Anyone read 'eat right for your blood type' by Peter D'Adamo?

I was wondering whether anyone has eaten to their blood type and only eaten highly beneficial foods recommended in the book.

What were the results?

Did you lose weight?

Did you feel better?

The 'blood group diet' is widely exposed as having no basis in fact.  If it is effective at all it's because it gets individuals to be more conscious of their diet, cut out certain foods and pay more attention to what they eat in general.   But you can acheive the exact same thing by keeping a food log and being more aware about portion-sizes, nutrition and calories.

I read it but it told me not to eat tomatoes and chicken. . . two of my favorite things!! So I said no way.

I tried it some years ago.  It is highly restrictive and was a horrible diet to put myself through.  Although I lost a lot of weight, it happened so quickly that it was more of a fad than a lifestyle change.  Needless to say, I gained the weight back as quickly as I lost it.  As GI-Jane said, the diet has no basis in fact.  The only reason it works is because of the extreme calorie restriction required.

Eating based on blood type is too simplistic.

There is an emerging field of study in nutrigenetics or nutrigenomics -- the premise is that our diet can be more closely tailored to our genetic makeup.

The most well known example of eating a diet based on a person's genetic makeup is celiac sprue where the patient must avoid all gluten-based grains as the body mounts an attack on the protein chain which damages the gastro-intestinal tract.

Or lactose-intolerance which is extremely rare in people in or originating from Northern European countries because 97% of them have a genetic mutation that allows them to digest milk for life. However, lactose-intolerance is extremely common in most other countries where people stop producing lactase to digest milk as soon as they are weaned.

Other studies show that aboriginal people in North America can reverse Type II diabetes, obesity and chronic inflammatory diseases when they eat a traditional or ancestral diet.

However, the field is in its infancy and is set to be an area of particular interest to entrepreneurs looking to make a lot of money off of desperate people looking for answers to all their dietary woes. It will be a buyer beware world for sure.

Suffice to say you can't go too far wrong by recognizing that processed, petrochemical- and pesticide-laden food increases your body burden of toxins and risks subsequent illness.

As omnivores we are meant to eat a wide array of whole foods.

a close friend of mine has followed this book for the past 5 months for health reasons, and she has lost 40 lbs so far and feels much healthier. I see alot of people are saying there is no basis for the information in the book, but by cutting out the foods listed for her blood type she no longer gets stomach pains and the "after effects" that she was getting before. she is still eating all food groups, just avoiding the specific foods in each group that the book lists, and so far it's a good match for her

My mother tried this diet and lost about 10 pounds.  All it does is lower the calorie content in your diet.  Let's face it, if you eat less eventually you will lose some weight.  I thought it was too confusing.

My aunt and uncle live by this book and have for a few years. My uncle was borderline diabetic and is now extremely healthy and both of them are a bit slimmer. I think that it has worked for them because of the restrictions on carbs and fatty meats like pork. A lot of it is common sense, but as to whether or not it has any basis on your actually blood type, I do not know. He has tried to get me to try the diet, but I like to eat a variety of foods and don't like the limitations.

I believe there is some logic to nutrigenomics, but when I heard about this diet last year, I immediately laughed. 

I am a blood banker, so I am very familiar with blood types, antigens, antobodies, etc.  I don't really understand why the antigen or lack of antigen on your red blood cells should affect what you eat.  We don't treat patients differently in the hospital according to their blood type: Everyone recieves compatible blood products. So I don't know how this could affect your metabolism or the way you need to eat.  Its true that some blood types are predominant in certain ethnicities, so there may be a basis there.  I'm sure I could lose weight on any of the blood type plans regardless of my blood type. 

I bought the book and have the CD regarding eating by your blood type.  Well lets make a long story short.  I followed the rules, gave blood just to make sure I was eating by the correct blood type and it did not do a thing.  Not 1 lb did I loose...., what a waste of time.  I hope this helps.

Do you think if we put our heads together we could come up with a diet book between us?   I've been toying with 'the Horoscope Diet' ... where you tell Pisceans they shouldn't eat fish.... and get Taureans to lay off the red meat.  Or maybe it's already been written, wouldn't be surprised. 

Original Post by gi-jane:

Do you think if we put our heads together we could come up with a diet book between us?   I've been toying with 'the Horoscope Diet' ... where you tell Pisceans they shouldn't eat fish.... and get Taureans to lay off the red meat.  Or maybe it's already been written, wouldn't be surprised. 

 There already is a book like that! LOL

http://cgi.ebay.com/Diet-Signs-by-Joanne-Lemi eux-Horoscope-Astrology-Book_W0QQitemZ3101787 10401QQcmdZViewItemQQimsxZ20091101?IMSfp=TL09 1101143006r4336

How bout a diet depending on the kind of pet you have?

That's hilarious that you should make that comment. I have been using that excuse for years....I am deathly allergic to shellfish and all other fish repulse me. I am a pices and have for years made the joke that I can not eat my own kind....HA!HA!

hansk25,

I have adopted several aspects of The D'Adamo diet plan as have several of my friends and family.  I have found it quite helpful and beneficial as have several of my friends and family.  There are certainly aspects of the premise that are "diet related" but there is much more to it.  Foods impact each individual differently.  There are very few absolutes for any of us.  One type O blood type may be just fine eating a vegetarian diet while other type O's are better suited for more animal protein as D"Adamo suggests.  Yes a food journal might help.  However, I find it helpful to have had somewhere to start.  Specifically, for me, by cutting down on the amount of wheat and corn, I have essentially eliminated my acid reflux in a very short amount of time (less than a month) and I noticed a difference almost immediately.  Prior to doing this, I simply tried not to eat spicy food (which I love) and tomato based foods and sauces (which I like).  By reducing the wheat, corn and dairy (not even eliminating them) I am able to eat green chili, salsa, spicy foods, tomato based sauces, and even enjoy a glass of red wine without suffering from the acid reflux.  I no longer take any medication to control the acid reflux.

