It appears that you all are finding the Blood Type Diet as fascinating as I am.
It is certainly reframing some of my #nutrition principles. It makes sense, though, right?
Some people feel great on #Paleo, or #Keto, or #Carnivore. Some people love the flexibility and #balance of Weight Watchers or the like. And some really, truly do thrive on a well-constructed #vegetarian diet.
The problem with all of these diets is that the end #goal is wrong. Most people start a diet from a reductionistic standpoint- lose weight at all costs.
This is the wrong way to look at #nutrition.
Instead, think about this question: how can I best #nourish my body and #optimize its performance?
Lest you think that is a selfish goal, let me remind you that a normally functioning body is, well, normal.
This, right here, currently, is not normal.
It’s not normal that 6 out of 10 of us have a chronic illness like heart disease, cancer, Alzheimer’s, chronic kidney disease, and diabetes.
It appears that Americans have simply given up. We would rather take a #pill for every ill and eat whatever we want than really take the time to learn to be in tune with our bodies.
That’s not to say we don’t try. A whopping 36% of us are on a diet at any one time, yet 2/3 of us are #overweight or #obese.
Could it be that our information is wrong? Diet #culture promotes short term solutions to problems that cannot really be solved easily.
You can’t fix #chronic #illness in 30 days.
You can’t lose all of your weight in 10 days.
There is no fix. Do you know what I mean?
There is only consistency- regular, deliberate choices that promote health over immediate pleasure or quick fixes.
No one said it’s sexy. It’s not. It’s work. But isn’t anything worth the outcome usually work?
This is why I strive daily to teach my client #habits that will stick with them for a lifetime. I am not interested in quick fixes. From 20 years of experience, I know that they just don’t work. And they often leave the sufferer worse for the wear.
The answers are simple. This does not mean the work is easy.
Here is the answer:
- 1. Find a #protein source and eat it daily.
- 2. Eat 10 servings of #vegetables and #fruits a day.
- 3. Drink lots of #water.
- 4. Get #outside and move. Every day.
- 5. Seriously keep your #alcohol down. Or give it up. Seriously.
If you aren’t willing to choose these steps most days of your life, you won’t be #healthy. You may squeak by for a few years or a few decades, but you certainly aren’t building #health.
Why do you want to be healthy?
For me, it’s the following:
- I want to serve my #husband well
- I want to love my #kids well
- I want to nourish #women well
- I want to serve #God‘s kingdom well
Drop me a note here and tell me your why. Why the heck do you want to be healthy? I want to know!
Over the next few weeks, I am going to be breaking down the diet specifics for every blood type. I want you to be as informed as possible so you can make great nutrition decisions for yourself and for your family.
Today, we start with Blood Type O.
The gene for blood Type O is the oldest gene. As a scientist who is also a #Creationist, I have to filter much of nutrition theory through a #biblical framework. Sometimes this gets confusing.
I don’t believe that we evolved from apes millions of years ago. I can find no peer reviewed journal articles that theorize that Adam and Eve were blood Type O, but from a Creationist point of view, we will go with the theory that Adam and Eve were indeed, blood Type O.
From there, just as the human race spread out from the first two humans and adapted to their environments through the skin color variations and such, the human race also adapted their blood types to suit environmental variations.
Hold on. Weren’t Adam and Eve vegetarians? Yup, they sure were. That does not mean that there was an advantage to the unique genetic makeup of their blood. As you’ll see below, there is a plethora of fruits and vegetables that work favorably with Blood Type O. And you’ll see that grains don’t work so well. That would make sense. Adam and Eve were gatherers, not agrarians.
But I digress. Maybe I’ll write a paper on that sometime. I’m so nerdy.
Blood Typing and its nutritional considerations come to us from Dr. Peter D’Adamo and his father James, both naturopathic physicians.
Dr. Peter D’Adamo literally wrote the book on the Blood Typing Diet.
That’s just the tip of the iceberg. If you want to go further down the hole and get condition-specific, he has resources for that, too.
How Does Blood Type Influence Diet?
Good question.
The body’s immune system controls the influence of viruses, bacteria, infections, chemicals, stress, and anything else that is capable of weakening the body.
Antigens are proteins that are found on the body’s cells. Many different chemicals and proteins can be antigens, but these have to be different enough for the body to determine whether it is self or other.
If the antigen is self, then the immune system should go on its merry way. Self antigens are found in things like red blood cells.
Blood Group A has an A antigen on its red blood cells.
Blood Group B has a B antigen.
Blood Group AB has both A and B antigens.
And Blood Type O has no true blood antigen. This is why it was originally labeled “O”- zero. No antigen (Biological Significance of the ABO Blood Groups, D’Adamo, 36).
Antigens are also found in things like pancreatic beta cells. In this case, the body sees a self-antigen as a problem and starts to attack itself. Here, we have the beginning of the destruction of the pancreas, known as Type 1 Diabetes.
If the antigen is other, well- we have a different problem.
Antibodies are what the body makes to combat antigens that it has marked as bad.
The body creates specific antibodies to identify and attach to the unique shapes of antigens in order to neutralize them. But antigens have intelligence, and can change or mutate in order to escape the onslaught of antibody forces.
To cope, the body creates more and more antibodies. For example, if someone is HIV positive, the body needs to fight the HIV virus. It will create antibodies for the HIV antigen. We call the antibodies anti-HIV antibodies. Make sense?
You may have been tested for anti-TPO antibodies to denote Hashimoto’s disease. You may have been tested for anti-gliadin antibodies to assess whether or not you are intolerant to gluten.
Different blood type groups can produce antibodies to other blood types. This is why a Type A blood cannot accept a blood transfusion from a Type B donor. The immune response against foreign blood would literally kill the acceptor.
Blood type antibodies can attach to multiple antigens from more than one cell. This produces a glue-like effect that is called, aptly, agglutination.
So our Type A acceptor would die from coagulated blood. Eeeeew.
This agglutination is something our Creator endowed us with as a protective mechanism, however. The blood will agglutinate viruses, bacteria, and fungus in order to clump them up and remove them from the body easily.
With regards to diet, D’Adamo and others observed this agglutination happening in certain blood Types in response to certain foods.
For example, wheat will agglutinate the blood in Type O’s. Little bits of agglutination are ok here and there. However, when an O eats wheat day after day, the body sees wheat antigens more and more. And it produces more and more antibodies. The immune system gets more and more ramped up. And eventually it starts going into immune-system overdrive. This is one of the reasons that Type O’s are prone to diet-induced autoimmune disease.
Tell me that’s not cool.
The Lists
I have synthesized the lists of foods from D’Adamo’s Encyclopedia.
And today, as promised, is O.
If you see an asterisk (*) after a food on the list, it is because I have cross referenced it with my knowledge of the autoimmune paleo protocol and my own experience as an autoimmune sufferer.
Since O is prone to autoimmune disease, I would caution against eating things like tomatoes, even though D’Adamo lists tomatoes as a neutral food. I beg to differ, and think that you would be better omitting the foods marked with a *
Meats and Dairy
Vegetables
Fruits
Legumes, Nuts and Seeds
Grains
Oils
Condiments and Sweeteners
Spices
Beverages
There you have it.
Keep to the green, and occasionally the yellow, and your immune system should calm down.
What do you think? Is there anyone who could benefit from hearing about this? Share it with them!
And if you need extra, personalized help with your health journey, schedule your free call today!