Testimonials

Stories of
Transformation + Healing

Living on Anxiety and a Coffee Diet…

In December of 2012, I made a “big” decision to complete my chapter of life in the corporate world at age 40. I had spent the last 5 years of my sales career living in a space of constant anxiety and surviving on 5 plus cups of coffee a day. Shortly after I had made this decision, I was clear that I needed to detox not only my physical body, but my mind and spirit, too. It was around that time when I was referred to Sheree for her homemade cultured and fermented vegetables.Upon meeting with her, she shared with me about the Body Ecology Diet book by Donna Gates and how important probiotics are to have in your daily food intake. I was inspired by what Sheree had shared, so I went home and ordered the Body Ecology Diet book. After reading it, I was further inspired and wanted to buy all the BED products right away.I was mindful of my old “jump into the latest fad” behavior, so I waited. I was coached by a good friend to pray and meditate on making the decision, as she knew I have been a constant “dieter” for most of my life, jumping from one diet to another.I took my friends advice, and spent a month to do some soul searching. The answer was consistent over the 4 weeks, so I ordered the Vitality Super Green, Spirulina, Ancient Minerals, Ocean Plant Extracts and Digestive Aid. I must say, I feel fantastic!I feel as though my body was so nutritionally deprived after 5 years of a diet on coffee, I am now getting what I need. I have the same amount of energy that I had while on coffee, so I am not missing it a bit (I gave up drinking coffee completely in May of 2013). My mind is more clear and I have an overall sense of wellness and good health.The measurable improvements I have observed are: 1) My nails are strong and not chipping and breaking anymore. They have grown back to their beautiful length (I have not seen that in over 5 years) and they stay strong with all the cleaning, dish washing and gardening I do. That is impressive! And without the use of nail strengtheners to help. 2) My hair is overall healthier. My hair is very fine and also thin, plus I get it highlighted, so it is quite fragile.

About 4 years ago, I developed Thyroiditis, so a lot of my hair fell out. It was devastating, considering I don’t have a lot in the first place. Now that I have been on the BED products and cultured veggies for 4.5 months, I am seeing new hair growth and my hair is much shinier and happier.

I also try to follow the BED food combining recommendations the best I can, which has been helping to have a stronger digestive system. I am clear that I am no longer a lifelong “dieter” now that I have found a nutrition program that I can use for many years to come. Thank you Sheree and Donna for your wisdom and passion for strong health and wellness.

-Heidi – Livermore, CA

A Son with Autism Whose Symptoms Started to Go Away…

When I first read the book [Body Ecology Diet book], I had no idea how I would make these changes when my son was such a picky eater, but to my surprise, just as Donna said during our consult, that the coco kefir would change his taste buds! And that’s exactly what happened.He soon started asking me for broccoli for snack! I couldn’t believe it!He stopped craving sugar.And most importantly, his autism symptoms started to go away! His speech was clear. And he was using more language. He understood more words. And most importantly, his temper tantrums were becoming shorter and shorter. I couldn’t believe it!He is thriving eating different foods – eating healthy food!

I also started the BED, and to my amazement, my tummy got flat and I lost 12 pounds. I also suffered from recurrent yeast infections and had one right when I started BED. And after a week on fermented foods and coco kefir, it cleared up on its own with no anti-fungal medications.

I love her book, we love the recipes and most of all we love what it’s done for our son. She truly gave us our son back! I’m so grateful we found out about Donna Gates and The Body Ecology Diet.

-Karol Encinas

Cancer. One man's story.

Meeting Donna was a true blessing. She was very knowledgeable and helped alleviate some of the side effects of my cancer therapies. I truly believe Body Ecology helped me maintain the physical and mental strength necessary while enduring the chemotherapy and radiation seven years ago.
Thanks Donna!– Rich L.

At the age of 34, I was truly living in the body of a 100-year old woman…

At the age of 34, I was truly living in the body of a 100-year old woman. I found out that my bones were deteriorating and I was almost in full-blown osteoporosis. I was exhausted all the time, had issues with irritable bowel, anxiety, depression, pain in my shoulders, back, neck and horrific headaches. I discovered that I had celiac disease.Unfortunately the gluten-free diet did not cure all of my problems. Shortly after the gluten-free diet, I started reacting to corn products. I eliminated corn and gluten from my diet for the next 10 years. My pain progressed to all of my joints and muscles. I started becoming short of breath with minimal exertion. I couldn’t do normal activities and was on my way of being disabled.I went to a muscle specialist who diagnosed me with myofascial pain syndrome. I did not respond well to the treatment he prescribed and he basically told me I needed mental help and there is nothing more he can do for me. I was very devastated and felt as though I had nowhere to turn.I saw a neurologist and was prescribed a variety of medications that masked some of the symptoms but did not cure them. No one from Western medicine was willing to find the root cause of my problem.To make a long story short, I went to see a naturopathic doctor about 2 years ago. She did find that I was full of candida and prescribed a low-carb diet for me to follow. I had some relief of the pain and the shortness of breath dissipated. As soon as I would try to increase my carbs, the candida would come back with a vengeance.Being a single mother and on a tight budget, I couldn’t afford to continue seeing her, so I ventured out on my own and started researching things on the Internet. That’s when I ran across Donna’s website, and a strong force pulled me to it.I had heard the term leaky gut in the past but never knew much about it. I ordered Donna’s book and knew this was the path I needed to take. I started the diet December 26th 2017. Within a week, my pain had completely disappeared.

I started feeling like a normal person again.

Two months later, I had blood work done for my vitamin B level, vitamin D level and calcium level. For the last 12 years these levels have been abnormal or on the very low end of normal. It was amazing, because in 2 months, my vitamin B level was triple high, my calcium level was finally within normal limits, and my vitamin D level increased.

I also had a bone density test done and miraculously I am finally out of osteopenia! My bones are coming back to normal. I have energy like I have never had before.

I have no one to thank but Donna! She is truly brilliant and I am so grateful that she has shared her story, knowledge and experience. I can play basketball with my son, go for long walks and do work around the house without pain. I love making the cultured veggies and the taste is delicious! My puppy loves them too!

Food combining has eliminated my acid reflux, gas and bloating. My bowels are moving normally. My brain fog is gone. I am calm and depression free. I am a brand new person! People in my life who have seen me at my worst have remarked how healthy and good I look.

I have been telling everybody about this diet and how it’s transformed my life. I know this sounds a little weird, but I have taken a screenshot of Donna’s picture and asked people to guess how old she is. They guess between 30 and 50 and when I tell them she’s in her early 70’s, they cannot believe it. They are amazed at how well the Body Ecology Diet works.

If you want to know something ironic, I am a Registered Nurse and have worked in Western medicine for 25 years. Never in a million years would I have guessed that a change in diet could make such a difference in my life. I am so grateful to Donna and cannot thank her enough. I feel my calling is to educate as many people as I can about the Body Ecology Diet, and hope my story inspires you to try it. Ask yourself what I did – “What do you have to lose?” 🙂

A story about infertility that led to the births of 5 healthy babies!

My Donna,I can never express the deep gratitude, love and admiration we feel for you. You walked with me through countless IVF and difficult moments of life, always by my side, so committed, so present, so wise, so medical, spiritual and intuitive, always.Each round of IVF, I would not follow your vision of what to do…it would not take. And if Matt and I stuck to your advice, we could get pregnant.How can I thank you for 5 magical, healthy, angelical creatures?Thank you for being such a creature of god with so much light and love and intelligence.

Thanks for being such a Healer.

– Matt and Agustina Groening

Unexplained, serious symptoms – the BE diet saved my life!

Dear Donna,I am VERY grateful for finding Donna’s teachings about good health! I believe finding the BE Diet in a Google search saved my life. It has been a four-year struggle. In 2014, my 2 older sisters were diagnosed with ovarian cancer one month apart. Then, my Dad died 6 weeks after being diagnosed with lung cancer. I had just opened a small business 3 years earlier, and was working a lot of hours to get things going. As I started researching symptoms of ovarian cancer, I realized all the health issues I had been writing off as “new business start up stress” indicated I had an imbalance going on in my body.I wanted to re-balance naturally and started reading everything I could. It has been four years of trial and error and health ups and downs. I thought I was doing good, and then September 2017 I developed more serious symptoms. My oldest sister passed in January 2018. I was dealing with emotional issues, grieving and trying to keep my small business above water. Over the next eight months, my health steadily declined. I was reading and researching every free minute about diet and healing the body naturally and had completely eliminated sugar from my diet including fruit.I was able to tolerate less and less foods, had little to no energy, constant sinus issues and my entire upper body broke out in hives. And then divine intervention…One of Donna’s blog posts came up in a Google search about healing with food. I got so excited as everything I read in the post was what I was dealing with! I immediately bought and read the Body Ecology Diet book and started eating sauerkraut with every meal. I started feeling better! I added the BE digestive enzymes and started feeling my qi and shen coming back. It has now been 6 weeks on the diet and I have enough energy to exercise again. THANK YOU – for your research, dedication, products, caring and teaching. You are an angel sent to help those of us who know there is a better way to heal instead of using pharmaceutical drugs.It is my new life goal to take all the BE courses and become a trained BE teacher so that I may help others seeking help, to re-balance the natural way. Let your food be your medicine!

Namaste.

Most sincerely,

– Gail S.

Body Ecology saved my life and gave me a son!

Dear Donna,I am so grateful for you for creating Body Ecology and saving my life!Since age 18, I have suffered from endometriosis. I was given the typical conventional ‘treatments’, which involved all manner of synthetic hormones to manipulate my cycle. Eventually, I had a Mirena IUD inserted because it would stop my periods completely and that was the only way to avoid the daily excruciating pain, which worsened and spread to more areas of my body with every period I had.Initially, I felt good and was happy to have found a ‘fix’. But with each passing year, I noticed that I felt ‘sicker’. Not with endometriosis symptoms as such, but I had no energy or vitality. I developed terrible acne, food intolerances, IBS and chronic constipation. My limbs felt like lead – even putting on mascara made my arms ache, and after 10 years with no periods I was waking up in the morning with my face so swollen I could hardly see my bloodshot, lifeless eyes. The sides of my breasts had started to ache and, most terrifyingly of all, I started finding huge circular black stains on my pillow when I woke up in the morning. And when I exercised my sweat was blue!!!I was gluten, dairy and sugar free, very slim and was supposedly very ‘healthy’ but I felt like I was slowly dying.I moved from England to Little Rock, Arkansas for my husband’s work and there I met an incredible alternative therapist named Trishna Craig. We had one consultation and she said, “Honey, if you don’t do the Body Ecology diet, you’re on the expressway to cancer”. She explained that my breasts ached and my face was bloated because my lymph system was so blocked up. As for the black stains on my pillow, she said it was a miracle those toxins had managed to find a way to come out as I clearly wasn’t eliminating them in the normal ways – especially having not had a period in 10 years!

I had tried every diet and treatment out there – conventional and alternative. Out of desperation, I figured one more diet couldn’t hurt. I ordered the BED book that night and threw myself wholeheartedly into the diet.

I ordered sprouting jars, BED cultures and ingredients I’d never even heard of before – Amaranth?! I also began soaking seeds and culturing vegetables like there was no tomorrow. My husband thought I was mad and was upset that we had moved to America and I basically couldn’t eat anything in the Deep South restaurants!