My friends and family have experienced similar type results.  None of us has really used the Eat Right 4 Your Type as a weight loss tool.  More as a nutrition and awareness tool and that will certainly (and has) helped with some weight loss. 

My mom suffers from Lupus and has had some good success by eliminating some items from her diet.  We are a small sample but have had success.  Coincidence? Maybe.  Maybe Not. 

So, having defended D'Adamo a little bit, I will jump on my soapbox. 

The bottom line, a healthy dose of nutrition (whatever it takes to get you there) combined with a healthy dose of exercise (whatever it takes to get you there) plus some perseverance (whatever it takes to get you there) is a great recipe for success.  I don't believe there is a "Holy Grail" for losing weight other than the bottom line above.  The diet industry and the pushers and promoters of Pills, Potions, and Plans, would have us believe differently.  The proliferation of scams and deceit out there with regard to the diet and health industry is appalling.

Calorie Count is a refreshing community and resource for the journey to a healthier lifestyle.  Congratulations to each of every member here.  Whether you are trying to gain weight, lose weight, or just learn something, I commend your efforts.  I wish you all great success in your journey.

Make a difference in your life or the life of someone else and you will have made it a great day. 

Scott 

I was being treated for intractable long term major depression and saw a new Doctor. He had several ideas that immediately improved me considerably. He also recommended I try the blood type diet, which I did, despite it looking bogus to me. I was quite diligent about it, and fell hard and far back into depression. I was profoundly miserable. After two months (you can't say I didn't try) I went back to my old ways of eating (which are good food guide and balanced, on the whole) and gained back the recoveries I had had after first seeing him. 

I told him the diet had made me miserable, and he said "it only helps 40 percent of people."

Weight loss was not my objective, although I was quite aware that I could have stood to lose 30 lbs or so. I don't recall any effect on my weight. I have since lost 10 .. and counting...very slowly.

I still have a cupboard full of rice flour and guar gum. Any takers? Maybe the next food drive will get them.

Good luck

DA

Honestly the book told me what I had already noticed about myself and the way that I eat.  I am A blood type and it says that I should eat more like a vegetarian which is true.  I am not one who goes out and order red meats and I do crave vegetables, often I feel much better when i eat a meal which consist of mostly vegetables.  I try to eat more of the foods that it says are good for me, nuts, pineapples and fish and stay away from some of the things that it says I should avoid like dairy.   I haven't totally cut out the foods to avoid, like ice cream, but instead of having cereal with milk I will have oatmeal and no cheese on my sandwiches or eggs.  I feel when I avoid the foods its says to I feel better less groggy and less digestive problems.  I didn't do it to lose weight I just did it to be healthier.

Original Post by 1122carla:

a close friend of mine has followed this book for the past 5 months for health reasons, and she has lost 40 lbs so far and feels much healthier. I see alot of people are saying there is no basis for the information in the book, but by cutting out the foods listed for her blood type she no longer gets stomach pains and the "after effects" that she was getting before. she is still eating all food groups, just avoiding the specific foods in each group that the book lists, and so far it's a good match for her

 I've followed the excellent advice on this site and inthe last five months lost 42lbs. The difference being that I have not restrcted my diet except in volume so i can be sure to be able to stay with this life style change when I am at my target weight. Also I now find my self thinking doI really want to waste calories on this when I 'fancy' soemthing not quite so wise like fatty foods or alcohol etc.

All I can say is this life style change suits me rather than deciding that because I'm Blood type B I shouldn't eat fish on a Wednesday oe wheat on a Saturday!

Read it but didn't   try the as all the foods the book had for me was foods I can't stand and all my favoirtes wasn't on the list 

After dieting and trying to loose weight for a long long time (I already started in puberty) I can clearly say as more strict the rules are the more people will fancy it in the beginning.

2005 I had 62 kg (height 158 cm). At present I have 49 kg. I am 39 years old

Dieting works for short period of time.

I tried a lot of diets. But in the end only life style and eating habits change and regular exercise worked.

The blood group diet is just another example how desperate people want to control their weight and change. Of course it works if you follow strictly the instructions but for me it honestly makes no sense.

I eat strictly vegan and exercise every day. And I weight my self every day.

So why spend money on expensive diet books? They will stay in the shelf one day and get dusty trust me (can show you my books)

i tried the Blood diet for about 4 months and i did loose weight and felt really good..no sinus problems, had energy...but it was hard to stay away from the forbidden foods so i finally gave it up but i do still drink soy milk instead of cows milk.....

I have a lactose intolerance. One more reason to eat vegan.  I really don't miss it! And there are great recipes with soy milk.

Stay with it. You will not regret it.

Did you also tried tofu?

A great starter: scrambled tofu (hard tofu fried with fresh tomato, spring onion, little ginger, lots of fresh herbs, pepper, sodium reduced soy sauce, garlic if you want and just little oil) I really love it! You can also add fine chopped carrots or other raw vegetables. On top some roasted sesame and few roasted nuts

I just hope more people would at least try to eat more vegan. I feel so much better with it.