Blood Type Diet

[Aaltrude]

"Eat Right 4 Your Type" - Blood Type Diet


The concept to "Eat Right For Your Type" - or "Blood Type Diet " - is based on research conducted by

Peter D'Adamo, ND, who claims that people fare better (including with weight management), when tailoring
their diet to their specific blood types. He advises:

Type A typesshould basically stick to fruits and vegetables (high carbs / low fat).
They have thicker blood than other blood types, a sensitive immune system,
and should not consume dairy products, animal fats and meats. They are at
a heightened risk for cardiovascular disease, diabetes and cancer.

Type B typesshould consume a balanced diet (fruits and vegetables, grains, fish, dairy, meat,
but avoid chicken). They have the best chance of bypassing or overcoming
everyday types of diseases, including heart disease and cancer.

Type AB typesshould consume a mostly vegetarian diet, and only on rare occasions some
fish, meat (no chicken), and dairy.

Type O typesshould basically stick to a high protein diet (including red meat), low carbs, and
enriched with fruits and vegetables. They should limit the intake of wheat germ,
whole wheat products, corn, and avoid dairy products and most nuts.
Type O types are commonly affected with hypothyroidism, high stomach acid
(leading to ulcers), and thinner blood with greater resistance to blood clotting.

Peter D'Adamo proposes that lectins cause agglutination (clotting) of blood cells in someone with the wrong
blood type, which in turn may create serious liver or kidney problems as visible under a microscope. (Lectins
are sugar-containing proteins found on the surface of some foods, which may cause various molecules and
some types of cells to stick together).

He further theorizes that elevated urine indican levels - prevalent in many gastrointestinal diseases such as
celiac disease, diverticulitis, pancreatic insufficiency, inflammatory bowel diseases and others - can also be
attributed to specific blood types affecting the interactions of foods with intestinal bacteria, and creating
polyamine abnormalities. In addition, different blood types - according to Peter D'Adamo - affect the body's
secretory performance in respect to digestive juices, whereby a Type O for instance is capable of producing
higher than average stomach acid levels, which could lead to a greater incidence of gastric ulcers.

How do different Blood Types compare to various medical conditions?
There are some known blood type / disease - risk associations, where for instance Blood Type O individuals
have a marginally higher incidence of ulcers / H. Pylori infections compared to Blood Type A, with pernicious
anemia, diabetes, or certain types of cancer being more prevalent with Blood Type A or B. In 2009, a Boston
study confirmed findings from several decades earlier suggesting a blood type / malignancy risk association,
whereby the chances of developing pancreatic cancer for instance were 32% higher for those with Type A
blood, 51% greater for Type A-B, and 72% higher for Type B blood.

Blood Types O and B also have greater susceptibility to infectious diseases such as scarlet fever, cholera,
typhoid, or the bubonic plague, while Type A shows greater susceptibility to the smallpox virus, and it is more
prone to blood clotting. Blood-sucking insects (that carry diseases) prefer Type O blood.

How does that help doctors and their patients?
Unfortunately, it doesn't. For instance, gastritis modestly prevails in blood groups A and O, so with more than
80% of the world population being part of the A or O group, not only would it be impractical or pointless to
suggest dietary changes for preventive or therapeutic purposes, but what should the recommendations be?
Since there is such a big variety of possible causes for gastritis, there are no universal therapeutic or dietary
solutions that are practical and can be safely applied to such a large percentage of the population. The same
circumstances apply when trying to formulate diets around blood types for any other medical disorders, as
not one single disease is exclusive to one particular blood type.

Ever since first becoming aware of the "eat-right-for-your-type" proposition, I was as curious and intrigued as
many other researchers and practitioners to clinically apply those theories by comparing patients' blood types
to their medical disorders - looking for trends or a pattern.

It quickly became apparent that high blood sugar, high blood pressure, or high stomach acid types shared
the same blood groups with those exhibiting low blood sugar, low blood pressure, or low stomach acid. As
expected, the same applied to people with a lifelong tendency for weight gain, weight loss, nearsightedness,
farsightedness..., as well as other "hyper" versus "hypo" conditions, so at this time, blood types don't serve as
a helpful screening method.
How do different Blood Types compare to a patient's chemical / nutritional profile?
Since the "eat-right-4-your-type" concept mainly focuses on dietary lifestyles being matched to blood groups,
it would stand to reason that blood types should match the chemical and nutritional profiles of an individual -
sort of like the Metabolic Typing of patients - where diets are adjusted according to someone's biochemical
or genetic make-up.

Unfortunately, there is no practical or clinical match whatsoever - just like eye color and hair color are not
a practical or clinical indication of a person's present or future medical risks (other than those with blue eyes
or red hair being more prone for sun damage). Years ago, plotting an individual's Biorhythm was another
popular concept that had its followers track someone's physical, intellectual and emotional well-being ( trying
to identify critical days), although this method equally lacked scientific support.
================================================== ====================
Blood Groups:Type O Type A Type B Type AB
Global Distribution: 62 % 21 % 16 % 1 %
Europe: 45 % 42 % 10 % 3 %
Africa: 68 % 17 % 12 % 3 %
Arabia: 34 % 31 % 29 % 6 %
East Asia: 32 % 30 % 28 % 10 %
India: 37 % 22 % 33 % 8 %
America (US): 46 % 40 % 10 % 4 %
American Natives: 98 % 1.7 % 0.3 % 0 %
Australian Aboriginals: 69 % 30 % 1.0 % 0 %
================================================== ====================
Some people claim that since following the "eat-right-4-your-type'' recommendations, they had lost weight,
or felt otherwise better, however when asked about any specific changes made, they invariably consisted
of lifestyle changes that are universally considered to be beneficial - regardless of someone's blood type -
such as cutting out junk food, and/or eliminating foods which either cause, or have an unfavorable impact on
specific medical problems one is suffering from.
Increasing healthier foods, or avoiding food sources that someone has an intolerance or allergy to (dairy,
wheat, eggs, nuts, shellfish, etc...), will definitely have a positive impact on someone's health, but the need to
do so has mostly a genetic basis that happens with all blood types, not just certain blood groups as claimed
by "eat-right-4-your-blood type" proponents - so subsequently this does not support, but rather discredit the
"Blood Type Diet" concept.