All the while, I was having regular colonics from Trishna, and after a month, I was starting to feel a little better so I decided to try my hand at making the young coconut kefir – which I’d previously avoided as it sounded like such hard work. Within 2 days of drinking it, I started getting mouth ulcers, my tongue swelled up, my mouth tasted of metal and the sides of my abdomen ached. I told Trishna that I must be allergic to the kefir and offered to give her the rest of my batch but she said, “You’re not allergic, you’re detoxing!” She advised me to have just a tablespoon a day initially and work my way up in order to avoid having too strong a healing crisis. Within one month of starting the kefir, the black stains on my pillowcases, which used to traumatize me every morning, had disappeared – so had my acne and the blue sweat. As time passed, my embarrassing flatulence and swollen face also subsided. My breasts no longer ached, my limbs no longer felt like dead weights, and when I woke up, my tongue was a normal color – previously it had been covered in a thick dark yellow coating!

The book advises to do stage one for three months but I did it for six as I still felt that there was work to be done. My husband and I had been married two years and were ready to start trying for children. For a decade, I had dreaded the day that I would have to have a period again because I knew the pain would be unbearable and the endometriosis would be so much worse afterwards.

Hesitantly, I had my IUD taken out and waited for all hell to break loose. To my utter surprise and amazement, my period arrived one day with no warning signs and NO PAIN! It wasn’t ludicrously heavy and debilitating, it was just a normal, regular period!

Endometriosis is one of the main causes of infertility in women, but the following month, I conceived my beautiful son, Austin.

Throughout my pregnancy, I maintained the BED principles – except food combining because when you’re pregnant you just want carbs, carbs, carbs! I started every day with Vitality Super Green, had fermented veggies with every meal and drank young coconut kefir twice a day. I had a dreamy, easy pregnancy and my son was born the picture of health. He suffered none of the colic, reflux and constipation that other babies his age were suffering from and I’m sure this was due to the rich mix of probiotics he had received from me during pregnancy and is still getting from my breast milk.

Today my son turned one. It’s been a crazy, sleepless year and I have fallen off the wagon a little in terms of my diet. I still put cultured veggies on my plate when I remember but I rarely have time to make coconut kefir and I’m so hungry from the breastfeeding that I’m eating lots of dairy. I can see that my eyes are looking a little bloodshot in the morning and I have some acne returning on my shoulders. But I have no fear because I know exactly what I need to do to remedy this and I know that after a few weeks back on BED, I will feel right as rain again.

Thank you Donna!

– Nicola Kavanagh

Grateful to wake up each day feeling healthier + watch my family thrive...

I am a second generation child born with candida. My son is third or possibly fourth as we can only wonder if my great-grandmother was healthy when my grandmother was born. My beautiful grandmother was born in a tiny town in Manitoba, Canada during the depression. She was fortunate to have a father with a job as a station master and an uncle with a farm, but meat and vegetables were less abundant during those years. By her teens, her mother was bedridden with rheumatoid arthritis and my grandmother would come home from school every day at lunchtime to bake a cake for her family to eat. Flour and sugar had not been rationed despite Canada being at war and cake was something she could make. Unfortunately, her mother’s health did not improve and the family moved to a small town near Vancouver, BC. My grandmother went into nursing and continued to be a compassionate caregiver for people struggling with mental and physical health. However, her own health became a lifelong battle and like her mother, she struggled with pain and disease.My mother was born a year before my grandmother was diagnosed with breast cancer. Remarkably, my grandmother underwent intensive radiation treatment and survived. However, my mother was described as a ‘sickly child’. She suffered from allergies, eczema, and spent numerous days in bed. The family had a modern 50s diet with lots of processed and convenience foods. My mother and her sisters had many forms of environmental and emotional stress in their childhood along with a poor diet.I was born a ‘healthy’ baby girl despite having a staph infection. As young as they were, my parents had a small farm and were raising their own food. They grew a huge garden, had dairy goats, chickens, and meat rabbits. My early diet was healthy, real food. My mom was doing better, but suffered with respiratory and skin allergies. My baby brother did too. My parents decided to leave the wet and moldy West Coast and move to a drier climate in the interior of British Columbia.I was lucky to have such nutritious food during my childhood. My family stuck tight to our whole foods principles, but hindsight is 20/20 and there were so many ‘tweaks’ that could have made things better. My mother made sauerkraut, but would often freeze or cook the finished product (yikes!). We ate lots of homemade wheat bread and baked goods. Dairy was rarely fermented. We had honey, brown sugar and molasses. As we entered our teens, my brother and I were healthy eaters, but I adopted a vegetarian diet high in soy and he began to enjoy processed fast foods. Along with those choices came health issues that we work hard to reverse to this day.

Fast forward to my early 30s, I became a mother after years of infertility followed by IVF treatments. My body had been through mono, anorexia, rapid weight gain, cosmetic jaw surgery, hormone therapy, and significant stress. I suffered from anemia, bloating, poor skin, menstrual issues, hair loss, insomnia, constipation, and bladder problems. I had strong craving for sweets and my cornerstone diet of healthy, farm raised food drifted away at some point in the 90s to be replaced by ‘fat-free’ choices. I shopped organic and baked from scratch, but my body was starving. In the midst of my pregnancy, my husband started having seizures and needed neurosurgery to remove a brain tumor. His childhood leukemia has come back to haunt him and we spent the next five years facing multiple cancer diagnoses and a stem cell transplant. During this time, my beloved grandmother was diagnosed with cancer and passed away. My mother and her sisters were all struggling with health problems. My brother, dad, and son had significant digestive issue, food allergies, and joint pain. At 37, I could hardly straighten my hands. One morning, I stiffly climbed out of my car facing my day ahead as a primary school teacher and realized my body was calling 911.

And so began a journey… the first thing I did with the help of my naturopath was cut out all forms of sugar. At the time, I ate very little processed starches, but I loved fruit and honey. I said goodbye and never looked back, because within a few days my pain disappeared. Our family had already eliminated gluten and dairy, so my childhood diet of farm raised veggies, meats, along with gluten-free grains filled my kitchen. I began to ferment and use probiotics, but bloating and gas caused me to pause to learn more. As health journeys are rarely taken on expressways but on winding, bumpy roads, I tried many different diets, supplements, and supports as my body slowly began to heal. The most wonderful thing was my family joined me. My parents and brother have renewed their passion for healthy, healing foods. My son and my husband have both reaped the benefits. My husband has chronic blood cancer and was not expected to live more than five years. Currently, he is exceeding all odds and doing well.

I discovered Body Ecology this Spring after listening to Donna Gates’ interview with Evan Brand on the Candida Summit. Her knowledge and wisdom came to me at a time when I was looking for direction. Learning from Donna helped me put so many pieces together (candida, SIBO, parasites, genetics, histamines, oxalates, and more). Following Body Ecology principles, I was able to introduce fermented foods to my family and our journey continues. My son at nine is starting to make his own choices about diet. As he struggles with yeast overgrowth and oxalates, BE principles are helping him heal too.

Donna – I wish I knew you when I was young. You have helped so many people and I thank you for all your wisdom you have brought to my family. I am grateful to wake up each day feeling healthier and watch my family thrive around me. Hugs!

– Malayna Gross, Eholt, BC, Canada

I finally realized I was worthy of being healthy!

Heavy since the sixth grade, Heather could no longer deny that her system was screaming for help. She began walking and turned to the book The Body Ecology Diet to learn how to make wiser food choices, like eating cultured veggies and homemade coconut kefir.

I don't get sick anymore.

Thank you so much for such life changing and enhancing information, Donna. Love your Hayhouse show. Fermented foods are helping me so much, even in areas I didn’t even know I had a problem! They are helping my blood sugar issue, which was expected. But I also am now realizing I had bladder issues that are being helped.I don’t need to “go” so often now. I also don’t get sick anymore. I could go on about the positive changes. The rest of my life will have fermented foods and drinks in it because of your valuable information. The only problem is, people just don’t want to listen to me about them. I get the blank stare and subject change. Oh well! Keep up the good work!!!! There are some who are listening!– Susan

I've lost inches.

I use the Kefir Starter with organic coconut milk {like in a milk carton, not canned}. I used the Kefir Starter to make cultured veggies.I also started eating a LOT of very cooked cabbage alone with using the Kefir and cultured veggies.I’ve lost inches.The huge amount of bad bacteria has been leaving my head and my ears are “opening up.”Also when the pathogens started leaving my body in the “throne room” I had intense itching, because good bacteria pushes and chases the bad bacteria away. The intense itching was resolved by taking 1/2 tsp. of RAW honey which is an anti-microbial. The itching stopped almost immediately.

I tell everyone I know about the Kefir Starter which can also be used for cultured veggies. Saves a lot of money too. I won’t use garlic again though – way too intense flavor.

Will use root veggies along with sweet potatoes, ginger, shredded cabbage and carrots, and kale.

– THANKS Donna, Mary

I owe my life to Body Ecology

I owe my life to Body Ecology. In January 2008, I almost had a stroke. Life stopped. A mum of two gorgeous little boys and wife to a dynamic husband were the perfect match to my own “pre-almost-stroke” high energy style and zest for life. Now, I couldn’t get out of bed. I slept for five days to get to work for two. Then in the space of 12 months — three sinus operations, a breast lump removal (benign – hooray!!!).My ear nose and throat specialist’s face would fall whenever I walked in. When he didn’t know what other course to take, I wound up with intravenous 24 hour drip-fed antibiotics for a month in March 2010. One test, another test, a new test, a different test, my veins were becoming almost too tough to poke those darned needles into. Until finally, the medicos said I had COPD – Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. Which meant chemotherapy type drugs. Heavy duty. I could feel myself slipping away. I had cherished a dream for our family to visit Finland. I remember saying to Dean(husband), “If I’m like this now, how will I be next year? Should we go this year?” More pressing was that I couldn’t say the words then to him or barely admit it to myself that I was dying. And I knew it.Then my precious girlfriend in America, Tess, told me about Body Ecology. Getting the Body Ecology book was the key. It saved my life.So from being unable to walk to the letterbox three years ago, I’m now jogging 6 kilometres every second day. We go skiing in August. We enjoy bike rides with our boys, Rocco (8) and Duke (7)– they pedal, we run along the beach track near our home. We swim, play tennis, squash.
 Life is Beautiful.As for Dean, he’s a “Born Again B.E.D.er” too. From being the man who didn’t even believe in vitamins, minerals or supplements and all that oogie-boogie, he’s the one who stops people in supermarket queues, at bus stops, or whilst unsuspectingly waiting for trains and tells them, “Body Ecology, Body Ecology”. And to our absolute and totally skin tingling joy, he’s gotten a friend with leukemia on the plan. After four weeks, our friend looks transformed!

And we’re taking the boys to Finland…

– Long live Body Ecology! -Shez Cantlie, Australia

I feel healthier and more vibrant than I have in decades!

