Blood Type Diet

[Long Yun]

Any opinions on the "Blood Type Diet"? My parents are doing it with some great results. Both of them have made it down to a healthy weight, and it doesn't seem like their losing any more than is healthy. The only problem I have with it is that I'm a type O, which the book calls the "hunter type." That means I have high stomach acidity for digesting lots of meat. It also says that milk, grains (except for rice and spelt), and legumes (which I was eating alot of before now) are bad for my type. Any opinions?

[mYTHmAKER]

Any opinions on the "Blood Type Diet"? My parents are doing it with some great results. Both of them have made it down to a healthy weight, and it doesn't seem like their losing any more than is healthy. The only problem I have with it is that I'm a type O, which the book calls the "hunter type." That means I have high stomach acidity for digesting lots of meat. It also says that milk, grains (except for rice and spelt), and legumes (which I was eating alot of before now) are bad for my type. Any opinions?

 

IMHO it's bs. There is no scientific proof.

Your parents are healthier because they are probably eating better.

It's usually what you don't eat that keeps you healthy

[karen]

Hi Wu Liu,

 

The concept is basically sound, although the popular version and some of the data by Dr.D'Adamo is questionable. There is other research on blood type and diet that stands up better, by Dr. Laura Power. I use software that creates diets based on Dr. Power's blood type research, and other typologies as well including Dr. Abravanel's glandular typing, Ayurveda, etc.

 

Type O's according to Dr. Power's research have ancestors in the tropics, and do best with hunter-gatherer type foods but of the tropical kind. Commercial (pasteurized) dairy products aren't good for anyone but especially for O's. They often do fine with raw dairy.

 

O's do poorly with gluten grains, but other grains like rice are usually okay in small amounts, depending on other factors, when properly prepared. Legumes always should be pre-soaked or sprouted, and aren't completely bad for O's but shouldn't be emphasized in the diet.

 

Type O's like anyone else can actually have low stomach acid due to eating improperly, not drinking enough water, nutritional deficiencies, emotional issues, drugs, or other factors. So the blood type data really has to be taken in the larger context of what's going on with the individual. In other words, there are other things to factor in to what constitutes a good diet for a particular person, at a particular time, dealing with particular health issues.

 

-Karen

[Long Yun]

IMHO it's bs. There is no scientific proof.

Your parents are healthier because they are probably eating better.

It's usually what you don't eat that keeps you healthy

Yeah I'm still checking into the science behind it. And they have been eating LOTS of fresh fruits and veggies. Probably the real cause...

 

Hi Wu Liu,

 

The concept is basically sound, although the popular version and some of the data by Dr.D'Adamo is questionable. There is other research on blood type and diet that stands up better, by Dr. Laura Power. I use software that creates diets based on Dr. Power's blood type research, and other typologies as well including Dr. Abravanel's glandular typing, Ayurveda, etc.

 

Type O's according to Dr. Power's research have ancestors in the tropics, and do best with hunter-gatherer type foods but of the tropical kind. Commercial (pasteurized) dairy products aren't good for anyone but especially for O's. They often do fine with raw dairy.

 

O's do poorly with gluten grains, but other grains like rice are usually okay in small amounts, depending on other factors, when properly prepared. Legumes always should be pre-soaked or sprouted, and aren't completely bad for O's but shouldn't be emphasized in the diet.

 

Type O's like anyone else can actually have low stomach acid due to eating improperly, not drinking enough water, nutritional deficiencies, emotional issues, drugs, or other factors. So the blood type data really has to be taken in the larger context of what's going on with the individual. In other words, there are other things to factor in to what constitutes a good diet for a particular person, at a particular time, dealing with particular health issues.

 

-Karen

Thanks for the input Karen! I agree that the larger view of the individual has to be included. So would you say that, as a type O with only occaisional seasonal allergies and sinus issues, I don't have to eat a meat-based diet? I would like that

[gendao]

Hi Wu Liu,

 

The concept is basically sound, although the popular version and some of the data by Dr.D'Adamo is questionable. There is other research on blood type and diet that stands up better, by Dr. Laura Power. I use software that creates diets based on Dr. Power's blood type research, and other typologies as well including Dr. Abravanel's glandular typing, Ayurveda, etc.

 

Type O's according to Dr. Power's research have ancestors in the tropics, and do best with hunter-gatherer type foods but of the tropical kind. Commercial (pasteurized) dairy products aren't good for anyone but especially for O's. They often do fine with raw dairy.

 

O's do poorly with gluten grains, but other grains like rice are usually okay in small amounts, depending on other factors, when properly prepared. Legumes always should be pre-soaked or sprouted, and aren't completely bad for O's but shouldn't be emphasized in the diet.

 

Type O's like anyone else can actually have low stomach acid due to eating improperly, not drinking enough water, nutritional deficiencies, emotional issues, drugs, or other factors. So the blood type data really has to be taken in the larger context of what's going on with the individual. In other words, there are other things to factor in to what constitutes a good diet for a particular person, at a particular time, dealing with particular health issues.

 

-Karen

Wow, awesome. Could you tell me about Type Bs too?

 

I also looked into the diet before, but was turned off by how many foods I like to eat that are banned for me due to their "lectin" content. So, I wish it IS BS!

 

If not, I guess I can change...but I'm ideally moving to sprouts next anyways...

[WhiteTiger]

The concept is basically sound, although the popular version and some of the data by Dr.D'Adamo is questionable.

 

Normally I like to think of myself as knowing lots about Nutrition (Ego talking) But yet again Karen says what I'm going to say and I always find out thing(s) that I didn't know before.

 

I hold much respect for you Karen!

 

I just don't really have to reply to the question of the poster Wu-Liu, I can just sit back and watch because Karen already did a fantastic job at it.

