A special dietary regime based on the blood type of an individual is called blood type diet. Unlike most of the modern diet which give only temporary results, this regime will give you positive results very soon, that will last longer.
In 1996, a new diet was created and presented in the book “Eat right 4 your type: The individualized diet solution for staying healthy, living longer and achieving the ideal weight” by Peter J. D`Adamo. After all these years, it is still a bestseller on Amazon.
This is my story
As I kid, I hated meat and loved being a vegetarian. I ate stir fry, PB&J and whole wheat. This regime made me unique
In college, I turned vegan- I stopped eating all dairy, eggs, replacing them with beans, nuts, seeds, grains and oils. I felt great, but my body was another story. I had acute problems like hip pain, dry skin, dandruff, hand rash, congestion, pimples and eczema which made sleep very difficult.
I searched medical help. Two dermatologists told me I had dermatitis and gave me some corticosteroid creams. This did not give me an accurate answer about my conditions, so I asked for a second opinion on what was going on.
A naturopath diagnosed me with intestinal candida, and recommended I should avoid suga , fermented food and yeast. I was feeling bad even looking at cakes.
Then I contacted Gins Ogorzaly, a chiropractor from New Mexico Albuquerque, who asked me for my blood type right away.
I was confused and said I was O positive. When she heard this, she immediately knew what to do.
She pulled out something from her cabinet and showed me an eating chart for my blood type, with 3 food categories, for every blood type: beneficial, neutral and bad.
She told me that O blood type is a hunter, so I need to eat meat and vegetables, and avoid wheat and grains.
This came as a shock! What should I do now? I asked myself if I`d rather suffer than eat meat. But I was no martyr, so I voted for my health and decided to start eating meat again.
Blood Type Diet
The ABO blood designation, according to D`Adamo, is the most accurate indicator of what we should eat, in order to control our weight and have optimal health. Here every diet is different, there is no one which is right.
“The conventional world divides nutrition into fiber, calories, fat and protein, so they look food as fuel” says D`Adamo, “but food is much more dynamic because it can enhance or inhibit biological processes.”
D`Adamo book describes the Type O as the original blood type, dating from the Cro-Magnons which were carnivores; people with type A blood are vegetarians, type B- omnivores and AB is a combination of A and B.
We need to know that food is a fuel, as well as a great philosophy. Depending on what we eat, it can be good or bad. Each blood type has different antibodies which eliminate foreign cells, but some of them attack the food- they are known as lectins. When they react in this way with blood, proteins can make a real chaos. Each blood type has different ability to handle the lectins.
Transition journey to carnivore
I abandoning my favorite food, like peanuts, lentils, kidney beans, avocado or coconut, and started eating all sorts of meat like beef, bison, as well as food recommended for my blood type like chard, adzuki beans, walnuts and artichokes.
One day my fridge was filled with 25 pounds of grass-fed beef from Colorado. I have never prepared meat before, so in the beginning I made mistakes in almost everything- defrosting, cooking, trimming and spicing. But, with time, I became better and better in doing this.
So was my overall health. I felt much better, I was more energetic, my skin was moisturized, I was sleeping better, the rash went away, as well as the chronic hip pain. Finally I was listening to my body, which was rewarding me.
You and your diet
According to D`Adamo, 3 of 4 patients see improvements after following the Blood Type Diet chart, but the people who benefit the most are the ones with health issues which are not served by modern medicine.
Still, I think that this diet is worth trying. Today, when I only think of the things I loved to eat, but stopped, I feel physically ill again.
D`Adamo consulted Beth Reardon, the director of the integrative nutrition of Duke Integrative Med. She didn`t follow this method, but when he mentioned her that in 75% of cases it gave positive results, she claimed that the blood type diet is beneficial, especially if we take into consideration the baddietary habits of most Americans.
Foods according to blood type
- Type O
Eat: lamb, salmon, bluefish, sardines, walnuts, chard, spinach, kale, broccoli, plums, figs, prunes
Don`t eat: Pork, caviar, goose, octopus, kidney beans, lentils, peanuts, white flour, avocado, eggplants, potatoes, cabbage, corn, coconut, black berries. Strawberries.