I was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma in 2010 and chose treatment with herbal tinctures coupled with a total revamp of my lifestyle and nutritional regime, as the prospect of filling my body with the toxic chemicals of conventional cancer treatments terrified me.The Body Ecology Diet and the support I got from Sheree Zink and Donna Gates accomplished this physical rehabilitation perfectly, along with a regular exercise regime. More importantly, I worked from the inside out to strengthen my soul and psyche with efforts to stay positive through gratitude, and through my spiritual practice of working with Light energy. With all this in place and working, my energy level went way up, my tumors began to shrink and I felt that the action of the herbal treatments was being greatly supported.I feel healthier and more vibrant than I have in decades! Body Ecology was instrumental in this process and Sheree guided me every step of the way. I have now been officially declared to be in remission by my medical practitioners as of October 31, 2012. Thank you Sheree and Body Ecology!
– Marita Kubersky

The Body Ecology Diet has done Miracles for my healing

The Body Ecology Diet has done Miracles for my healing… I am so thankful for your book and all that you do to get the word out and inform others who need it so much. God is so good to have guided me in the direction of health and wellness. Here is some of my story.I started getting sick at the age of 12. I had been on three rounds of antibiotics and one round of steroids for a fungal infection in my ear as the result of a swimming accident.Things only went downhill from there… although we did not make the connection until 12 years later, now we know the antibiotics played a big role in my Candidiasis. After becoming very ill with symptoms like dandruff as you have never seen it before, fatigue, extreme weight loss (At my lowest weight I was73 pounds. My current weight is 75 pounds) and constipation among many other ailments, my Mom started taking me from doctor to doctor, trying to figure out what was causing all of my health problems. My intestines had pretty much stopped functioning, eventually leading to a diagnosis of a paralyzed colon and gastroperesis. I was put on various laxatives that I took daily for years, starting at the age of 14.I made it through the first semester of 9th grade and then had to leave. My body just could not handle the long days.I did enjoy college and I also met a wonderful man named A..J. and eventually married him. After we had been married a year we decided I needed to be healthy for the both of us, not just me anymore. A.J. started taking me to see a specialist that was a two hour drive away. He preformed many tests over the course of one and a half years and eventually told me “You’re just going to have to live with it.” He gave me no hope whatsoever.I knew that wasn’t the answer I was looking for so we decided to go with the natural field. Naomi, a good friend from college and also the author of “And it Rained, Finding Your Health…Naturally” told us about a natural doctor who referred us to a Naturopath. That was when I learned that I had Systemic Candida, Chronic Fatigue, cells that were unable to absorb nutrients and a host of other ailments. He said that out of his 18 years of being a Naturopath I was one of the top ten worst cases he had ever seen.

Within the past few months we started seeing a Naturopath that lives a lot closer. Through biofeedback testing she was able to find that I have a leaky gut and seven different types of mold growing in my body! Some are so deep that I have had them since birth. One thing I have learned is that I started out with a compromised immune system. My Mom was very ill with the same symptoms. A baby takes on a blueprint of its mothers’ immune system. This is why my body could not fight off the mold and Candida.

I started on my path to health on July 27th of 2009.I started the Body Ecology Diet in March of 2010 and it has truly helped in my healing and also has made my healing process alot quicker than it would have been. Through these past months I am not only transforming my body from illness to health that it has never known, but also transforming my mind. I am gaining so much knowledge about being healthier and eating right. My husband and future children will benefit from this greatly too!

I think that all people that are going through an illness need and encourager. My encourager has been my husband, A.J. He has had to do a lot of things that a new husband should not have to do, but he has done everything graciously. He has gone grocery shopping, cleaned for me and spent thousands of dollars on my health. But most of all he has given encouragement! On a daily basis he is there for me. Every ill person needs their encourager, he is mine.

One of my favorite verses throughout this whole healing process is Proverbs 24:16 “For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again…” I have had some big and some little falls, but I have never quit. I have always dusted myself off (not without some tears too) and gotten back up. I will be a completely healthy woman soon because I am strong, I am persistent.

– Sunny Burton Sober

It has been one month and my son has gone from using 5 word approximations to using over 50 words with 2 and 3 word combinations.

My 2.5 year old son has been on scd (Specific Carbohydrate Diet) for 6 months with lots of improvement but we hit a plateau and he was never able to do nuts or goat yogurt so onto the next diet we went. When I saw the price of the coconuts I told my husband I was only going to do the yck (young coconut kefir) for 1 month and if we didn’t see huge results well then we would stop.Well it has been one month and my son has gone from using 5 word approximations to using over 50 words with 2 and 3 word combinations. He is saying his ABC’s, he knows his colors, some shapes and he is calling us mama and daddy. Can you believe it??? I have cried over and over again (happy tears) as he talks to me from the back seat. He calls me from his crib (he never said anything from his crib before). His ABA therapist is so shocked at how appropriately he is using his words and how much labeling he is doing.It took 2 weeks for his poops to firm up. We had good poops for next 2 weeks and on the last couple of days he got diarrhea again. I think it was because I added in quinoa. So I removed it and today he got another rash and his poop was much better. I see such a correlation between his behavior and his poops. When they firm up he is interactive, alert, happy and oh my god he has so much energy. When he gets diarrhea he is withdrawn, whiny, wants to stay in bed and very aloof. I’m so excited with the progress that my next step is going to try the cultured veggies.This month is the first month that I actually think that Wesley might fully recover. He socially has a way to go but I am so optimistic! Thanks for all the support.– Donna Wesley

We have our little boy back! Ryan can talk, understand, love and enjoy life now.

My Grandson, Ryan, received the diagnoses of “Moderately Autistic” and “Possibly Mentally Retarded” by his Pediatric Neurologist when he just turned 2 years of age. Unless a family faces a similar situation, no one could ever imagine the gut-wrenching feeling his mother, father, and immediate family had. We were devastated to say the least.How did this dreadful thing happen? Ryan was born a perfectly healthy little boy! His weight was 5 lbs. 14 oz. and he had apgars scores of 9 at one minute and 9 at five minutes. Why did this happen? When did this happen? And how did this happen?I am the Grandmother of this precious little boy who will be turning 5 years old in July 2005, and what follows, is the miraculous story of Ryan’s recovery…My daughter Melanie and her husband Neal tried for years to conceive a child. Melanie had a horrible pregnancy with pre-term labor starting at a very early stage. Consequently, she was ordered to be on bed rest from five months gestation on. When bed rest wasn’t working any longer, she was sent to the hospital where she stayed for 38 days before the baby was born. Ryan made his appearance 4 weeks premature. The baby was born jaundice – in fact very jaundice! Ryan received the routine Hep B vaccine at one day of age. Although his Mom breast-fed him, Ryan was an extremely colicky baby for the first four months of his life. When breast milk didn’t agree with him, the Pediatrician told his mother to try commercial formulas. She tried seven in total. To ease all his colic, doctors constantly recommended Mylicon – in fact, they should of bought stock in Mylicon! Ryan’s growth progress was in the 25 percentile of his age group. Basically, he was a small and very thin baby. When his parents approached the Pediatrician(s) with concerns, they were assured he was fine.When Ryan was sick with the typical cold, sinus infections, sore throat, fevers, tonsillitis, or just congested, he was prescribed Amoxicillin – he was even prescribed Amoxicillin over the phone! With each routine doctor’s visit, Ryan would receive his (must-have) timely vaccinations; not just one or two strains, but three and four at a time. Ryan would get a reaction to these vaccines but the doctors always claimed it was normal. At a year old when Ryan received the Varicella and Prevnar vaccine, he became a very sick child who just screamed constantly. When Ryan was 15 months old, he had his typical Measles, Mumps and Rubella vaccine and we saw the same type of reactions. He was irritable, cried a lot, and had a high temperature, swelling of the injection spot, and just screamed continually. The MMR vaccine, unbeknownst to us, buried him deeper into the Autistic World.

We now began to see drastic changes in Ryan. He no longer spoke. Simple words like Ma-Ma, Da-Da, Bye-Bye were gone. Ryan just grunted. He started to toe walk. He didn’t know his name when called. He lost all eye contact. He did not comprehend when spoken to. Ryan wouldn’t let us cuddle with him or interact with play and completely lost all communications with us. Smaller stores were a no-no for Ryan because he couldn’t handle small spaces and bigger stores were overly stimulating. Large crowds of people were hard for him. Ryan couldn’t handle movement. He was afraid of noise. All Ryan did was fixate on the wheels of his toy vehicles! He would spin in circles. He would flap his hands. Touching various textured items seemed to agitate him and he would refuse to do so. Gagging on different food textures was also getting to be a huge problem. We just couldn’t seem to get Ryan off of baby foods and on to table foods – he would constantly gag, and then vomit! When Ryan would try to run he always seemed drunk and would fall. Ryan couldn’t even distinguish when obstacles were in front of him. Ryan would be walking and if we didn’t redirect him, he would literally bang into anything in his path – this was true even with a wall! Melanie and Neal had to cushion everything in the house that would be of hazard to Ryan. Well-intended people thought Melanie to be overly protected and neurotic while in fact, all she was trying to do was protect Ryan from unknowingly hurting himself.

When Ryan was 19 months and 3 days old, he had an appointment for a “well visit” with the pediatrician. Melanie begged the doctors to fully examine him. She literally stripped him of his cloths and had him walk – something, which was never done. She called his name, tried to interact play, tried to cuddle with him and even tried to feed him a Cheerio which was all in vain. FINALLY, the pediatrician agreed to send a child development agency to the house.

I remember that day so well. As a Grandmother, I was there for support. Two extremely nice women came into the house. Within minutes, they were on the floor with Ryan. They tested and scored him. How we perceived Ryan was completely different than how these women scored him. We knew Ryan had problems but our love for him blinded us to the fact that these problems were greater than we could have ever imagined!

The protocol was to first have Ryan’s eyes examined and a hearing test done – all of which showed negative. Next was the dreaded appointment to officially have Ryan diagnosed by a Pediatric Neurologist. So on July 16, 2002, when Ryan was 2 years and four days old, we received his official diagnosis of “Moderately Autistic” and “Possibly Mentally Retarded.” What a horrible shock! We definitely were not prepared for this or anything remotely close to this diagnosis. After the initial devastating news, we cried for days BUT quickly vowed to do everything we could for this adorable child. We knew we had to act, and act fast! Something just had to be done! We prayed for guidance….and prayed….and prayed….and prayed. To help us get through this, we created a dream for ourselves. Our long-range goal (and dream) was to help cure Ryan and enable him to attend a regular Kindergarten class when the time came. We desperately wanted a typical little boy. A boy that could talk, understand, love and enjoy life. We wanted a little boy that knew his Mommy and Daddy. A little boy that would get excited about his birthday, trick-or-treating on Halloween, the Easter Bunny and even Santa Clause on Christmas. We craved the notion of helping Ryan so badly that it actually hurt! We did have our precious little boy but he was locked so deeply in his puzzling body of uncertainty. We just had to find a way to free Ryan from the hands of Autism! We prayed the Neurologist was wrong!

While Melanie and Neal worked with therapists at home, I conducted my own research about Autism. I read numerous books on the subject and searched continually on the internet. We finally began to understand what Autism was – but how could this have possibly happened to Ryan? We began to realize that the “Main Stream Doctor” didn’t understand Autism, nor did they want to learn anything about it, or for that matter, be bothered. The Pediatricians had no advice for us and painted a very grave picture. To make matters worse, they actually recommended that the family save their money to be able to institutionalize Ryan when the time came. How dare them!

We retrieved all hospital and pediatrician records. With the information at hand, we started putting the pieces of the puzzle together. Premature birth, extremely jaundice, Hep B vaccination at a day old, use of formulas, weakened immune system, antibiotics, and an array of vaccines containing chemicals and heavy metals, like mercury and aluminum. Combined, this was the formula for a devastating intestinal gut disorder, neurological problems and toxic poisoning.

