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Blood Type and Your Diet Huh? Blood type? What’s that got to do with my diet?A lot, according to Dr. Peter D’Adamo, the author of the book Eat Right for Your Blood Type.
D’Adamo and his father have spent their lives scientifically studying the relationship between blood type, diet and health. In his book, he provides a fascinating evolutionary overview of the development of different blood types, provides a scientific framework of how he believes blood type affects your digestion of food, and suggests foods to consume and foods to avoid depending on your type.
Before I go any further, I would like to provide the Fine Print: I am not a Doctor. I don’t pretend to be one. I don’t even play one on TV. Read the book. Consult your physician. Do your own research and experimentation and exercise your own common sense to arrive at your own personal truth. My intention is not to sell you on the concept—my intention is to get you thinking about how to optimize our health.
Good luck with the quest.
With that, we hope you enjoy this overview of D’Adamo’s theory and its relevance.
Evolutionary Overview of Blood Types
Why Blood Is Important
So What Foods Should I Eat?!?
Interesting Blood Stats
Interesting Blood Sites
Criticisms of The Book and Its Theories
Conclusion
Evolutionary Overview of Blood Types
There are four blood types: O, A, B, and AB. O is the oldest, then A, then B, then AB.
Type O
Our “O” ancestors survived primarily as hunters—in Africa. They were smart enough to engineer the weapons and other strategies necessary to hunt. They ate a lot of meat. Their digestive systems supported the consumption of large quantities of high-protein animal flesh.
As the population grew, these “O” ancestors were constantly migrating to find more game. They split into two groups. One headed north into Europe (25,000-15,000 BCE). The other, a bit later (15,000-10,000 BCE), headed into the Himalayas and modern day Pakistan and India.
Type A
Over time, the group that migrated north evolved into a primarily Agrarian society. The cultivation of livestock and grains changed everything. Several mutations occurred:
* Lighter skin developed. The lighter skin provided better protection against frostbite was also able to better metabolize Vitamin D in a land of shorter days and longer nights.
* The digestive systems of the hunter-gatherers were no longer able to digest its carnivorous pre-agricultural diet efficiently.
* A blood type mutation occurred that better met the needs of the environment.
* Blood Type A is still found in its highest concentrations in Western Europe.
Type B
Over time, another group of O’s headed to the Himalayas—adapting genetically to the conditions.
Of all of the blood types, Type B shows the most clearly defined geographic distribution. Type B is found in increased numbers from Japan, Mongolia, China and India.
Type AB
Type AB is the “newest” blood type. It’s relatively rare. The combination of the intermingling of Type A and B.
OK, so now we know there are different types of blood and they can be traced to evolutionary patterns. Now let’s look at…
Why Blood Is Important
Blood is life. A single drop of blood contains our entire genetic blueprint.
Most people don’t think that blood type is that important. The only time most of us think of it is when we think of a blood transfusion. You may vaguely remember that O is a universal donor, a person with “A” can’t receive “B” and a person with “B” can’t receive “A” while AB is a universal receiver.
What does that mean? It means that if I have Type A blood, then my body will reject any blood or organs or anything that comes from a Type B person and vice versa.
Why is that?
Nature has blessed our immune system with very sophisticated ways to determine whether a substance is foreign or not. One method involves chemical markers called “antigens.” Basically, every life form has a unique chemical “fingerprint”—from viruses to human beings.
If your blood type determines that a foreign antigen has entered your body, it creates “antibodies” to destroy it. The antibodies "ability to clump--or agglutinate--the blood cells of an opposing blood type is so powerful that it can be immediately observed on a glass side with the unaided eye."
This is why I, with Type A blood, would reject blood (or a liver, or any organ) from a person with Type B blood.
Make sense?
Now we're ready for D'Adamo's theory of the connection between blood type and diet.
D'Adamo states that there is much more to the agglutination story than just the affect of one blood type rejecting another. He discusses the discovery that many foods agglutinate the cells of certain blood types but not others, "meaning that a food which may be harmful to the cells of one blood type may be beneficial to the cells of another."
The book provides a comprehensive overview of the subject. Here is the abridged version:
"A chemical reaction occurs between your blood and the foods you eat...Lectins, abundant and diverse proteins found in foods, have agglutinating properties that affect your blood...When you eat a food containing protein lectins that are incompatible with your blood type antigen, the lectins target an organ or bodily system (kidney, liver, brain, stomach, etc.) and begin to agglutinate blood cells in that area...
The key is to avoid the lectins that agglutinate your particular cells--determined by your blood type. For example, gluten, the most common lectin found in wheat and other grains, binds to the lining of the small intestine, causing substantial inflammation and painful irritation in some blood types--especially Type O...
Lectins vary widely, according to their source. For example, the lectin found in wheat has a different shape from the lectin found in soy, and attaches to a different combination of sugars; each of these foods is dangerous for some blood types, but beneficial for others."