The notion that individuals with certain blood types suffer from specific medical problems ("Blood Type O
is commonly affected with hypothyroidism, high stomach acid [leading to ulcers], and thinner blood...") is
clinically incorrect. Many medical conditions develop from non-dietary causes and change over a lifetime,
but would have to remain fixed according to the premises of the "Blood Type Diet."
Fluctuating nutritional requirements as a result of aging also invalidate "eat-right-4-your-blood type" concepts,
where a blood group-specific lifestyle is supposed to be maintained throughout a lifetime. For instance, a lot
of changes take place post middle age. Along with the usual hormonal slowdown, an individual's stomach
acid, potassium, or zinc levels frequently decline, while phosphorus and/or sodium levels tend to increase -
independent of dietary intake, or blood type.
These chemical changes may result in elevated blood sugar, water retention, or high blood pressure, and
despite being Type O, may require a reduced intake of meat and other phosphate sources, and an increased
intake of dietary or supplemental potassium and zinc. One could consider another Type O individual who has
been enjoying and tolerating a high protein / red meat diet, and then eats an E. coli-contaminated hamburger,
ending up with kidney damage. Obviously, his blood type is still Type O, but unless he changes more to a
"Type A Diet" now (more fruits, oxalate-free vegetables, low purine diet), he will either soon encounter his first
gout attack, or worse, he'll be soon on dialysis.

In a Type O female who was previously hypothyroid (supposedly being prevalent with Type O), the meno-
pause-related hormonal changes now trigger hyperthyroidism as a result of naturally declining estrogen and
manganese levels. To continue thyroid-stimulating strategies as per "blood type diet / eat right 4 your type"
guidelines in this and other countless examples, instead of following proper medical procedure, could have
disastrous consequences.
================================================== =========
Blood Types don't change, so recommended Diets according to the
"Eat right 4 your Type / Blood Type Diet" concept remain fixed and
don't change either, however many medical conditions change over
a lifetime, and as a result require a change in medications and Diet.

================================================== =========

Part 1 - see next comment for Part 2

[Aaltrude]

Part 2

Now when considering the proposed link between Type O and higher stomach acid levels -- it would certainly
help if the people who come up with these novel ideas actually took the time and measured the stomach acid
levels in those with different blood groups so they could speak from experience instead of simply making
things up while writing a book. Not only are high and low stomach acid levels found with every blood type,
but low levels commonly outnumber high levels, with Blood Type O being no exception.

At the same time, the question of whether someone is better off following a mostly vegetarian, rather than a
mixed diet, should be equally based on an individual's biochemical make-up or organ functions - which are
ultimately affected by any such diet - rather than on blood types (where Type A is supposed to avoid animal
products). There is nothing worse than seeing a protein-starved, iron-deficient, and anemic patient who was
made to believe that following some ancestral, prehistoric diet outlined in a book would resolve all of one's
medical complaints.

Health problems are not predetermined by blood types; only the reduced resistance to some diseases can
at times be attributed to a particular blood group. The ultimate Achilles heel of the Blood Type Diet lies in the
fact that most medical conditions have a genetic basis that can be equally affected by trauma, medications,
pathogens, toxic exposure, and a variety of other factors. This alone would quickly negate Peter D'Adamo's
"eat-right-4-your-type" proposition if at birth, his blood type hypothesis was indeed valid. ¤

http://www.acu-cell.com/btd.html

[Islander]

Aaltrude, thank you so much for spelling this out once and for all.

[mellowsong]

I'm Type B..I've looked into this many times. Many types of beans are recommended...I cannot handle most legumes and none in any quantity. This paragraph alone proves to me that there is really NOTHING to this diet...

Type B types should consume a balanced diet (fruits and vegetables, grains, fish, dairy, meat, but avoid chicken). They have the best chance of bypassing or overcoming everyday types of diseases, including heart disease and cancer.

I can eat only limited grains and no gluten containing grains, I tolerate chicken better than any other meat, cannot eat fish. I realize I'm just one person, but in all the nutrition groups I belonged to, I only read of maybe 2 people who got any benefit from following these recommendations.

[Aaltrude]

I am group A, subtype A1 to be precise. I do not have a sensitive immune system. Although I cannot eat dairy, animal fats or meat, these are mainly recent developments due to developing MCS.

[Katee]

I don't think i've seen this before. I'm AB, & the diet i usually follow (& have come to rather by trial & error) follows their recommendations. Not saying it is good for everyone, & maybe i'm just one of the folks that fits this by coincidence.

[DizzyIzzy]

I still don't know what to make of it. We've talked a lot about it at uni, and while there doesn't seem to be THAT much to back it up logically and reasonably, in surveys of the class it seems a good percentage of us naturally gravitate towards a similar diet to that recommended for our blood types. So based on that, perhaps that is something to it. Interesting, anyway.

[AussieSwede]

I was going to be shocked by the title. I thought a diet with some bloody drink... Oh well, I guess the post is quite interesting. I'll let my friends follow your advice.

Thanks by the way!