Did you ever consider eating for your blood type? What does it mean to eat for your blood type, exactly?
Have you ever suspected that not everyone should eat the same thing or do the same exercise?
The connection between blood type and diet may sound radical, but is it?
That was a topic of discussion this week in my nutrition course at the Institute for Integrative Nutrition (affiliate link), where we are studying all the major dietary theories.
Since blood type is one of the key factors that differentiates us, might it help explain why some people do well on one diet and others on another?
Why do some people thrive as vegetarians while others do better eating meat?
Does our blood type play a role in determining our dietary needs?
Dr. James D’Adamo, a naturopath, introduced the concept of blood type diets in his book, One Man's Food... is Someone Else's Poison, which proposed the theory that different people react to food differently based on their blood type.
He observed that patients who were Blood Type A seemed to do poorly on high protein diets that included lots of meat, but did very well on vegetable proteins such as soy and tofu. On the other hand, Blood Type O patients thrived on high-protein diets. And while Blood Type O patients were energized by vigorous exercise, it seemed to drain the energy of Blood Type A patients.
His son, Dr. Peter D'Adamo, has continued to explore and research the correlation between human blood groups and nutrition. His most popular and best-known book, Eat Right 4 Your Type, was a New York Times best-seller, and has been translated into 50 different languages.
In Eat Right 4 Your Type, Dr. D'Adamo proposes that your blood type is the key that explains the mysteries of health, disease, longevity, physical vitality and emotional strength. Your blood type determines your susceptibility to illness, which food you should eat, and how you should exercise. He believes that there is no right or wrong diet or lifestyle, there are only right or wrong choices based on our individual genetic codes that are linked to our blood type.
There seems to be a lot of anecdotal evidence to support this. Just check out the more than 500 comments on Amazon, if you are curious to learn about people's experiences.
My naturopath concurs that the blood type diet theory works for many of his patients and has even found it to be true for himself (Blood Type O) and his wife (Blood Type A). (He struggled with his health during the years that he lived in Central America on a more vegetarian based diet. Now his wife struggles with her weight and health here in the US where a meat based diet is more common.)
If you are struggling with your health and weight and at a loss for where to begin, Eat Right for Your Type may be worth a closer look. I am convinced that learning to eat to maximize your health requires experimentation to find what works, since we each have our own unique biochemical individuality to understand, and this may shed some light for you.
It's not a weight loss diet. It's designed to be a way of eating and living to support optimal health.
So what does Eat Right for Your Type recommend for the various blood types?
Here is a quick synopsis:
If you are Blood type O:
- Eat meat.
- Cut out wheat and most other grains.
- Engage in vigorous aerobic exercise.
- Your risk factors for ulcers and inflammatory disease such as arthritis increase if you eat incorrectly for your type.
If you are Blood Type A:
- Eat vegetarian.
- Engage in gentle exercise such as yoga or golf.
- Meditate to deal with stress.
- Your risk factors for cancer and heart disease increase if you eat incorrectly for your type.
If you are Blood Type B:
- You can tolerate the most varied diet that includes meat and dairy.
- Engage in moderate exercise such as walking and swimming.
- Your risk for slow-growing viruses that attack your nervous system increases if you eat incorrectly for your type.
If your are Blood Type AB:
- You are a combination of Type A and Type B
- Engage in calming exercises and relaxation techniques.
- Your have the friendliest immune system of all the blood types.
Blood Type Food List
The following foods are mostly consistent for all 4 types:
Beneficial:
- Broccoli, kale, collards-most dark green vegetables
- Plums and most berries
- Sardines
- Olive oil
- Green tea
Neutral:
- Almonds, walnuts, pecans
- Quinoa and brown rice
- Eggs and ghee
- Agave nectar and dates
- Mushrooms
Avoid:
- Wheat and wheat flour
- Bacon/pork
- Black olives
Blood Type O Diet Foods List
Foods that encourage weight gain include:
- wheat gluten
- corn
- kidney beans
- navy beans
- lentils
- cabbage
- brussels sprouts
- cauliflower
- mustard greens
Food that encourage weight loss include:
- kelp
- seafood
- iodized salt
- liver
- red meat
- kale, spinach, broccoli
Blood Type O Diet Foods to Eat include:
adzuki bean
almonds/almond oil/almond butter
amaranth
apple
apricot
artichoke
arugula
asparagus
beef
beets
beet greens
black beans
black eyed peas
blueberry
bok choy
breadfruit
boysenberry
broccoli
broccoli rabe
brussels sprouts
buckwheat/kasha
buffalo
butter
cabbage
cannellini beans
carrots
canola oil
celeriac
celery
cherry
chicory
chicken
cilantro
collard greens
clams
cod liver oil
crab
cranberry
cream of rice
currant
daikon radish
dandelion
date
dill
duck
eggplant
eggs
endive
escarole
Ezekial bread
fava beans
fennel
feta cheese
fiddleheads
fig
fish
flaxseeds
garbanzo beans
garlic
ginger
gluten free bread
goat cheese
grape
grapefruit
green beans
guava
horseradish
jicama
kale
kamut
kelp
kohlrabi
kumquat
lamb
lemon
lettuce
lima beans
lime
liver (calf)
macadamia nuts
millet
mozzarella cheese
mushroom (shitake, portobello, oyster, straw)
oat bran
oat flour (affiliate link)
oatmeal
okra
olives/olive oil
onions
nectarine
oysters
parsley
parsnip
peach
pear
pecans/pecan butter
peas
peppers
persimmon
pineapple
pine nuts
plum