We knew Ryan’s condition could not be cured with a “Band-Aid” type of solution. We felt that therapies such as Occupational, Speech, Physical, Sensory, and Applied Behavioral Analysis were all great but though research, we also knew we needed more. What we learned was that maybe, just maybe, because of contaminates, Ryan could possibly be allergic to two types of proteins; Gluten and Casein. If so, these proteins would cause havoc within his body, causing opioid activity and crossing the blood-brain barrier which meant neurological problems and drug like conditions! We recognized the fact that we had to repair Ryan’s gut with Dietary Interventions to rebuild his immune system, which in turn would improve the neurological problems – and, we needed a special type of doctor to help us rid the mercury and other toxins from his body. We then began to view therapy as a good and useful training tool for Ryan. We looked upon dietary intervention as a way of improving his health while weeding out the contaminating problems that were injected into Ryan for the past two years. If this research theory worked, it would open up a whole new world for Ryan!

We immediately started preparing nutritious organic foods that were gluten and casein free. One special book that was our “Bible” during this time was “Special Diets for Special Kids” by Lisa Lewis. This book is a wonderful guide with explanations and recipes on how to start this special way of eating. When we prepared our foods for Ryan, we had to puree everything enabling Ryan to swallow his food without gagging. We did this type of cooking like an assembly line effect. It was hard work but we continued to do it. This diet seemed to help. What we witnessed was an immediate and excellent reaction to focus and babbling. We felt that we were now on to something!

When we started the “Gluten and Casein Free” way of eating, Ryan made immediate improvements. The progress he made was great. But unfortunately, for the next few months we saw no new gains – we were definitely at a stand-still now. Distressed, we then decided to implement the Feingold Program (www.feingold.org) and (http://www.feingold.org/programdetails.html) – stricter for Ryan and harder on us. Now we were eliminating artificial flavors, colorings, nitrites, synthetic food additives, artificial sweeteners, preservatives, fragrances and non-food items which contained chemicals that would be unfavorable for Ryan. Again, we were eliminating even more foods from his diet than before. We also had to keep in mind that anything absorbed through the skin would likely cause a reaction as well. What a challenge we faced! We now had to find and purchase dye and scent free soaps and shampoos, gluten free play dough, gluten free crayons, gluten free finger paints and items which Ryan would handle, blow bubbles free of chemicals, eliminate all household cleaning products containing hazardous chemical toxins, avoid perfume and smoke, use organic lawn care products for outdoors, and the list goes on. We were now gluten and casein free, on the Feingold Program and eating all organic foods. All of our efforts certainly helped Ryan to improve but unfortunately, we just saw minor changes in Ryan’s over all health.

In October of 2002, Melanie and I attended a conference for Autism and were fortunate to hear a DAN (Defeat Autism Now) doctor speak. This person happened to be Dr. Sidney Baker – a very well known and highly respected Autism doctor. (Dr. Sidney Baker, 71 Ferry Road, Sag Harbor, New York 11963 Tel. 631-725-7766) When the meeting was over, I instructed Melanie to quickly follow me as we made our way up to meet Dr. Baker. You see, months earlier, we tried to make an appointment with Dr. Baker but were told, because of his semi-retirement, that there were no openings at that time. Now this was our chance! We introduced ourselves to Dr. Baker and just had enough time to ask a few questions. I literally wanted to put Dr. Baker in my pocket and bring him home with us. Oh my gosh – he was so close and yet, we couldn’t reach him for Ryan. That night after arriving home, I sat at the computer and wrote Dr. Baker a letter explaining our longing to help my Grandson and the suffering and anguish Ryan and his family was going through. In other words, I poured my heart out to him! In just a matter of days, Melanie received paperwork from Dr. Baker and an appointment for Ryan.

Our prayers were answered! So on December 2, 2002, during a terrible snowstorm, we traveled 5 hours round trip for counsel from Dr. Baker. He was extremely pleased that Ryan was already on the Gluten and Casein Free Diet and the Feingold Program. He further educated us on this dreadful thing called Autism. Dr. Baker recommended that we have certain tests done on Ryan. What we found was that Ryan had a very unbalanced biochemistry condition, nutrient malabsorption, dysbiosis problems of bacteria with a very high suspicion of Candida (yeast). His body was also full of toxic metals; Cadmium, Arsenic and Mercury. The range of Mercury in his body was so elevated that the reference line was actually off the page! By having these tests done, we now felt good about the recovery decisions we made for Ryan. These tests positively showed that we were right on target with our research and previous feelings on how Ryan was affected by Autism. So for the next 11 months, we had Ryan on five different antifungals for Candida, an array of vitamin therapy, shots of Secretin and B-12, and Chelation (detox) for toxic metals. Dr Baker prescribed Glutathione & Allithiam creams for the detox. The creams were rubbed onto Ryan’s arms and feet twice daily and the smell that escaped from his body due to the toxins were absolutely putrid. Some of the medical therapy worked while other methods just made matters worse. The Secretin injection set Ryan back so far that all he said for three months was ou-we, ou-we! After none to minimal improvements, Dr. Baker decided Ryan was not a good candidate for Secretin injections or the anti-fungals! Now please understand that some children do very well on this type of therapy – it just did not work for Ryan. What works for one child doesn’t necessarily work for others. We also never believed in medicating him with drugs. To us, using drugs was the band-aid effect and would mean that Ryan would never have a chance to recover – his Autism would just be covered up by drugs.

Therapists were in and out of the house on a daily basis. We bought toys younger than Ryan’s age to teach him “again” how to play. Melanie and Neal constantly reinforced therapy sessions and began coaching him through play. We made big foam cushions for Ryan to walk on for balance. A big mattress was placed in the living room to strengthen his muscles through jumping. We bought portable stairs to help Ryan maneuver climbing. We even brought a slide into the house to encourage more climbing with a reward “ride” at the end of Ryan’s climb. We purchased all different types of chewy tubes to help stimulate the muscles in his mouth. We made two different canvas therapy bags; one bag would contain articles such as cotton balls, feathers, spongy and sticky animals, small silk pillows, and ribbons of different fabric to just name a few – all good for tactile while the other bag would contain cognitive items. We practiced weight strengthening. We brushed Ryan’s body for sensory input three to four times a day followed with compressing his joints. To help him fall asleep, Melanie took him on twice daily car rides. And during all of this, we continued his strict gluten and casein free diet making sure we cooked using all organic foods and also continued the Feingold Program.

It was during this time that money was getting tight. Neal had to take on a part-time job to pay the bills…doctors, laboratory tests, organic foods, vitamins, chemical free products, the anti-fungals and chelation medications, and all the extra therapy. Family members tried to help financially but the burden was still on Melanie and Neal. It seemed like centuries ago but it was just 6 months earlier that Ryan was diagnosed, and yet, the household stress was reaching an extremely high point. But when God decided to bless Melanie and Neal with Ryan, he certainly gave Ryan to the right parents. It takes special people to be able to cope with an Autistic child. They both loved him so much that they dug deep within themselves and found the patience and determination to help their son. Melanie would care for Ryan during the day and when Neal came home from work, it was a duel effort. Now with the part-time job, Melanie had Ryan 24-7 and Neal was drained from 10 hours at his full-time job and nights at the part-time job. It was tough – in fact, it was very tough!

It was also during this stressful time that we began to realize Melanie and Neal were losing some of their friendships they had with other people. It seemed that people just did not understand what Autism was and the time and exhausting effort it took to care for a child like Ryan. We knew these people were “afraid” of the term Autism and just didn’t know what to say or how to act. And when Melanie and Neal had to decline invitations to everyday functions like birthday parties, picnics or holidays, no one understood why and thought them to be, just plain neurotic. Ryan just couldn’t handle small places or crowds of people and besides; he was on his special way of eating and couldn’t eat the types of foods that were being served! His diet was a big issue with many well-intended people. They truly believed we were being mean, overly protective, playing witch doctor, or just simply not letting Ryan be a normal child. If these people were only in our shoes for just one day and felt the pain that we were enduring, then maybe they would understand! Without much support and only criticism, it was at this time that we started to question ourselves whether we were doing the right thing for Ryan or not. It certainly was a tough and lonely time for us.

In July of 2003, when Ryan turned 3 years old, the Child Developmental Agency tried to shift Melanie and Neal’s thoughts to enrolling Ryan into an Autistic pre-school class. This was due primarily because Ryan no longer was eligible to receive services from the Agency because of his age. After much thought, Melanie and Neal decided against this proposal for Ryan’s sake. We worked too hard implementing the right kinds of food for Ryan to eat while at the same time, making sure to eliminate everything possible that would cause Ryan to have a flare up. We were trying so hard to go forward and just couldn’t take a chance for a setback. The school, unbeknownst to them, did have chemical issues with their cleaning supplies and the classroom had school supplies for children that were unsafe for a child like Ryan. Although Melanie was allowed to bring Ryan’s own school supplies and snacks for him, we were still concerned that Ryan would get into an illegal item, or get a whiff of something that was not appropriate for him. We were still at a very early stage of Ryan’s recovery – just taking baby steps forward. We didn’t want to make a mistake! We just could not take that kind of a chance!

In November of 2003, we hit a plateau and became somewhat discouraged. Dr. Sidney Baker who is always supportive and encouraging, advised us to try the Specific Carbohydrate Diet, (http://www.breakingtheviciouscycle.info/) referred to as the SCD. I really misunderstood the principals of the SCD diet and thought this was more for Celiac problems and not for Autism. Again, Dr. Baker encouraged us to try. He felt that our attempt with dietary intervention originally brought more success to Ryan than the medical intervention did. He told us that all the antifungals in the world would not remove Candida from Ryan’s body if he continued to eat hidden sugars. The Specific Carbohydrate Diet eliminates just that. It also eliminates all grains, lactose, other disacchararide sugars and starches that Ryan would not be able to digest or absorb. Dr. Baker even went to the point of giving us names and phone numbers of other parents whose children were on this new plan of eating. And so, on November 5, 2003, when Ryan was 3 years and 4 months old, we started the Specific Carbohydrate Diet. We were now gluten and casein free, following the Feingold Program, completely organic and implementing the SCD. Talk about stress! Ryan ate well, in fact, very well. Because we were still pureeing all his foods, we were able to sneak all sorts of good foods into him and this was really a blessing in disguise. We saw improvements in leaps and bounds! And for the first time since Ryan was diagnosed with autism, his body looked solid and he looked like he was gaining weight. We felt great!

Ryan’s speech was slowly developing. His cognitive skills and motor skills were also improving. So now, with everything starting to get better, Melanie and Neal decided to enroll Ryan into preschool. Ryan was evaluated by school officials and on January 29, 2004, when Ryan was 3 years and just over 6 months old, he attended his first “Mainstream” Preschool Class. He did great! Melanie supplied the school with Ryan’s own personal supplies. She made sure he ate only what she provided for him and stayed many days at the back of the class just supervising. He graduated from his first year of preschool on June 9, 2004. Needless to say, watching him on stage with the rest of his class singing songs and showing a picture he made was very overwhelming for me. I cried like a baby and just wished the doctors who told us to save our money to institutionalize Ryan when the time came could of been there to see Ryan as a happy typical little boy!

