Friday 29 Mar 2024
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This article first appeared in Personal Wealth, The Edge Malaysia Weekly, on August 15 - 21, 2016.

 

The blood type diet — recommended distinct diet plans for people of different blood types — created by naturopath Dr Peter J D’Adamo, has become more popular over the past two decades.

D’Adamo, an expert in glycobiology (research into the biological functions of sugar chains or glycans), developed it based on his father’s theory that people of different blood types live healthier on certain foods as lectins (carbohydrate-binding proteins) are digested differently by the different groups. His extended research was then turned into a few bestsellers, including the award-winning Eat Right 4 Your Type, published in 1996. But is this diet suitable for Malaysians?

Esther Peh, a senior naturopath and nutritional therapist at Spectrum of Life (SOL) Integrative Wellness Centre, says she recommends the blood type diet to her clients as a guide as it promotes the intake of clean and fresh food.

“We humans started off as hunters and gatherers — we hunted for food out there and it was fresh and safe to consume. Nowadays, however, we hunt for our food in supermarkets, where most of the items are canned, processed and packaged. Therefore, the quality of the food we eat may not be the best. This diet advocates the use of clean, fresh and healthy ingredients, allowing you to reap the best benefits, no matter what blood type you are,” she says.

She adds that she normally advises her clients on a case-by-case basis and adjusts their diets, based on D’Adamo’s blood type diet, to improve their health. “For example, people with rheumatoid arthritis (joint inflammation) are usually of blood type A. Therefore, I would suggest to them to avoid all nightshade produce such as tomatoes, potatoes and aubergine.”

The blood type diet also provides guidelines on the consumption of certain types of food for certain people. Peh says when the human body cannot tolerate certain foods, it will usually give a signal such as vomiting, diarrhoea and allergy symptoms like rashes and swelling on the skin.

“Some vegetables, like potatoes and tomatoes, are nutritious, but certain people may not be able to eat them. In this case, one should take the body’s cue and take them off the diet. For example, according to D’Adamo, people with blood type A should avoid eating tomatoes because they are highly acidic. This may not necessarily be true — some people may be okay with them, but most of the time, it is the case, so that is why it is good to follow the blood type diet,” she adds.

However, there may be challenges if one were to adhere strictly to it. For starters, it can be very difficult to maintain, and the food recommendations tend to be very specific to one’s blood type, down to the spices and condiments one should use in one’s food.

Dr Kuljit Singh, medical director at Damansara Heights Wellness Clinique, says although there are recommendations, it does not mean that one should follow them to a T. “In his book, D’Adamo never tells you to follow the recommendations strictly. He basically provides the theory and suggestions on what diet you should follow according to your blood group and what kinds of food are suitable for you.”

Many severe allergic reactions can be prevented by following the recommended diet. For many, it would spare them from having to undergo blood screenings, which can be costly. Normally, to find out one’s allergies, two types of blood tests are carried out — IgE (test for immediate response allergies) and IgG (test for long-term response to allergies).

Dr Kuljit says, “If my patients say they want to do blood screenings because they have severe allergies, I will ask for their blood group first. Then, I will tell them to follow the diet according to their blood group. Cut out certain foods and add more of those that are beneficial. You won’t believe it. [But] it does work. This saves the patients a lot of money from doing blood screenings.”

In January 2014, a group of Canadian researchers debunked the blood type diet, saying that it is baseless and invalid. Based on the data of 1,455 healthy young adults, they found no evidence to support the diet’s theory.

Peh, however, defends the blood type diet, saying that the difference in opinion is due to the fact that the effectiveness of diets is highly individualised.

“The blood type diet is based on observations of body changes due to human evolution. I am sure that even now, our bodies are still changing due the changes in our environment,” she says.

“It all depends on your body. Some may say the diet brings good results while others may say it is a quack diet. Take the Atkins diet, for example. Some may swear by it while others may say it doesn’t work at all. That is why, if you really need to know which diet is best for you, you should seek professional help ... we can provide you with the information and guide you towards what is best for your body.”

