What Is Your Oxidative Rate? Find The Right Diet For You!

In 1972, George Watson Ph.D. came up with a theory that not all individuals metabolize their food at the same rate. He discovered that eating the wrong foods for a certain oxidative rate can lead to serious health problems.

            Dr. Watson used a variety of laboratory tests to determine the oxidative rate of an individual including a questionnaire based on preference and symptoms that belong to each category. Our test that emulates his 52 question test and is somewhat shortened, however it will help you to reach your oxidative rate.

  

The Oxidizer Test is designed to accurately test how one assimilates food. This is very important because once you recognize your oxidative rate, or how you personally assimilate your food, you can better design a sensible diet. For example, if your results suggest that you are a fast oxidizer and you are eating fish and rice then you may end up feeling lethargic and sluggish because you should be eating more red meat, nuts, and only moderate amounts of carbohydrates. The same would be true if you tested to be a slow oxidizer and were eating foods that are less than favorable.

If someone reads about some “cookie-cutter” diet that happens to be high in protein, fat, and very low in carbohydrates and this individual tends to be a slow oxidizer, it is not going to be the best diet and they may not feel their best. The same can be true even if you are a mid-oxidizer that follows some extreme diet. Mid-oxidizers do not need to go to any extreme either way and they should just eat a wide variety of healthy foods and control their caloric intake if necessary.

Through a series of questions, it can be determined how one reacts to different foods throughout the day. For example, being constipated on a regular basis is one indication of someone possessing a slow oxidative rate. Slow oxidizers break down food very slowly, meaning a higher portion of their diet needs to be the types of food that break down easily, such as carbohydrates. Protein breaks down slower, and the same with fats, which is ideal for someone that burns up food sources too quickly like a fast oxidizer.

Most people tend to be a mid-oxidizer, which means they are the lucky ones that can eat a wider variety of foods without health problems. You can see why learning your oxidative rate is very crucial in figuring out one’s individual diet. Not all bodies are created equal, which is why there is not a one and only diet that will work for everybody. 

Food Oxidizer Test

In the morning, you

A. Don’t eat breakfast

B. Have something light like fruit, toast, or cereal

C. Have something heavy like eggs, bacon or steak, and has browns

At a buffet, the foods you choose are

A. Light meats like fish and chicken, vegetables and salad, a sampling of different desserts.

B. A mixture of A and C

C. Heavy, fatty foods like steak, ribs, pork chops, cheeses, and cream sauces

Your appetite at lunch is

A. Low

B. Normal

C. Strong

Your appetite at dinner is

A. low

B. normal

C. strong

Caffeine makes you feel

A. Great-it helps you focus

B. Neutral-you can take it or leave it

C. Jittery or nauseous

The types of foods you crave are (sugar is not listed because everyone craves sugar when they are tired or run-down)

A. Fruits, bread, and crackers

B. Both A and C

C. Salty foods, cheeses, and meats

For dinner you prefer

A. Chicken or fish, salad, and rice

B. No preference-choice varies daily

C. Heavier, fatty foods like pastas, steak and potatoes

After dinner you

A. Need to have something sweet

B. Could take dessert or leave it

C. Don’t care for sweets and would rather have something salty like popcorn

The types of sweets you like are

A. Sugary candies

B. No preference

C. Ice cream or cheesecake

Eating fatty foods like meat and cheese before bed

A. Interferes with your sleep

B. Doesn’t bother you

C. Improves your sleep

Eating carbs like breads and crackers before your bed

A. Interferes with your sleep, but they’re better than heavier foods

B. Doesn’t affect you

C. Is better than nothing, but you sleep better with heavier foods

Eating sweets before bed

A. Doesn’t keep you from sleeping at all

B. Sometimes makes you feel restless in bed

C. Keeps you up all night

Each day, you eat

A. Two or three meals with no snacks

B. Three meals with maybe one light snack

C. Three meals and a lot of snacks

Your attitude toward food is

A. You often forget to eat

B. You enjoy food and rarely miss a meal

C. You love food and it’s a central part of your life

When you skip meals, you feel

A. Fine

B. You don’t function at your best, but it doesn’t really bother you

C. Shaky, irritable, week and tired

Your attitude toward fatty foods is

A. You don’t like them

B. You like them occasionally

C. You crave them regularly

When you eat fruit salad for breakfast or lunch, you feel

A. Satisfied

B. Okay, but you usually need a snack in between meals

C. Unsatisfied and still hungry

What kind of food drains your energy?

A. Fatty foods

B. No food affects you this way

C. Fruit, candy, or confections, which give you a quick boost, then an energy crash

Your food portions are

A. Small-less than average

B. Average-not more or less than other people

C. Large-usually more than most people

How do you feel about potatoes?

A. You don’t care for them

B. You could take them or leave them

C. You love them

Red meat makes you feel

A. Tired

B. No particular feeling one way or the other

C. Strong

A salad for lunch makes you feel

A. Energized and healthy

B. Fine, but it isn’t the best type of food for you.

C. Sleepy

How do you feel about salt?