- Type A
Eat: salmon, soy milk, peanuts, lentils, oats, rice, artichokes, carrots, pumpkin, tofu, apricots, blueberries, cranberries, pineapple.
Don`t eat: Red meat, pork, goose, bison, cheese, cashews, pistachios, kidney beans, white flour, eggplant, potatoes, bananas, coconuts, oranges.
- Type B
Eat: Rabbit, lamb, cod, feta, cottage cheese, kidney beans, millet, oats, rice bran, beets, cabbage, broccoli, eggplant, yams, bananas, grape, pineapple, plums, cranberries.
Don`t eat: Chicken, pork, clams, crab, lobster, blue cheese, ice cream, peanuts, cashews, sesame seeds, lentils, amaranth, wild rice, wheat, rye, artichokes, avocado, corn, pumpkin, tomatoes, coconut, pomegranates.
- Type AB
Eat: Rabbit, turkey, lamb, trout, tuna, mozzarella, ricotta, feta, cottage cheese, walnut, millet, rice, oats, peanuts, beets, kale, broccoli, eggplant, tofu, yams, grapes, lemon, kiwi, grapefruit, cherries.
Don`t eat: Pork, Chicken, duck, beef, crab, clams, lobster, haddock, parmesan, ice cream, blue cheese, azuki beans, kidney beans, cornmeal, corn, artichokes, peppers, radishes, bananas, coconuts, avocados, oranges.
Recipe for Type A: Spicy tofu with almonds and apricots
For marinade you`ll need:
- 2 tbsp. tamari sauce
- 1 tbsp. fresh lemon or lime juice
- 1 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley or cilantro
- 1 tbsp. chopped fresh chives
- 1 tbsp. turbinado sugar
- 2 tsp. curry powder
- 1 tsp. black sesame seeds
- 1 cake firm tofu, drained and cut into squares
For the stir fry you`ll need:
- 3 tbsp. of olive oil
- 3 carrots
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 1 small onion
- ½ cup of dried apricots
- 1/3 cup of sliced almond
- Mix all the ingredients in a bowl, add tofu cubes, and leave it for 1 hour (or longer)
- Heat some oil in a wok pan, add onion and sauté for 3 minutes.
- Add garlic and carrots, cook 2 minutes so that the garlic won`t burn
- Drain the tofu cubes
- Add the tofu and cook until heated well. Then add the almonds and apricots, and cook for 3minutes. Serve with basmati rice
Recipe for Type B: Lima Beans with goat cheese and scallions
You`ll need:
- 2 cups of fresh lima beans
- 1 tbsp. of olive oil
- 2 scallions
- 2 cloves garlic
- 4 oz. of goat cheese
- 3 tbsp. of minced parsley
- Salad dressing
- Heat the oil to medium heat. Add the scallions and sauté for 1-2 minutes.
- Add garlic, and fry it until it begins to change the color, then add the scallions and garlic to the lima beans. Remove from heat
- When everything is ready, add 2-3 tbsp. of salad dressing over the mixture, and gently toss. Serve in a plate and crumble some goat cheese and parsley on top.
Recipe AB blood type: Spelt berry and rice salad
You will need the following ingredient, for 4-5 person`s serving:
- 1 cup of spelt berries, cooked
- 1 cup of sautéed maitake mushrooms
- 2 tbsp. of fresh parsley, chopped
- 1-2 cups of cooked rice
- 3 tbsp. of olive oil
- Salt
Mix all the ingredients and serve at room temperature. Add scallions and spices like cumin or coriander, if you like. Keep in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Recipe for Type O blood type: Flank steak
You will need (for 4-6 persons):
- 2 tbsp. of ground cumin
- 1 tbsp. of cayenne pepper powder
- 2 tbsp. of minced garlic
- 1 tbsp. of ground coriander
- ½ tsp. of cloves
- 1 tbsp. f salt
- ½ tsp. od red pepper flakes
- 1-1/2 pound of organic flank steak
Instructions for preparation:
- Mix the garlic with the spices and the salt, and rub it over the flank steak.
- Grill the meat for 8-10 minutes on each sides, the remove from heat and let it stand for 5 minutes.
- Serve with vegetables suitable for type O blood.
