MindfulEats is dedicated to sharing different diets with you. And by diets, we mean styles of eating (not weight loss). We don't espouse any particular diet since different things work for different people, but if one of these appeals to you, then try it!
Naturopath Peter D'Adamo is behind The Blood Type Diet. His father was also a naturopath, and while he worked at a spa, he noticed that many people did well on the healthy spa diet, while some did not. Peter developed this observation into the theory that the healthiest diet for people was their ancestors'. This diet could be identified by blood type. His theory is that food contains proteins (lectins) that are similar to blood type antigens - so for example, some foods act like Blood Type A. If someone with Blood Type B ate a Type A food, their body would create antibodies to attack the proteins in that food and the food would end up agglutinizing, thus creating issues for the body. Get that? The short explanation is that some foods are not compatible with some blood types, and eating an uncompatible food will make you feel bad.
This diet has a lot of detractors in the medical field, and it also has some supporters. Detractors find there is no medical evidence for the diet since no studies have been done, and pathologists don't find agglutinization showers at time of death. The main premise behind D'Adamo's diet is agglutinization, and while that may happen to blood in a test tube, the human body is a much more complicated mechanism in its ability to deal with things. Also, while the diet is whole foods, it restricts a lot of healthy foods for different types.
MindfulEats likes medical studies, but we don't think they're the end-all and be-all. When I looked at the Blood Type Diet on a personal level, the first thing I noticed about it was that I was eating the wrong type of food. According to D'Adamo, my type is nomadic, so my favorite food (corn) is tops on the avoid list, and I am supposed to eat a lot more meat. As a longtime non-meat eater, this is not good news. According to the diet, I am not only supposed to eat meat, I am supposed to eat tougher meats to find like rabbit, goat and mutton.
Though I eat a primarily whole foods diet, I do often get more tired than I think I should. I suspect it has something to do with nutrition (not enough protein) or sleep (not enough). We will have someone (maybe me) test the diet for a couple weeks and write up the review.
If this diet appeals to you, or you have followed it, let us know!
What to Do - The Blood Type Diet
- If this appeals to you, read up on it! Read D'Adamo's website Eat Right for Your Type, and buy the book.
- Read the detractors as well. WebMD, the Skeptic's Dictionary, Dr. Weil, AOLHealth review.
- Phase in the recommendations gradually, and be mindful of how you feel. Keep a food log. If it does not work for you, discontinue!
For more on SOLE foods (sustainable, organic, local and ethical), check out Food Renegade's blog carnival.
What I ate: 1 c. Good Earth tea, 1 hard boiled egg, 4 slices of pizza (no crust), 5 squares dark chocolate, 1/2 c. cottage cheese, 2 cups coffee, (Delicious Dinner chez James): salad, 2 pieces veg sushi, rice crackers, goat cheese, potato chips, seafood risotto, grapes, strawberries, 40 oz. water
Exercise: none