Positively Ryan did much better on the SCD but after eight months, our gut feelings were telling us he needed more. We felt he was too restricted with food choices. We couldn’t seem to advance Ryan to the next level of this diet because he still showed reactions to many food choices. What we discovered was that Ryan had a problem dealing with Salicylates and Phenol plus other food intolerance, which we were unable to identify. It is well known that autistic children have all types of digestive problems and it was frustrating to us that we couldn’t get past this with Ryan. Now we had to start thinking about the addition of healing supplements. Although he looked better, acted better and was doing better, Ryan was still missing something but we didn’t know what it was. We felt he needed more and we wanted more for Ryan!

Now I always felt in my heart that God guided us thought every part of this recovery process with Ryan. Every time we would come to a stumbling block and didn’t know what to do, He opened another door for us. This was the case when one night while watching television, we saw a news broadcast about Sensory Learning Therapy. Immediately we inquired about this new technique. It sounded absolutely great to us and we felt Ryan would benefit from it. So in July of 2004, right after Ryan turned four years old, we headed to Boulder, Colorado for Sensory Learning Therapy, (http://www.sensorylearning.com/).

To make the cross-country trip to Colorado, we dug deep into our pockets because everything was so expensive. Ryan and Melanie had to stay fourteen days for the complete therapy program. I accompanied them to Colorado and stayed the first seven days while Neal traveled to Colorado for the last seven days of the program. We were all involved. In addition to being fearful of the unknown, we were also nervous not knowing how Ryan would react. Remember, this was a child that did not like closed in spaces, movements or change in routine! In fact, for any Autistic child the plane trip alone would be nerve wracking. We thoroughly prepared ourselves for this trip. We purchased “presents” and took all sorts of “legal” goodies to give Ryan on the plane. Thank God, Ryan did very well. We also cooked and froze his special foods from home, using dry ice to package it and literally carried it on the plane in order not to have it misplaced. We leased age appropriate toys from “Babies Away” for Ryan to play with during our stay. We rented a car and stayed at a Residents Inn with kitchen faculties for 14 nights. We shopped at health food stores and cooked our foods in our hotel room. The trip actually turned out to be not only for Sensory Therapy but also an enjoyable vacation for Ryan, Melanie and Neal.

The founder and Executive Director at Sensory Learning Center International is Mary Bolles. Mary and her staff literally took us under their wings. They explained to us that Sensory Learning was an innovative approach to developmental learning that unites three modalities (visual, auditory and vestibular) into one intervention allowing individuals to better integrate sensory messages. We were told that when this type of therapy works, things happen and lives change. Therapy was for ½ hour sessions twice a day. I must admit, it was very hard that first day. Ryan wanted nothing to do with this therapy – that first day almost never happened if it weren’t for trained and compassionate therapists! Ryan received his therapy on a moving table (bed) in a completely dark room with just a small light with different colors showing each day plus, he had to wear earphones enabling him to listen to special music. Because the Sensory Learning staff had a great deal of patience, Ryan did outstanding and had fantastic results.
Since that time, we have observed major sensory changes in Ryan. He is now able to go into stores without a sensory problem. He can actually ride on the little moving cars outside of stores such as Wal-Mart and is able to ride on a Merry-go-round! His balance has improved greatly and he can even hop on one foot – not great yet but he’s getting there! And thank God, the list just keeps going on!

BUT Mary, again through the grace of God, opened yet another door for us.
I sat with her one day and explained my feelings about Ryan’s eating. I explained to her that we already eliminated so many food items from Ryan’s diet in an attempt to rid his body of yeast, bacteria and toxins. With his over all improved health, I was sure we were accomplishing this. The problem we were having was that every time we tried to advance Ryan to the next level of a diet, he would regress! Ryan still had those terrible digestion issues! WHY? Mary, who unbeknownst to me was a Certified Body Ecologist, had just the perfect answer to help Ryan .….“The Body Ecology Diet” (http://www.bodyecologydiet.com/) by Donna Gates.

So before I boarded the plane to go back home, I purchased the “Body Ecology Diet” book. On the plane I started to read. The trip home was more than five hours in flight, but for me, it still wasn’t long enough. I was so engrossed in this book that I didn’t want to put it down. I read about Kefir – something I never heard of. I was amazed about the benefits of coconut oil, raw butter, cream, and ghee. I learned so much about our bodies’ inner ecosystem. I read how our body has two brains; the stomach being the second one. I was also surprised to find out that parents can pass down to their new born babies a host of problems like weakened adrenal glands and congested livers that they themselves unknowingly have. I read about primitive eating habits and how the world of technology has ruined our present foods. To say the least, I attained a wealth of knowledge! And during all of my reading, I became more assured that the dietary intervention choice we selected for Ryan these last couple of years was absolutely the right choice to make. And best of all, I now understood what Ryan needed to take him to that next level. No doubt we were traveling the road to success…but to actually push forward into high gear and reach that next level, we definitely needed to implement the “Body Ecology Diet.” I was now ecstatic!

I immediately scheduled a conference call with Donna Gates when I returned home. Donna was wonderful! The first thing she told me to do was to make a coconut kefir drink for Ryan using young green coconuts. She explained to me that Kefir is a microbial-rich food that helps restore the inner ecology and contains strains of beneficial bacteria and yeast. She made it clear to me that this drink would produce a growth of beneficial microflora for Ryan – something he so badly needed. And at this point in our conversation, I also recalled what my DAN doctor once told me about the intestines. He explained that the unfriendly yeast (Candida) and bacteria in the intestines basically do to your body what “grubs” do to your nice green lawn. The grubs eat the grass leaving just the dirt. Now, green grass will not grow until you plant the seeds and water daily. That’s exactly what kefir does….it restores the intestines with friendly strains of bacteria and yeast. I now began to realize that this was exactly how Ryan was going to get to that next level – this is what he needed! We already starved the intestines by eliminating all foods that contribute to Candida and bacteria – BUT – what we forgot to do was replant the seeds for beneficial bacteria and yeast. ALL OF THIS WAS NOW FINALLY STARTING TO MAKE SENSE!!! Donna then spoke about the specifics of food combining and she explained some very important cooking techniques I was not aware of. She also explained what Ryan should be eating and when he should be eating it. She mentioned a special type of water from Japan called Nariwa Water that would be excellent in aiding to help keep Ryan’s body free from toxins. Donna explained why we should use only Black Current, Cranberry or Pineapple juice to flavor Ryan’s Coconut Kefir Juice. She explained the difference between Sea salt and regular table salt. She enlightened me about the value of Fermented Foods, raw butter and raw cream. And she explained the benefits of Vitality Super Greens. During that conversation, we went through as much as my brain could handle. I was now armed and prepared for when Ryan returned home.

A month into the Body Ecology Diet (also known as the BED), Ryan was flourishing. What we were witnessing was incredible! This was definitely the missing link for Ryan! I like to call this “The Frosting on Ryan’s Cake.” Ryan’s language thoroughly exploded! Prior to the BED, Ryan still had problems with enunciating the first letter of words. Mommy was ommy, Daddy was addy etc. His vocabulary was very limited and sounds such as grunting were frequently heard. NOT ANY MORE! Ryan was talking up a storm. He was actually putting sentences together! He started to sing songs and understand stories on Barney and Sesame Street. Ryan became more organized with play and started to use imagination play that was something he never did. He gave up his fixation for wheels, no more stimming, and he no longer is oblivious to his surroundings. Ryan now gets excited about all sorts of events, constantly asks inquisitive questions, and is active and involved in everyday functions. It’s like Ryan is doing double time just catching up on everything that he couldn’t do while he was locked away in his body of autism. What a wonderful feeling! He has even been called the Mayor of his class…because he is very sociable. He mingles with everyone, smiles all the time and has a wonderful gentle-hearted way about himself. His Pediatric Neurologist and Developmental Doctor were so pleased and absolutely amazed. They never thought they would see this type of reversal pattern in Ryan. They really never thought it could be done! What a blessing for a little boy who just 2 ½ years earlier received such a grave and devastating diagnosis.

Yes, definitely yes, we continue every day with the Body Ecology Diet and all the principals attached. This is Ryan’s Frosting – his way of life! Along with Ryan’s staple diet of all kinds of veggies, protein, and cultured foods, Ryan can now splurge and eat just about anything – in moderation of course. He enjoys raw butter and cream, he has his special kefir smoothies, and French fries cooked in coconut oil. He enjoys his special pudding, cookies, cupcakes, cake, muffins, lollipops, popcorn, pretzels, chips and homemade ice cream to name a few. And it’s amazing to us how Ryan knows the difference between “junk” food and good food. He doesn’t crave or eat foods that are bad for him. If someone does offer him illegal foods, he may take one bite then quickly puts it down. He just doesn’t like it! And when you stop to think of “Ryan’s way” of eating, it was exactly like our ancestors before us….all natural, unprocessed, clean, healthy foods! It’s the Body Ecology way and nothing could be better!

This is not the end of the story for Ryan but just the beginning, the beginning of a healthy and happy life. With “The Frosting on Ryan’s Cake,” we now see a bright, happy child emerging everyday. Our long-range goal (and dream) has already been met. Ryan will attend a typical kindergarten class in September! We have our little boy back! Ryan can talk, understand, love and enjoy life now. I cannot express in words what this actually means to our family. We feel so humble and grateful to God for his continued guidance. We are also thankful to all the dedicated and qualified doctors (especially Dr. Sidney Baker) and therapists (especially Mary Bolles) who helped us along the way. And we are now, and always will be grateful to Donna Gates – for caring and sharing. Without her knowledge and gift of giving to others, I certainly wouldn’t be writing Ryan’s recovery story today!

I put this story to pen and paper in hopes it might encourage parents, family and care takers who care for a loved one under the autistic spectrum. I cannot deny that our journey hasn’t been a rough one. There were many days that I would sit at the table and cry – not knowing what to do next or where to get the strength to do it. Believe me, our family has been there and we know what other families are going through. If you took the time to read Ryan’s complete story, Autism must be affecting you somehow – whether it might be a loved one in your own family, a dear friend you know, or just an acquaintance. No matter what the situation might be, big or small, please pass this story on! Dig deep for strength and pray for guidance and help someone affected by Autism! Implement a diet rich in good, wholesome foods and use fermented drinks and cultured foods – implement a diet like our ancestors use to have – a diet like the Body Ecology Diet. Believe in what you are doing and understand that everyone definitely will receive some degree of success with the Body Ecology Diet because this diet heals. Please don’t be the caretaker or parent that feels they can’t do it or is afraid to try – please don’t do this to an affected human being!

May God bless you as He has done to us.
– Deanna

Going to the Body Ecology Diet retreat was the turning point in Colin’s life.

By the fall of 2003 our beautiful vaccine-injured son, Colin, had made many gains though his home based learning program (The Son-Rise® Program, www.son-rise.org.). We felt that he was really ready for a half day Montessori kindergarten.Having never been to any school, to our delight Colin got off to a great start. Reportedly, he was the most attentive child during circle time! We were unprepared for what happened next.By the third week of school Colin succumbed to a host of previously un-encountered childhood diseases: roseola, croup, diarrhea, strange viral rashes, and the first ear infection of his life. His happy demeanor changed, and he became irritable and withdrawn. By December we had to pull him out of school.Despite being at home, where his immune system would have a fighting chance to defeat these invaders, Colin’s diarrhea persisted month after month. It worsened, until I finally agree in May of 2004 to put Colin on a strong course of Vancomycin. Although Colin’s bowel symptoms improved while on the antibiotic, they came back triple strength when we finished the drug.Although Colin was in great distress, I decided to attend the Autism One Conference in Chicago in May of 2004, hoping to find some help for him. There I attended a talk on The Body Ecology Diet, and learned that in July 2004, Donna Gates was having a retreat in Illinois for those who wanted to learn the principles taught in the book, The Body Ecology Diet (Recovering Your Health and Rebuilding Your Immunity), could help recover children with Autism. Incredibly, not only was Donna Gates welcoming our children to the week-long retreat, she was agreeing to feed them a kid friendly version of the promising diet!