Interesting, eh?
So, that’s the overview of the theoretical framework. From there, D'Adamo outlines the different types of foods and their scientifically analyzed results on your well being.
D’Adamo suggests that, if you follow the Blood Type Plan he outlines, “you can:
* Avoid many common viruses and infections.
* Lose weight, as your body rids itself of toxins and fats.
* Fight back against life-threatening diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and liver failure.
* Avoid many of the factors that cause rapid cell deterioration, thus slowing down the aging process.”
So What Foods Should I Eat?!?
D’Adamo presents the foods in 16 different sections (from meats to cereals to spices) and categorizes each food according to whether it is a “medicine”, is “neutral” or is “poison.”
Again, his analysis is based on his own research. You can (and he does!) actually pull out your favorite microscope and petry dish, take the antigen from a given food and watch it interact with different blood types—seeing whether a given blood type treats the food as a friend or as a foe. Pretty powerful stuff.
Quick Profiles by Type
Type O
Profile: High protein meat eaters
Type O’s have higher acidity levels in their stomachs—which is there to digest meat. They need to eat meat. Due to the high natural acidity of O’s, they have a greater risk of stomach ulcers if they have an imbalanced diet.
Avoid: wheat, corn, kidney beans, navy beans, lentils, cabbage, Brussels sprouts and cauliflower
Type A
Profile: Vegetarian
Type A’s have a lower acidity level in their stomachs than O’s. They can’t digest animal protein well. D’Adamo suggests that they should be vegetarians. If they consume a lot of animal protein, they run the risk of higher stomach cancer rates.
Avoid: meat, dairy, kidney beans, lima beans, wheat
Type B
Profile: Balanced omnivore
Avoid: corn, lentil, peanuts, sesame seeds, buckwheat, wheat
Type AB
Profile: Mixed diet in moderation
Avoid: red meat, kidney beans, lima beans, seeds, corn, buckwheat
Interesting Blood Stats
Check out some pretty interesting statistics on blood type distributions among different ethnicities around the world:
http://www.bloodbook.com/world-abo.html
Interesting Blood Sites
The author, Dr. Peter D’Adamo’s web site provides further information on the science behind the book as well as other interesting info:
http://www.dadamo.com/
This site provides a comprehensive list of the foods recommended per blood type as well as some other background info: http://www.uoregon.edu/~sshapiro/ER4YT/FoodLists_TOC.html
Criticisms of The Book and Its Theories
Food for Your Blood? The latest food fad would have you follow a different diet depending on your blood type. But is it safe?
http://webmd.lycos.com/content/article/1671.50888
Overweight? Diet books blame it on blood type But some experts skeptical
http://www.cnn.com/HEALTH/9705/20/blood.type.diet/
Of course, the theories presented in the book have been met with criticism from many within the medical community—citing the lack of scientific data. One critic--Dr. Victor Herbert (who studies blood and nutrition at New York's Mt. Sinai Medical Center) so generously commented that “linking blood type and diet is pure horse manure.” Eww.
He continues, blood type has "nothing to do with...how we handle the food we eat.” D’Adamo’s response: "All ideas that are revolutionary are going to engender opposition...because they are very threatening."
His advice: “Determine your blood type and follow your blood type diet for 2 weeks. Experience the results and decide its value for yourself.”
My perspective: The only scientific element that everyone acknowledges is the fact that individuals with Type O blood have a greater incidence rate of stomach ulcers than other blood types and individuals with Type A blood have a greater incidence rate of stomach cancer thank other types. That information is published in scientific journals. D’Adamo’s lab experiments are not; they have not been subjected to rogourous peer review and, therefore, they are often criticized by those in the more conservative medical community. Further, his application of physical anthropological theories of evolution are obviously not scientifically “proven.” They are theories.
Obviously, use your own judgment.
Conclusion
Well, that about wraps it up. Just to be clear: No, I am not getting paid anything to endorse this book, nor do I think the book is a panacea.
In fact, when working with my clients, I never start with the blood. My first goal is to educate them on the fundamentals of proper nutrition (drink water, eat fruits and veggies, eat breakfast, avoid sugar, avoid saturated fats, etc.) and to start developing sound, lifelong habits. In my opinion, trying to change everything at once to follow the latest fad diet is never a good idea—even if the diet is sound. Diets typically fail for that reason—people usually try to change too much too soon and then, after a period of time, give up and go back to whatever habits they had before.
Create some new habits. Optimize your diet. Optimize your overall health and approach life with abundant energy.
I hope you enjoyed this overview. I’d love to hear from you. Send me an email and let me know what you think or to chat about questions you have.
Here’s to optimizing your health and energy!
thinkarete.
-Brian Johnson
Aritcle Posted By Brian Johnson
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