poi
pomegranite
potatoes, sweet
prickly pear
prune
pumpkin
pumpkin seeds
quinoa
quince
radicchio
radish
raisin
raspberry
rice/rice flour
rutabaga
rye flour
scallion
scallops
sesame/sesame oil/sesame butter
shallot
shrimp
soba noodles
soy
spelt/spelt flour
spinach
squash
strawberry
swiss chard
tapioca
teff
tomato
turkey
turnip
veal
walnuts/walnut oil
water chestnut
watercress
watermelon
yam
zucchini
Blood Type A Diet Foods List
Foods that encourage weight gain include:
- meat
- dairy
- kidney beans
- lima beans
- wheat (in overabundance)
Food that encourage weight loss include:
- vegetable oils
- soy foods
- vegetables
- pineapple
Blood Type A Diet Foods to Eat include:
adzuki bean
almonds/almond oil/almond butter
amaranth
apple
apricot
artichoke
arugula
asparagus
banana
barley
beets
beet green
black beans
black eyed pea
blueberry
bok choy
boysenberry
breadfruit
broccoli
broccoli rabe
brussels sprout
buckwheat/kasha
bulgur
cannellini bean
carrots
canola oil
celeriac
celery
cherry
chicory
cilantro
collard green
cod liver oil
corn/cornflake/cornmeal
crab
cranberry
cream of rice
currant
daikon radish
dandelion
date
dill
eggs
endive
escarole
Ezekial bread
fava bean
fennel
feta cheese
fiddlehead
fig
fish
flaxseed
garlic
ginger
gluten free bread
goat cheese
grape
grapefruit
green bean
grits
guava
horseradish
jicama
kale
kamut
kelp
kohlrabi
kefir
kumquat
lemon
lettuce
lime
macadamia nut
mango
millet
mozzarella cheese
mushroom (portobello, oyster, straw)
oat bran
oat flour (affiliate link)
oatmeal
okra
onion
lentil
nectarine
papaya
parsley
parsnip
peach
pear
peanut/peanut butter
pecan/pecan butter
peas
persimmon
pineapple
pine nut
pinto bean
plum
poi
pomegranite
prickly pear
prune
pumpkin
pumpkin seed
quinoa
quince
radicchio
radish
raisin
raspberry
rice/rice flour
ricotta
rutabaga
rye flour
scallion
scallops
semolina pasta
sesame/sesame oil/sesame butter
shallot
soba noodles
soy
spelt/spelt flour
spinach
squash
strawberry
swiss chard
tapioca
teff
turkey
turnip
walnuts/walnut oil
water chestnut
watercress
watermelon
yogurt
zucchini
I am testing out the Eat Right 4 Your Type Diet at the moment, eliminating gluten and experimenting with eating less dairy and a bit more red meat. I haven't been willing to give-up my morning cup of coffee, as I have never really had a problem with excessive acid and I enjoy it so much.
If you have experience with eating for your blood type I would love to hear from you. Did it work?
If you liked reading about eating for your blood type, you might also like…
Martha is the founder and main content writer for Simple-Nourished-Living.
A longtime lifetime WW at goal, she is committed to balancing her love of food and desire to stay slim while savoring life and helping others do the same.
She is the author of the Smart Start 28-Day Weight Loss Challenge.
A huge fan of the slow cooker and confessed cookbook addict, when she's not experimenting in the kitchen, you're likely to find Martha on her yoga mat.
This post contains affiliate links to products I like. When you buy something through one of my Amazon links or other (affiliate links), I receive a small commission that helps support this site. Thank you for your purchase!
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thankyou1
Thanks so much for posting this! I've been on the diet for a couple of weeks now, but only had the short list from the website. This really opens up a whole new world for my menu! Appreciate it GREATLY!!!
Cage Fitness
This article was great to read! I know that many students come into train and condition for MMA and they always ask what kind of foods they should or shouldn't be eating with their blood type. Thanks for posting! -CageFitness
Kerry
Hi
I am blood group A and looking into The Eat Right For Your Type diet and am finding conflicting foods from various website ie I can eat bananas on your list but not on an another. Can you explain?
Regards
Kerry
Martha
Hi Kerry,
I took the information from the Eat Right from your blood type book. I believe this is the type of information that gets refined overtime and interpreted differently by people. I think the best approach is to treat the information as rough guidelines. Ultimately, we are all unique and need to experiment to find out which foods work best for us and which don't. I'd love to hear how the diet works for you.
Susan
Bananas are a no no for type A blood. They are listed in Peter D' ADAMO's Eat Right For Your Type book. Page 115
Avoid fruits for type A blood are:
Bananas
coconuts
mangoes
melon (cantaloupe)
melon (honeydew)
oranges
papayas
plantains
rhubarb
tangerines
I don't know my Secretor status so maybe some of these "poison" foods are ok depending on your status. I do know that I have heel spurs or plantar fasciitis and I'm not sure but it seems like it occured after being on the paleo diet for the past two years. I did the paleo plan more for my hubby than me because I hate eating meat.
I have been following the ER4YT eating plan for the past week and I can finally feel the pain easing up in my feet and my achy knees are also feeling better. I was told by my dr that my alkaline phosphatate (normally low in type As) wasn't even registering on the lab ranges.He was the one who told me to eat vegetarian if I wanted to feel my healthiest and I think it's working! I actually feel less stress in my joints and I also feel lighter and no bloating either.
Hope that my comment will bring others to become healthy thru the Eat Right For Your Type Blood eating plan and maybe get to throw some of their meds away!
Martha McKinnon
Thanks, Susan!f I appreciate you taking the time to leave such a thoughtful comment. I've come to believe that there is on one right way to eat for everyone. But that each of us needs to follow our body's innate wisdom. It sounds like your body is responding well to eating for your blood type! I'm very happy for you.