 

The Localised Version

The blood type diet recommends consuming a lot of supplements and speciality and organic foods to complement one’s diet. It also gives examples of ingredients that may be quite expensive to obtain in our country such as almond milk, kale, walnuts, kefir and salmon. This leads to the perception that it is an expensive diet to follow.

But both Peh and Dr Kuljit offer a solution: One can substitute the expensive ingredients with local ones that have the same nutrients. “For example, people with blood type O may have low thyroid levels, so they are advised to eat plenty of leafy green vegetables such as collard greens and romaine lettuce,” says Peh.

“You can easily substitute them with more easily available local greens like bok choy, choy sum and bayam, which are not mentioned by D’Adamo. They are much cheaper but will still give you the required nutrients.”

She adds that foods that should be avoided can also be identified in the local context. For example, people with blood type O are advised to avoid cruciferous brassica vegetables such as mustard greens and Brussels sprouts — the local counterparts are cabbages and cauliflower.

Dr Kuljit offers a “Malaysianised” version of the blood type diet, complete with a food guide for people of the respective blood types. “I have developed a version of the diet that provides the options that Malaysians can find easily. They should know that there are ways to identify a different type of food that has the same properties.”

For example, for people with blood type B, Dr Kuljit recommends the intake of proteins such as mutton, sardines and mackerels as well as vegetables such as carrots, cauliflower and yam. Food to avoid includes white rice, roti canai and mee hoon.

“This way, it is easier for my patients to follow as they know exactly what are beneficial to them and what they should avoid,” he says.

“Additionally, I also give some important points for them to remember. For example, people with blood type B are predisposed to certain illnesses like asthma, flu and even lupus. It is recommended that they do exercises such as cycling and tai chi, and avoid red meat, especially if they are above 40 years old, as it may cause inflammation.”

Peh says in order to sustain the diet, one must have a strong motivation to improve his health. The person is advised to adopt the diet together with close friends and family as it allows them to support each other. 

“Maintaining the diet as a family should be quite easy. For example, if your mother is an A type and your father is a B type, the children, most of the time, should be either A, B or AB type. Therefore, the family should just look for the types of food that are best for them according to the diet. It should be doable,” she adds.

Dr Kuljit says the key to any diet is moderation. “If you are healthy, but want to try out the blood type diet to see if it benefits you, you may not see any significant difference. However, if you are diabetic or hypertensive, you will notice that by following it, it works. So, as long as you keep everything in moderation, it should have a good impact on you.”

 


Recommended Foods for One’s Blood Type


The main thrust of Dr Peter J D’Adamo’s blood type diet is that the variations, strengths and weaknesses of each blood group is part of humanity’s continual process of acclimatising to different environmental challenges, which involves the digestive and immune systems.

According to D’Adamo, those with blood type O tend to have a higher tolerance for a diet of meat and fish. Esther Peh, a senior naturopath and nutritional therapist at Spectrum of Life (SOL) Integrative Wellness Centre, says this blood group was the earliest human blood type, according to D’Adamo’s theory. It is mentioned that all humans — our Cro-Magnon ancestors around 40,000 BC — maintained this blood group. “The human race started with blood type O. They were hunters and consumed a lot of meat. They could tolerate meat and fish but not grains because at the time, agriculture was not practised. Therefore, D’Adamo advocates that people with blood type O have a high-meat, low-carbohydrate diet.”

Gradually, the blood type A became present in people between 25,000 BC and 15,000 BC through factors such as migration and radical lifestyle changes. These people were agrarian — they tolerated and absorbed cultivated grains and other agricultural produce better, according to D’Adamo. However, he recommends that those with blood type A avoid consuming dairy products and replace meat with seafood as there are no highly beneficial meats in this group’s diet.

The blood type B appeared between 10,000 BC and 15,000 BC. Peh says those with this blood type are advised to have a more balanced diet. “At the time, agricultural advancements have been made. The diet for Type B people is balanced and wholesome and they can include a wide variety of food. However, they should still bear in mind that there are certain types of food that they should avoid, such as dairy products and wheat. Dairy products, in particular, may trigger allergies.”

The blood type AB appeared between 500 BC and 900 AD. According to D’Adamo, it is a mix of the A and B blood types. Likewise, the diet of this group is a mix of the recommendations for the A and B blood groups.

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