By the time we got to the retreat Colin was in great physical and emotional distress. Except for the brief time on the antibiotic, Colin had not had a formed stool in nine months! Every time this sweet child ate his little abdomen swelled up with gas, giving him a pregnant look. Soon after loud bowel sounds would emanate from his swollen belly. Desperate for relief Colin would lay down on the floor or ground and beg us to press our heads into his belly to distract himself from the pain. Anxious and pale, Colin weighed only 46 pounds, and had slipped from the 75th percentile, to the 10th percentile on the growth charts.

While at the retreat, to our amazement, Colin soon began to eat the special food prepared for us. Although he didn’t eat the cultured veggies, he quite willingly drank the Young Coconut Kefir (fermented young coconut water), followed the food combining rules, and even ate some sea veggies (dulse flakes and arame).

Within 48 hours at the retreat, Colin was out of pain and the loud bowel sounds, gas and bloating were gone! That night I literally cried tears of joy because Colin made an actual stool! His recovery at the retreat was a miracle!

Going to the Body Ecology Diet retreat was the turning point in Colin’s life. In the two years prior to the retreat he had gained only one pound! In the seven months since the retreat Colin has gained 9 pounds, and is now at the 50th percentile and gaining on the growth charts! Because of this diet Colin is a very happy and energetic child, who enjoys gymnastics, karate, sledding and long nature walks. Although there have been a few bumps in the road with respect to his bowels, his symptoms predating the Body Ecology Diet have never returned!

Colin’s progress didn’t stop there. His Son-Rise Program® teacher recently viewed a video of Colin and I working together and enthusiastically stated that Colin is more grounded, more responsive, and there is a definite improvement in his spontaneous eye contact. My husband and I and the Son-Rise Program® volunteers that work with Colin in his playroom have tracked verbal improvements as well. Colin spontaneously asking and answering more questions and is increasingly making appropriate commentary!
– Colleen

@BodyEcology YES!!! Your book changed my life. Thanks!!! I am in the midst of writing a post about it as we speak. Please Check My blog www.TheBalancedBelly.com

– Amy Yoggev via Twitter

Thanks for such a wonderful book that has changed our lives.

My 5 year old son has been diagnosed with ADHD and we have tried many things over the last few years to help with this with only a little bit of success.I then came across BED about 9 months ago and have been slowly implementing this change and I have been giving him YCK and Cultured Vegies. I started extremely slow and with such a small amount as he is very sensitive, I litterally had to start with about 4 drops of YCK and 1/8 teaspoon of CV’s. We have now built up to 1 teaspoon of CV’s and 10mls of YCK and we are seeing fantastic results with him. His eczema has improved a lot, his behaviour is improving and he is starting to focus more. It hasn’t all been a smooth ride as each time we up the ferments he has some die off which makes any of his symptoms get worse before they get better, this is really hard to cope with at the time but when he comes through this we get some good results with him. We have a long way to go still but we are getting there and I know by the time he starts school next year he will be a focused, content, healthy and very happy little boy. Thanks for such a wonderful book that has changed our lives. xo– Simone McGrath

Coming up to 2 years on the diet … No asthma, almost no food allergies ( probly none but I was anaphylactic to fish so I’m too scared to try it to see if I’m not allergic any more but people can eat fish around me now without it affecting me) no candida and I haven’t been sick since being on the diet- no more tonsillitis which is pretty good for a uni student!! 🙂 It’s been an up hill battle but I’m getting there! Thank Donna!

– Tiffany Jean

It's just night and day from an irritable kid to a delightful child!

My son was diagnosed with autism when he was 4 (he’s now 9). We did GFCF for two years with initial success and then a major regression, we then tried SCD and he was on it for almost 3 years.We saw much improvement after the initial ‘die-off’ (which was horrible and lasted about 3 months) and then he was much better, I introduced the SCD yogurt, very slowly…1/8 tsp caused intolerable ‘die-off’, then we got him up to 1 cup over several months, he was doing awesome, but then we saw him going back and forth with ‘flare-up’ and ‘die-off’ and I just knew I was missing something. I heard about BED and imidiately felt guided that it was what I was missing. He’s been on it only 2 weeks so far, thankfully I have been able to do the CV’s right away (still working on YCK, he doesn’t like the taste, so I’m getting creative) but, already I’m seeing my little boy come alive again and with very minimal ‘die-off’ and he’s getting CV’s EVERY meal! It’s like his personality is coming back, his ‘stimming’ is so much better….he was at the point where that was almost all he was doing….now he’s singing, being silly and having a sense of humor! It’s just night and day from an irritable kid to a delightful child! I’m so thankful, I’m crying right now. God bless you for this inspirational diet, what a gift you have given us!– Janeen Jensen-Burke

I had suffered from several, intestinal and heart, diseases, for years, until, recently, when I changed my diet to ‘gluten free’ and ‘organic’. A friend introduced me to your ‘Body Ecology’ page and I, literally, took notes. I experienced positive results, almost, immediately~! The intestinal diseases, Crohn’s, IBD, Colitis, etc., had me in such pain that the mere act of walking was excruciating~! I, now, not only, have lost weight, eliminated the ‘bloat’ and other aches and pains, but, have resumed my exercise regime and am able to enjoy my life, ‘healthy’, once again~! Thanks for all your help~!

– Julie Matrow Watson

My daughter and her boyfriend both suffered from digestive issues and once they began the BE diet they began feeling better right away. They love the Cocobiotic and Vitality Green capsules! Of course I have been following the BE diet and feel much better and as well the weight has just dropped off. I would like to become a Body ecology counselor and wish you would offer a course for that.

– Helen Thorgalsen

I have been following the website for a couple of weeks, I can’t tell you how good I feel. I think I’ve been fighting a loosing battle with yeast for years and didn’t know it!! I want to try the BED diet for my 23 yr old daughter that suffers from asthma, allergies, fibromyalgia and I truly believe ADD…so I think this will be key in her getting healthy! 🙂

– Rose Ciancia Chasey

I followed BED for several months and I can tell you the only thing that got me through the Holiday parties was Cocobiotic! It was my own version of champagne and it helped me to ward of all the tempting sugary treats. It was also through BED that I began my love affair with sea veggies. They have been a huge part of my diet ever since, and are now one of my favorite foods. I don’t think there is room in this post to share my entire experience with you, but I will say that I have recommended your book to several people, and I still do. Thank you so much for being such an amazing resource!

– Jessica L. Labbe

As a single parent dealing with Autism I have implemented what I can into our diet with positive results. When I can afford to take the fermentation course and Autism course I will also add those practices into our life. The children can be on the road to recovery from what I have experienced.

– Karla Anderson

Yes it has changed my life and my families. I am grateful for Donna Gates and her wisdom, I have lost 50 lbs. I have what is called a synovial cyst in my s2. So the doctors kept saying to me lose the weight, which will alleviate the pressure and take away a lot of the pain. Your diet has improved my quality of life. I compliment your diet with monthly colonics. Much love to you Donna Gates for creating such an amazing way of living.♥

– Aimee Nelson Mcdonald

I will never be able to thank you enough for all that you have done and still doing.

Donna, I have already let you know the wonderful changes Brianna has been doing since we started BED. Yes your ways off this has done all of that for us. I use to cry every night on how can I get my child to eat and what can I do.Please just some one tell me what to do! I just kept going back to your site with looking up every thing. It always ended up back to you. So I made my mind up this diet we were going to follow after reading your book. You gave me the answers. Now you gave me more hope because my child is changing for the better in every way. I made a promise if I got the help and the answers I will do what ever it takes to help any one else out. That is what I have been doing. I have already help three other people and to me that is great, because we are very new to this. Donna I will always swear by your Young Coconut Kefir that is the best stuff out there. I call it my golden ticket. I will never be able to thank you enough for all that you have done and still doing. With your ways our kids have a chance and I know my child is going to recovery from this. I feel that in my heart. I see the changes in front of my eyes. I will keep you up dated about all the other changes that I know that going come about. You will always be in are hearts THANK YOU!!– Stephanie Sheppard

I was diagnosed with hashimotos hypothyroid 3 yrs ago. I refused to take meds, and instead followed the BED. I eliminated sugars & gluten, and followed the recipes in the book… ie eggs, butter, quinoa, cultured veg, green smoothies for breakfast, soups, coconut oil, coconut kefir etc… over the course of 8 months my tsh dropped from 9 to 2!!! My doctor (regular western medicine doctor) who was doing my blood tests called me when it had reached 2 and said… whatever you’re doing keep doing it!!!

– AMZ

Last year I was diagnosed with Asperger syndrome, and learning about nutrition and gut health has been a substantial source of encouragement and hope that I can still recover my overall health. Since changing my diet I have noticed measurable improvement in my mood, mental clarity and sense of connection with others. I feel hopeful that step by step I can fully recover my brain through nutrition, Body Ecology principles, and probiotic rich foods.

– Leigh Le Haier

I just wish there was a restaurant in LA to have an entire menu based around BED.

The BED diet and philosophy has transformed my life completely as I have been a longtime candida sufferer.I had a long list of symptoms, but one of the most remarkable symptom remissions was the tinnitus that I had been suffering from for a year. It vanished after a week on the diet. At my lowest point before learning about BED, I had been only able to sleep 1 hour per night for several months and this lead to a precarious emotional state and decimated energy levels. The only downside to the diet is that I am always ‘crashing the party’ at social events with my endless discussion of cultured veggies and the evils of sugar:-) Though I have found some great restaurants with BED friendly entrees, I just wish there was a restaurant in LA to have an entire menu based around BED.
– Jarrad Hirschman

You have saved my family

Yes, Body Ecology has changed my whole life. I got soo many answers from the information you have put out in your book and newsletters and on the boards.This diet I believe literally saved my kid’s life — I love it! He had a 3mm kidney stone in his kidney in 2009. When an image was taken again in 2010 — it showed no signs of a kidney stone! We are still working at it to achieve higher levels of health. It is a challenge I must admit to be in the kitchen constantly cooking, keeping up with your seminars, newsletters, reading your books, etc. I have been reading nutritional books since the age of 18 and no other book impacted me like your book! I could kick myself for picking up your book back in 1996 or 1998 in the store and reading the cover that it was about autism, disorders, etc., and putting it back down on the shelf — wow it is soo much more than that. You opened up a whole new universe for me and I thought I knew soo much until I read your book and found out I knew nothing! I literally cannot thank you enough for putting this info out there. You have saved my family, and my doc was blown away over my recent blood tests! Thank you for all your hard work for putting this info out there, I extremely appreciate it!
– Holly Kahan

Ordered the book yesterday, and I have been suffering from disseminated candidiasis for 4 months, two of which, no one would treat me for anything but delusional parasitosis. Finally, with my last money, I ordered a stool test that showed this and other ailments, I have changed my diet, the last two months, to only greens, lean meat, eggs and avocado…which has helped dramatically. But, I am a self professed cookie monster with a sugar obsession and have a hard time coping daily. Your book was mentioned a third time and I ordered it! I am truly hopeful that this will give me some options and coping techniques that anyone suffering with my condition in this consumerist nation I live, need.