A. Foods often taste too salty

B. You don’t notice one way or the other

C. You crave salt and salt your food regularly

How do you feel about snacks?

A. You don’t really snack, but you like something sweet if you do.

B. You can snack on anything

C. You need snacks but prefer meats, cheese, eggs, or nuts.

How do you feel about sour foods like pickles, lemon juice, or vinegar?

A. You don’t like them

B. They don’t bother you one way or the other

C. You like them

How do you feel about sweets?

A. Sweets alone can satisfy your appetite

B. They don’t bother you but don’t totally satisfy you

C. You don’t feel satisfied and often crave more sweets

When you just eat meat (bacon, sausage, ham ) for breakfast, you feel

A. Sleepy, lethargic, or irritable

B. It varies day to day

C. Full until lunch

When you eat heavy or fatty foods, you feel

A. Irritable

B. Neutral-they don’t affect you

C. Satisfied

When you feel anxious

A. Fruits or vegetables calm you down

B. Eating anything calms you down

C. Fatty foods calm you down

You concentrate best when you eat

A. Fruits and grains

B. Nothing in particular

C. Meat and fatty food

You feel more depressed when you eat

A. Fatty or heavy foods

B. Nothing in particular

C. Fruits, breads, or sweets

You notice you gain weight when you eat

A. Fatty foods

B. No particular food. You gain weight when you overeat

C. Fruits or carbs

What type of insomnia, if any, applies to you?

A. You rarely get insomnia from hunger

B. You rarely get insomnia, but if you do, you often need to eat something in order to fall back asleep

C. You often wake up during the night and need to eat. If you eat right before bed, it alleviates the insomnia

Your personality type is

A. Aloof, withdrawn, or introverted

B. Neither introverted nor extroverted

C. Extroverted

Your mental and physical stamina are better when you eat

A. Light proteins like egg whites, chicken or fish and fruits

B. Any wholesome food

C. Fatty foods

Your climate preference is

A. Warm or hot weather

B. Doesn’t matter

C. Cold weather

Your eyes tend to be

A. Dry

B. Fine

C. Teary

Your facial coloring is

A. Noticeably pale

B. Average

C. Pink or often flushed

Your fingernails are

A. Thick

B. Average

C. Thin

Your gag reflex is

A. Insensitive

B. Normal

C. Sensitive

You get goose bumps

A. Often

B. Occasionally

C. Very rarely

You are prone to

A. Constipation

B. No stomach problems

C. Diarrhea

When insects bite you, your reaction is

A. Mild

B. Average

C. Strong

Your body type is

A. Short and Stocky

B. Average

C. Tall and thin

Your nose is

A. Dry

B. Normal

C. Runny

Scoring your metabolic typing test

When you have finished the test, add up the number of A, B and C answers you have circled A____B____C____

If your number of C answers is 5 or more higher than your number of A or B answers, you are a fast oxidizer.

If your number of A answers is 5 or more higher than your number of B or C answers, you are a slow oxidizer.

If your number of B answers is 5 or more higher than your number of A or C answers, or if neither A, B, nor C’s are 5 or more higher than the other two, you are a balanced oxidizer.

*Fast oxidizers

You require foods with higher percentages of protein and fat than carbohydrates. Make sure there is protein in everything you eat including snacks. Your ideal macronutrient ratio is 20 percent carbs, 50 percent protein, 30 percent fat.

All proteins are not created equal. The ones that are best for you are high-purine proteins, which are commonly found in fattier meats. This is not to say that you should cut out chicken and fish, but you need the heavier proteins most because they help slow down your rate of oxidation. Choose from this list of proteins when deciding on a meal or snack.

High Purine: organ meats (pate, liver, etc.), herring, mussels, sardines, anchovies.

Moderate Purine: beef, bacon, dark meat chicken, duck, lamb, spareribs, dark meat turkey, veal, wild game, salmon, shellfish (lobster, shrimp, crab), oysters, scallops, octopus, squid, dark tuna

Low Purine: cottage cheese, milk, yogurt, eggs, cheese, white meat chicken, turkey, fish

The best veggies for protein types are asparagus, cauliflower, celery, mushrooms and spinach

The best fruits are avocado, olives, apples and pears(in limited quantity and never without protein on the side or better yet first)

It is best to avoid grains altogether, but the best grains would be sprouted grain bread.

The best legumes would be tempeh and tofu.

The best nuts are (in order of protein content) walnuts, pumpkin seeds, peanuts, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, almonds, cashews, brazil nuts, filberts, pecans, chestnuts, pistachios, coconut and macadamias.

Good fats are butter, cream, almond oil, peanut oil, coconut oil, sesame oil, flaxseed oil, sunflower oil and walnut oil.

*Slow oxidizers

Your ideal macronutrient ratio is 60 percent carbs, 25 percent protein and 15 percent fat.

*Balanced oxidizers

Your ideal macronutrient ratio is 40 percent carbs, 30 percent protein, and 30 percent fat. 

If you have any question, please ask below. This comes from a book that was written by myself and my finance Scott called The True Bodybuilding and Fitness Guide available on Amazon.

xo

Redefine & Align