[mYTHmAKER]

Remember the song from Gypsy - Ya gotta have a gimmick

 

You might want to check out these links

 

http://veganforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=977

 

http://www.howtogoraw.com/jeaanaturaldiet.htm

[Adj]

How do you determine your blood type?

[karen]

Adj, you could ask your doctor if that info is in your chart, or there's a simple home blood typing kit here:

http://tinyurl.com/8dses5 (Sorry, not sure why the link function isn't working).

 

I'll get back to replying to the other messages hopefully within a few days.

 

-Karen

[karen]

From Wu Liu:

Thanks for the input Karen! I agree that the larger view of the individual has to be included. So would you say that, as a type O with only occaisional seasonal allergies and sinus issues, I don't have to eat a meat-based diet? I would like that

 

Ha, well, with food preferences you always have to discern whether it's a real deeper instinct guiding you, or whether it's the false ego talking . People tend to have strong emotional attachments to ideas about diet - witness the never-ending debates about meat vs vegetarianism, and the emotional biases people bring to it.

 

I think we need to look more objectively at what a person needs to eat for health, not imposing a particular belief system, and if there are strong emotional attachments, look at where they're coming from.

 

I would never say that anyone "has" to eat a certain diet, and it's never so cut and dried. I'd have to know much more about you in order to get a better sense of whether you need to eat meat. If you have an aversion to it, I'd look at the reasons for that. And it could be that you need some raw animal foods, not cooked meat - big difference.

 

For those who are in relatively good health, the blood typology is usually a good guideline. There's been a lot of good research and practitioner experience to back it up, although there are still more questions that need to be answered.

 

Also, there are different typology systems that can be appropriate at different times or for different people. People who have metabolic issues may need to focus on a metabolic typing diet first, to get that back into balance. There's the endocrine typing system, which can help with endocrine imbalances which often are related to weight gain. Or the Ayurvedic typing system.

 

Diet typologies can be very useful, but which one/s to use at a given time depends on the individual and what imbalances they're dealing with. In any case, I'd say that avoiding the food lectins according to blood type is a good idea.

 

from vortex:

Wow, awesome. Could you tell me about Type Bs too?

 

Type B is the Asian type.. and that doesn't mean tofu

 

I also looked into the diet before, but was turned off by how many foods I like to eat that are banned for me due to their "lectin" content. So, I wish it IS BS!

 

Well, you can experiment with it. Gluten grains are poorly tolerated. And some seafood lectins are not good for B's - sorry, you have to give up that caviar habit . Also salmon and tuna. Of course, raw, wild fish is always going to be handled better than cooked, farmed fish.

 

More research is needed. Many other factors of food preparation - raw vs. cooked, organic vs non-organic, eating under stress or with a calm mind - all those things can potentially influence how the food reacts with ABO antibodies.

 

So I think we can use the blood type system as a tool but not to just follow it blindly - as with all tools, the consciousness of the person using the tool is the key! And to always individualize - some people need more structure and stricter guidelines, and others need to aproach things more intuitively.

 

To White Tiger: <bow>

 

-Karen

[mYTHmAKER]

[karen]

I could respond to that article point by point, but also the article is referring to Dr. D'Adamo's work which is largely ungrounded and very different from Dr. Power's scientific findings on the way foods stimulate ABO antibodies.

 

It's a fallacy to generalize about blood typlogies, when there is a vast difference between methods. Then to point out the flaws in one method as representative of the whole approach, isn't logical. It's likely that the author of that article equates blood typing with Dr. D'Adamo and doesn't see past that.

 

I wasn't intending to move this discussion into the old meat vs vegetarian debate . That's an area that's rife with ungrounded, emotional opinions on all sides. It turns into an emotionally charged issue with peoples' deep beliefs being challenged, just like debates about religion.

 

-Karen

[i_am_sam]

How do you determine your blood type?

 

donate some

[mYTHmAKER]

I could respond to that article point by point, but also the article is referring to Dr. D'Adamo's work which is largely ungrounded and very different from Dr. Power's scientific findings on the way foods stimulate ABO antibodies.

 

It's a fallacy to generalize about blood typlogies, when there is a vast difference between methods. Then to point out the flaws in one method as representative of the whole approach, isn't logical. It's likely that the author of that article equates blood typing with Dr. D'Adamo and doesn't see past that.

 

I wasn't intending to move this discussion into the old meat vs vegetarian debate . That's an area that's rife with ungrounded, emotional opinions on all sides. It turns into an emotionally charged issue with peoples' deep beliefs being challenged, just like debates about religion.

 

-Karen

 

This has nothing to do with the meat vs vegetarian debate.

In fact Dr Fuhrman, who is a vegetarian, states that eating less than 12 ounces of meat a week

might be just as healthy as being a vegetarian.

Either man was created to eat according to blood type or he wasn't. This has nothing to do with

ones approach to the practice / theory.

Edited March 23, 2009 by mYTHmAKER

[Long Yun]

I checked out Dr. Power's upcoming book. I have to say that it makes much more sense than D'Adamo's does. It's based more on avoiding foods that you have a mild allergy to, which somewhat correllates to blood type, correct? At least that's what I got from my brief fly-over.

[karen]

Hi Wu-Liu,

 

Yes, Dr. Power has done actual food allergy research, not just empirical observation. And she recognizes the Type A subgroups and Rh factor. The six blood types correlate to IgE and IgG antibodies, T-cell responses, and lectin reactions. Her article in the Journal of Nutritional and Environmental Medicine is here.

 

-Karen

[Long Yun]

Thanks for all your help everyone. And thank you very much for directing me to Dr. Power, Karen.