– John Wolf

Yes – I have been following the BED since Jan 2011. I now have a healthier functioning digestive tract, clearer skin, and cleaner feeling gums and teeth. I had always been one of those folks who could not have a healthy BM first thing in the AM without first exercising or a large cup of coffee. Even a macrobiotic diet for 18 months helped but not morning BM. I’m proud to say BM’s are now automatic in the AM. It’s funny how parents of newborns carefully monitor their child’s BM’s as a sign of health but this seems to be less significant to folks as they get older. This should always be on ones radar. I also would develop blood blisters inside my mouth when eating corn…not happening now. My stomach is still a little sensitive at times now so I am next going to focus on gluten to see if I am sensitive to it.

– Kathy Worley

…The Body Ecology Diet (BED) is how I finally recovered from bulimia & binge eating – after 4 years on the path to recovery (and trying just about everything for longer than that). I am a big proponent for experimenting with things on the level of mind, body and spirit in recovery from addictions & eating disorders. The BED supports this because it honors the ability of the body to heal itself – step by step. That’s the key, it’s a process of taking actions, no matter how small, toward your health. …speaking to Donna was like someone finally understood what my intuition was telling me. …Donna is a visionary in treating the body as a system – connected inextricably with the mind.

— From TranscendBulimia.com

For me, the courage to get well didn’t come easily. Physically and emotionally I was very defeated, but I began to feel better within a few days of starting the diet. I can honestly say that I didn’t know it was possible to feel as good as I do, and it gets easier each day. I know it sounds dramatic, but I tell people that it has saved my life. My family and I are very grateful.

— N.V. Marietta, GA

I really think that the BED system of healing is a diet that can become a lifestyle, not just a short term program.

— K.M.

The BED system of healing has revolutionized my life. Your book helped to diagnose my condition and with the help of my doctor, I am now 4 months into recovering my body, mind and spirit. This ‘insanity’ which has been going on for years is finally under control and I am regaining my precious health. How can I thank you enough for writing the diet bible of this century.

— N.N. Shelburne, VT

I am 69 and have been using probiotic foods for many years and I am in very good health. I never get flu shots or any other kind either. Diet is the best medicine.

— Sharon Redding, CA

My son was diagnosed with Autism over two years ago. His body had lots of the wrong bacteria and it struggled to break down proteins adequately – no more. The Kefir breaks the protein down for him and gives him the bacteria and enzymes he needs to gain nutrients from his food. His ability to think and speak has improved remarkably. He was prone to panic attacks and had a compulsive obsessive disorder – this has also greatly improved. I am so grateful to you for making this possible.

— Natasha, Sydney, NSW

The BED diet has saved my life! At the age of 51, I now have a clean and clear inner eco system. The diet has been exciting and difficult at the same time. But the results are the prize. I feel and look 35, as Donna promised. I tell everybody about the book, and of course, you are going to be the best testimonial by the way you look to others. I always believed we are what we eat, but never to the degree of the principles of the BED diet, thank you Donna.

— Jill, Waukesha, WI

I wanted to write and thank you for giving me the knowledge that has saved my life. In March 2001 I went to a holistically minded physician who was the first to tell me I had a ‘gut problem’. Klebsiella pneumonia with zero good bacteria. In April I started doing what she said and it really didn’t help. I went through her regiment for 2 months. The end of May I started the Body Ecology Diet principles. When the end of July came I was “Cured” of about 90% of all of my lifelong problems. This lasted for a 2 month period of time. The reason is my wife had to have surgery which stopped the cooking and eating correctly. Then massive stress with many other life changes occurred. I knew I had to get back to it. I let it lapse for almost 3 years before going back to it. What a waste of 3 years. I feel much better now. Not quite where I need to be due to just starting again and I haven’t fully implemented the total program. One thing I did learn is life is precious. Just because we have been use to living this way for our entire lives or a good portion of it doesn’t mean we have to do it anymore. Blessings to all on the path of health. Thank you Donna and The Body Ecology Team. It was great seeing you at the Conference in Oct.’

— Ken, Las Vegas, NV

The Body Ecology products gave me amazing energy and an overall sense of well-being. Once I tried them, I started hearing from other friends that they were using them, too. I’d definitely use them again.

— Kim Porter

I read BED book about 2 years ago and right away I started stocking my kitchen with more alkaline forming foods. True to form in our universe, just after I started taking in this new info, a friend happened to mention to me that her in-laws made their own kefer, and she brought me grains. I make my own kefer now and drink it daily with probiotics, followed by super green drink. Every night, I drink diluted apple cider vinegar. I’ve even made my own saurkraut several times! During the day, I go back and forth, but the BED framework is ever-present with me. As a result, my health and energy have improved dramatically, like the difference between night and day. I have had lesions disappear after years of having popped up, and I was able to avoid oral surgery because the lesion in my mouth simply disappeared a year after following the diet religiously. I no longer have IBS after 20 years of this, and best of all (for me) is that my mind is clearer and sharper than it’s ever been, since following the BED guidelines. I am a hard core foodie, so this was a challenge to me, but one well worth taking. Thank you so much, Donna. BED was paramount to helping me heal from a lot of issues. Until I read about this and began practicing, I had no idea to what extent my digestion influenced my mind, not just my body!

– Alex Goldenberg

Started reading Body Ecology and I have learned so much already. Thanks for the wisdom and knowledge.

– Evelyn Benjamin

I love, love, love the Ancient Earth Minerals. This is the missing link in my adrenal dysfunction. Thank you so much, Donna!

– Michelle Sanderson

I have an autistic 5 year and the Body Ecology principles have done wonders for him! He got potty trained 1 1/2 month after I started him on the diet hard on and he talks, interacts, reacts, reads as a beginning 2nd grader and does math as a high 1st grade, sit’s still and learns 1/2hr every day in a normal Kindergarten, he comprehends so many things now..he understand he is sick in his tummy and therefore he needs to eat his medicine/supplements and drink his Young Coconut Kefir.He was only able to say 9 words 10 months ago, wasn’t pottytrained, didn’t react at all..barely any eyes contact, no sense of danger and very moody. I’m SO thankful for Donna Gates sharing her wisdom!

– Maria Fitzpatrick

Well its two weeks now and I am having a Blast…..I have made two types of cultured veggies as well as the coconut kefir and yogurt…I love it. I bought a case of coconuts in China town NY and the whole adventure has been so easy. I have given up all sugars alcohol etc and I am so happy to be on the road to eliminating candida.

– Linda Mello Clifford

I have received plenty of useful information from the website, the newsletter and now through facebook. Thank you for all you do Donna.

– Anita Gonzalez

Donna, I enjoy your contributions and all your doing to make my life better!

– Jim Krejci

I enjoy your messages, books, information and products… my life is so much better since discovering your diet for me and my family. We are all blessed for what you do… I thoroughly enjoy every message you post, every one of them is completely valuable to me and my son and I read them all… A million thank-you’s Donna!!! A million!

– Deanna Lawrence

I am very impressed with the way Donna and her group handle this business. You don’t have to join a MLM to have these wonderful products and you do not have to find other people to join. You can tell everyone how wonderful the book is without worrying about them thinking you have other motives. The book and the website have so much information. I make my own cultured veggies and coconut kefir. I hope Donna is very very successful because then she can continue her mission. Thank you, Donna!

– DeeAnne Newville

Hi Donna – you might not remember me but I was a very active member on the BEDROK community when it was still on Yahoo Groups, I’ve spoken with Diane a couple of times and ended up in the Indianapolis Star once for your fermentation techniques. I don’t think I ever got around to writing you a letter which I meant to do – I have been meaning to express my gratitude to you for a long time now. I owe you a lot for writing The Body Ecology Diet book. I followed your Diet to the T back in 2006 and dropped 70 lbs – from 200 lbs to 130. Over the next 4 years I have maintained a very healthy and stable 125 lbs following Stage 2 of your Diet. Raising a glass of Coconut Kefir to you – Thank you !!!!! &heart;

– Eva Simcoe

Thank you for all your research and your commitment to helping others get and stay well.

– Candace C., Facebook Fan Page

You are so encouraging and inspiring! I followed your diet for over a month. I have NEVER felt SO GOOD in my entire life! You being here is just what I need to keep focused and encouraged. THANK YOU! I rave about your book to everyone I know and your Vital Greens are the best supplement/food on the planet, really!

– Samantha F., Facebook Fan Page

I love the B.E.D. diet/cleanse. My girlfriend, Samantha Fox, turned me on to your book and it has CHANGED my life. I am now on the 3rd month of the Diet and have never felt so good in all my life. The manic mood swings I use to have just disappeared and my skin looks radiant (so I am told). I will stay on this or some modified version for the rest of my life. Much aloha!

– Margo O., Facebook Fan Page

The universe is a better place because of your brilliance, perseverance, and dedication. My personal thank you is immeasurable.

– Frances C., Facebook Fan Page

Love your kefir cultures and think it’s why I’m so much healthier now and able to maintain weight. Keep up the good fight.

– Erin F., Facebook Fan Page

Your book BED is one of the most in depth books that i have read in regards to diets, health and how to keep healthy… and i have read and practice many different diets. This book is definitely my guide… Thank you!

– Kamilia S., Facebook Fan Page

You saved my life, made it possible to be living proof that “there is a cause, and there is a cure” and now I have a 5 year old and a 2 year old…. THANKS Donna!

– Delicia B., Facebook Fan Page

Body Ecology Changed my life forever! I so enjoyed seeing Donna’s lecture at Erewhon last week. Man, This woman knows A LOT! My dream is to become certified in BED and help others change their lives for the better.

– Galit R., Facebook Fan Page

Thank you sooo much Donna Body Ecology saved my health 🙂

– Amy Y., Facebook Fan Page

I love the healthy way of eating you have “rediscovered” and I appreciate your sharing your knowledge with the world. It certainly has helped our family.

– Michelle S., Facebook Fan Page

I have read your book about a year ago and have been fermenting ever since and loving it! Thanks

– Carol H., Facebook Fan Page

Donna love your book, website, newsletter and sound logical information.. the vaccine information is fabulous..Keep up the great work.

– Dr. Lynn Friedman, Facebook Fan Page

Following your diet got rid of my intestinal candida and the intense late night itching that woke me up every evening. THANKS. I love kimchee and cultured veggies and ready to do some coco kefir.

– Roberta G., Facebook Fan Page

Thank you so much for the work you do to help us all live healthier lives!

