irritable bowel, psoriasis and other symptoms - you wish would just go away. An overwhelming majority of the 2.9 billion prescriptions physicians write each year are to help people deal with chronic problems.

That's what happened to Sydney Mackey: her doctors tried to control her symptoms, but never found the underlying source of her problem.

Now imagine if you had a car, and the engine missed all the time. You went to a mechanic, and he couldn't find the problem. Then, you discovered your fuel was contaminated with water - regular, plain old water. Add a little to the highest-octane fuel and the newest, most powerful engine will knock, stall and maybe quit running entirely. That is because internal combustion engines burn only a certain type of fuel, and you might say they are toxically reactive to any other kind. Think about that - water is essential to our lives and toxic to your automobile engine! Your body is something like that engine. It takes fuel - food and water - and runs on it. And, just like that engine, you put things in your body it cannot tolerate, it will begin to "knock" and "stall". Your body's "mechanics" (one or more medical doctors) may not recognize the source of your problems. After a while, many people who suffer from chronic conditions look for help beyond conventional medicine. Some physicians even recommend certain of these treatments.

Statistics show that 60 percent of patients are now taking alternatives and most never tell their doctors. That is potentially dangerous, because the medical doctor may prescribe medicines that could have interactions with these alternative treatments.

The ultimate alternative, I've found, is not in a medicine bottle. The ultimate alternative is the food you eat! The truth is eating the wrong food can be devastating; eating the right food is truly your first and best medicine.

I call what happens to people - including me - when they eat the wrong foods Toxic Food Syndrome, TFS for short. TFS can ruin a person's life.

Take the case of the Winston family. When their daughter Jane was three, she started having constant stomach aches and fevers. When she turned four, the pain became so bad Jane would scream and cry in pain. The best diagnosis a medical doctor could suggest was the little girl chewed too much gum. By the time she was five, Jane was constantly agitated and frustrated - and still in pain. As young as she was, Jane was depressed, and even talked of killing herself and her family. She said she heard voices in her head. In fits of rage, she would destroy her room and punch holes in walls.

"All the doctors we had gone to told us it was all in her mind," recalls her mother, Mary Winston. "We were so frustrated we almost decided to put her in a foster home; our lives were a mess. We couldn't handle her fits three and four times a day."

Then, finally, the Winstons took Jane to a physician who recommended she have a food toxicity test. The little girl showed toxic reactions to 25 foods. In just one month, all the pain, rage and seeming mental illness was gone. "If it wasn't for this great test my daughter would be in foster care or a mental home for the rest of her life," Mrs. Winston said. A life could have been wasted - because of TFS!

"If it wasn't for this great test my daughter would be in foster care or a mental home for the rest of her life."

After hearing these stories, you will want to start eating right. The problem is: what's right for you? One expert will recommend high protein, low carbohydrate; another expert literally recommends the exact opposite, low protein, high complex carbohydrate; and yet another expert recommends vegetarian or macrobiotic food plans. What's right for you? That is where toxic food testing comes in. One simple blood test will reveal the foods that will more readily be digested, assimilated and used by your body to produce more energy and well being, helping you chart the path to improved health.

Next issue: The next step!
(Ed. Note: For readers who are interested in discovering their own toxic foods, we suggest food-allergy testing. For more on the subject, call Immuno Laboratories at 888-446-6866.