– Cindy B., Facebook Fan Page

Since April I have lost 15 pounds and just found out that I’ve lowered my cholesterol by nearly 25 points … all by following principles of the Body Ecology Diet!!! Still trying to figure out some of my health issues, but feeling great today and rather proud of myself!!
– Sharon M., Facebook Fan Page
I was suffering from serious anxiety that came out of nowhere, tingling over my whole body, exhaustion, extreme depression, loose stool. I was miserable. After the 5600 dollar ER visit from the second worst stomach ache ever (first was appendix) with no answers I was feeling really low. Instead of firing me for missing work, my boss paid for a session from a renound bodyworker to go get help. She told me I had systemic candida. My heart broke when she told me my beloved food was increasing my terrible feelings. She handed me the Body Ecology diet and I am on day 16. Day 1 and my anxiety stopped. Thank goodness because the die off symptoms are still lasting to this day. I’ve lost a lot of weight but that’s a perk I guess. I’m not out of the woods yet. I just wanted to say THANK YOU SO MUCH for writing this book. In a world with so much conflicting information I was handed the best source right from the beginning and I feel blessed to not be suffering through this blindly. Very Sincerely,

-Emily, Facebook Fan Page

Yes! Since I started B.E.D. I get more compliments on my skin and how young I look. I am 46 and a grandmother of 3 toddlers. When my husband (who is also on B.E.D.) and i are out with our granchildren, people think we are their parents. We used to correct their assumption, now we just thank them and smile. We’ve also lost weight, we sleep better, and we have zero sugar cravings! I’m not even tempted to have a sweet.

– Mendy Cleveland

For the last year or so I have had a really bad problem with acne. Never did I have so many pimples in my life, not even when I was a teenager. I was even getting them on my neck and back. I couldn’t believe at 30 I looked like that. I started the diet and within two weeks all acne cleared. I no longer had the big, painful pimples. It even helped with the redness and dryness of my skin. Thanks so much!

– April Couey Li

Thanks fantastic! Im only 22 but Ive had relentless acne since my early teens. I plan to start the diet soon, Im really hoping it works for me! Between my youthful looks and acne, people mistake me for a highschooler all the time. Which is awkward when youre a mom! lol

– Ashley Chenard April

I am making the shift. menopausal acne at age 45 (early menopause). it stinks. my skin has never, ever looked like this!

– Julie Nichols Forrer

My skin is sooo clear now. I work part-time in a health-food store and men & women both, make comments. They think I’m wearing makeup, but I’m not. They all want to know what I use. 🙂 I tell them to clean the liver and the colon and send them to your website! Thanks Donna! Can’t wait for the training and your new book!!

– Kathy Jones

I’ve had people ask me about my skin :)…being 50 years of age…I think another thing is my weight. I am able to maintain a desired weight in a country where there is so much obesity and so much trouble with weight.

– Lisa Hohman Molitor

i’m staying with my parents as i recover from a long history of eating disorders and Asperger’s, and i’m not really in shape for compliments, let me tell ya. .. i’m cleansing, unsure, and all up and down. but my dad keeps saying at random moments …’gee, that diet thingy yer on sure makes yer skin look nice ..!!’ 😉 it really perks me up!

– Leigh Le Haier

Well…..I had a ???? cyst??? right under my skin on my back along T-5. It was the width of a quarter and the depth of a nickel. In the 4 months that I have been following body ecology it is gone! That’s a nice skin story. 🙂 I have lost 14 pounds and get a lot of compliments. Many are coming to me now for help. I send them all to Bodyecology.com! Glory to God!!

– Mitzi Harden

I get this alot; “Wow, whatever you are doing, it’s working, you look twenty years younger!”

– Angela A. Parker

I am naturally very muscular, but over time (before BED), no matter how hard I worked out, my muscles never looked defined like when I was younger. On the BED, I lost weight, and I got my natural, toned physique back without even working out. I also had to lower my thyroid medicine (now taking less than half of original dosage) after a few months in Stage 1.

– Doreen Starling

Fermented foods and drinks are doing to my skin what raw foods didn’t! I used to drink lots of orange juice, like some raw food experts teach, and I noticed that I started to get wrinkles around my eyes, so I stopped doing that. Then I heard an interview with you and you were outstanding, so I followed your teachings. I eat fermented foods and drinks religiously, my face has never been so clear and the wrinkles around my eyes have almost disappeared. People ask others behind my back about my age, ha! The fact is I come from Romania, and I grew up with CV! For six months every year we almost only had CV. When I make them, it is almost a spiritual experience – I feel this is a great thing that I am doing. And I make so many kinds, always try new things…

– Belle Among Vikings

I think the Body Ecology Lifestyle works so well because the food makes you feel good on the inside which shows on the outside. As you go through different stages everything just keeps looking better (skin, hair, nails). My mother used to tell people if they wanted to eat right to follow me around and eat whatever I was eating. When I get to eat quinoa, red potatoes with pumpkin seed oil and dulse, salad, and steamed veggies I get so excited! This food is soothing and strengthening at the same time. I love the fermented foods but even if you can’t eat them at the start or have to cut back on them at times there is plenty to eat. All the Body Ecology foods are delicious and healing from the inside out. One day you will look in the mirror and think hey this really works!! You will look younger and feel wonderful.

– Lisa Shappley

Six months into BED, and I’d have to say my weight loss has been my biggest “beauty benefit” so far. I’ve lost a total of 40 lbs. (yes they needed to go). The last time I saw 110 lbs, was on my first drivers license. I’m wearing clothes I never dreamed I’d look good in again. I walk past a mirror and get giddy, cause I look better than I ever dreamed I would at 45 years old!

– Angela W Bohinc

At 18 months old, our beautiful son’s physical and developmental health began rapidly decreasing. He was sad and crying all the time. Luckily, we found Body Ecology and began healing by simply introducing small amounts of fermented food. Within one month, he regained eye contact, and he has not needed prescription medication since that time. As we implemented more of the steps to Body Ecology, we saw more improvement. We witness miracles every day as he uses language we were told he never would. He is a blessing and thanks to Body Ecology, we have been able to help him heal so that he can share his gifts with the world. Thank you Body Ecology, you have saved our baby’s life!

– Gina and Doug McDermott

The Body Ecology products gave me amazing energy and an overall sense of well-being. Once I tried them, I started hearing from other friends that they were using them, too. I’d definitely use them again.

– Kim Porter, Actress.

I just wanted to say a huge Thank You for what you are doing with Body Ecology. We are starting our son on his 4th week and over 10 people have approached us to find out what we were doing to heal our child because they were seeing the results in his skin color, skin texture and the color around his eyes. At least 4 of them have purchased the BED book and started cleansing and the diet. My plan is to attend the certified training this Fall so I can learn more for my family of 5 and also share with as many people as possible so we can have healthy kids in our culture and healthy parents. Thanks again Diane for all your efforts. You are truly a blessing to our family.

– Brigitte Stroud, Personal email to Diane Farr

My family has used her kefir starter for over a year and it is top quality, always producing a consistent batch. I thought I would try to save money by buying the actual kefir grains from a company. And yes, I did get the real grains, but I believe they were contaminated, they never made a tasty thick kefir like the BED starter, and my hubby and I did not feel well on them. Yes, it is more expensive to use the BED starter packets, but so worth it. I do not trust the kefir grains out there for sale on the market, many may have mold and yeast contamination. Donna Gates has such a sincere desire to help our children get well and has volunteered her time to answer many of our questions on this board. Just hang around for awhile and you will see!

– Juli (Yahoo BEDROK Group)

One man’s poison is another man’s medicine! So true. That is why I love the whole BED philosophy, as it is the safest protocol out there for autism. I believe it is the safest because it is the most natural, using foods instead of large amounts of synthetic supplements/formulas, etc. Donna is truly ahead of her time and many children will benefit from the knowledge she is sharing. I really believe the BED should be tried before anything else. We have to get back to our roots I think the secret lies there.”

– Juli (Yahoo BEDROK Group)

After losing my first child to autism, I feared my second child would endure the same hard path. Body Ecology not only brought my first child back to me, and equipped me with a wealth of knowledge to have a healthy and easy delivery the second time around. Eating cultured vegetables, raw and un-denatured foods, and adopting Body Ecology principles keeps me and my whole family healthy and happy.

– D.F., Charleston, SC

I am confident in guiding the people in my practice to the Body Ecology Diet. I see families with children on the autism spectrum, adolescents with ADD/ADHD and adults with acquired brain injury that are benefiting from the BED. Diet is key when we are trying to bring neurological order out of disorder. I am so proud to be part of this revived culture of true- value traditional food. I honor Donna for the work she has done.

– Mary Bolles, Executive Director at the Sensory Learning Institute

Having used nystatin and bottled probiotics on myself for years, I am struck by how much more effective the cultured veggies (and other cultured foods) have been in combating yeast and sugar cravings. I suspect that the therapeutic dose of probiotics is probably far higher than we had originally estimated, and probably much higher than we can easily get from a bottle. Cultured foods may be the solution to this problem.

– Karyn Seroussi, Author of Unraveling the Mystery of Autism and Pervasive Developmental Disorder: A Mother’s Story of Research and Recovery

Two years ago my son was approaching two and we first had diagnosis. I was pregnant. We went to hills of Texas to see the wildflowers. I remember trying to learn what Autism was all about. Our perfect adorable son was now under a microscope. What did they mean? What had we missed? How could this have happened? Anyway that day two years ago at a park, a train roared by maybe only 50-100 ft away. My son never took notice. We tried to get him to see it, and he couldn’t focus to see it. Like he was on LSD or something. No focus. No interest. I remember a feeling in my stomach. I was sick and frightened. Then that day we went to a wild flower patch and 30 Harleys roared past and Tyler never looked, nor could we get his attention. He just sat and stared at some grass endlessly. He had no language, no facial reprocity, just a monotone stare. But he was adorable and I was terrified to loose him and was soon due with my second child.

Anyway two years later we went on that same trip (yesterday). My husband said he feels like we are living our life again. This time when the train roared by Tyler looked right at it and looked at us to let us know he saw it. We asked him questions about the train and got answers. It’s orange and black, and fast etc…..Tyler ran around the park with direction and focus and joy. We had romaine lettuce leaves stuffed with avocado, cilantro, raw squash and celery, and zucchini. I thought at the table how two years ago I’m sure we had no thought or prep into our food for the day. We stopped at a pancake house and BBQ place and ice cream on the way home.
I ate my lettuce wraps with pride and enjoyed watching my children and husband eat healthfully. I didn’t miss the pancakes, or BBQ, or ice cream one bit. I had smiles and language and play all around me. Don’t ever give up. We have a long way to go, but we are pushing forward.

– Shannon

When we started the Body Ecology diet, I was skeptical, but willing to do absolutely anything for my son. I read The Body Ecology Diet and I read many other books about food allergies and rotation diet, etc. Donna’s book made the most sense.

I began the Body Ecology diet in a rotated form because my son is extremely sensitive and has many food allergies. When I did this, by adding the young coconut kefir and getting his body more alkaline with the wonderful vegetables he was now actually wanting (because the young coconut kefir changes his food desires), he started to cleanse.

It took about 30 days before he was finished with his initial cleanse. I must admit, it wasn’t pleasant and I was actually a bit scared because of what was happening to him. He had diarrhea (even in his sleep) because of all the yeast and junk coming out of him. He had night sweats. He was lethargic (enough so that I had to keep him home from school) but I kept on.

I felt in my heart that even though he seemed more ill, this was helping him. After 30 days, my son was a different person!!! He was talking, he was asking questions (he had NEVER asked a question before), he had energy, he was interacting more with other children, he was changed!

We have now been on the Body Ecology diet for almost one year. He has continued to improve immensely. He is now drawing pictures and telling us what they are (and they look good!), he is pretending, he is using his pronouns correctly, he is transitioning and focusing much better, he is riding a bike without training wheels, he is understanding emotions, and he is now attending a typical preschool!

We are so thankful that Donna was able to write her book to get her message out to others. I cannot begin to tell you how this has changed our lives, especially my son’s life. Thank you so very much.

– Wende Bartolomeo

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