In the 90s of the last century, the book “4 blood groups - 4 paths to health”, written by naturopath Peter D'Adamo, was published in the United States.It almost immediately became a bestseller, was translated into almost every language in the world and became a practical nutrition guide for many people on the planet.According to the author of the book, for each blood group there is a historically correct concept of nutrition, on which human health and longevity depend.
The main idea of this theory is that people should eat the same food as their ancestors.It is better digested and absorbed, while “bad” foods clog the body.This nutritional concept is not a diet for weight loss, it implies a healthy and healthy diet for certain groups of people, which will help cleanse and heal the body.
Indeed, some studies have shown that people with different blood types are more or less susceptible to various diseases.For a long time, Dr. D'Adamo and his father identified the effects of various foods on the body, dividing them into 3 groups: beneficial, harmful and neutral.Below are lists of “good” and “bad” foods for people of each blood type.Products not listed are considered neutral and are recommended for consumption in limited quantities.
Nutrition for people with blood group I(0)
According to various sources, up to 40% of the world's population has blood from this group;Dr D'Adamo identified them as descendants of "hunters", so a meat diet should be more suitable for them.
Healthy products
- beef, lamb, venison, veal, poultry, offal;
- almost any fish (cod, perch, pike, halibut, sturgeon, trout, sardines are especially useful), caviar, algae;
- eggs;
- in small quantities cottage cheese and sheep's cheese, cottage cheese;
- butter;
- certain vegetable oils (olive, flax, sesame, almond);
- walnuts, almonds, hazelnuts, pumpkin and cedar seeds;
- legumes rarely (with the exception of soy and lentils);
- buckwheat, pearl barley, barley cereals, rice;
- rye bread;
- vegetables (beets and their leaves, kale, horseradish, artichoke, Jerusalem artichoke, broccoli, kohlrabi, parsnip, sweet potato, pumpkin, turnip, bell and chili);
- almost all fruits and berries;
- parsley, ginger, cloves, licorice, turmeric, curry, hot pepper;
- herbal and green tea, red wines, mineral water (can be carbonated).
Harmful products
- pork;
- pollock, shellfish, squid;
- almost all dairy products, except those listed as permitted;
- sunflower, corn, cottonseed, peanut, coconut, palm oil;
- poppy, pistachios, peanuts, cashews, Brazil nuts;
- wheat, oats, barley, corn and all products derived therefrom;
- vegetables (cauliflower, cucumbers, leeks, rhubarb, potatoes, shiitake mushrooms, olives);
- avocados, oranges and tangerines, melons, strawberries, coconut;
- strong alcoholic drinks, lemonade, beer, black tea, coffee.
Nutrition for people with blood group II(A)
Nearly 35% of the world's population inherited group II from their parents;moreover, it is the most common blood group among Europeans.The developer of this diet classified these people as descendants of farmers and gatherers.Their diet is very similar to lacto-ovo vegetarianism.
Healthy products
- turkey (preferably) and other poultry;
- eggs;
- fish (salmon, sardines, mackerel, pike perch, whitefish, carp, cod, perch, trout, char);
- fermented milk products, whole milk - only goat's milk, cheeses also made only from it;
- vegetable oils (olive, flaxseed);
- peanuts, pumpkins, sunflowers, pine seeds, hazelnuts and other nuts;
- legumes and soy products are particularly useful;
- cereals (buckwheat, rice, barley, oatmeal, rye) and flour products made from these cereals;
- soy sauce, parsley, turmeric, ginger, mustard;
- vegetables (healthy list included artichoke, beets, Jerusalem artichoke, broccoli, kale, carrots, kohlrabi, horseradish, garlic, onions, parsnips, pumpkin, turnips, spinach);
- all berries, lemons, grapefruit, pineapple, plums, apricots;
- all herbal teas, green tea, white (preferably) and red wine, black coffee (1 cup per day).
Harmful products
- all red meat and offal;
- shellfish, squid, eels, catfish, flounder, etc.;
- whole cow's milk and milk products;
- butter;
- corn, cottonseed, peanut, coconut oil;
- pistachios, Brazil nuts;
- wheat, wheat flour and products made therefrom;
- potatoes, white, red and Chinese cabbage, peppers, eggplant, olives, rhubarb, tomatoes;
- certain fruits (bananas, melons, oranges, mangoes, papayas, tangerines, coconuts);
- gelatin, vinegar, pepper (black, white, red), capers;
- candy, sugar;
- strong alcoholic and carbonated drinks, beer, lemonade, black tea.
Nutrition for people with blood group III(B)
This blood type is believed to have arisen as a result of breed mixing.Doctor D'Adamo classified people who had it as nomads.They are expected to have the widest and most varied diet;there are fewer dietary restrictions for people with blood group III than for others.This is because nomads settled on different continents and were omnivorous.
Healthy products
- sheep, lamb, deer, rabbit;
- eggs;
- caviar, croaker, sea bass, pike perch, sardines, cod, plaice, haddock, hake, halibut, mackerel, pike, sturgeon, carp;
- almost all dairy products;
- white beans and lima beans;
- olive oil;
- nut;
- oatmeal and oatmeal, millet, rice;
- beets, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, carrots, parsnips, sweet potatoes, onions, horseradish, parsnips, turnips, garlic;
- cranberries, plums, watermelons, bananas, grapes, papayas, blueberries, blackberries, cherries;
- mushrooms;
- curry, licorice, ginger, parsley;
- still water, green tea, beer, red and white wine, black tea and coffee (you can drink no more than one cup per day).
Harmful products
- poultry, pork, offal;
- crustaceans, crabs, belugas, eels, pollock, trout, arctic char;
- quail eggs;
- blue and processed cheeses;
- other varieties of beans, soy products;
- vegetable oils: coconut, corn, peanut, soy, sesame, sunflower, rapeseed;
- cashews, peanuts, pine nuts, poppy seeds, pumpkin and sunflower seeds;
- cereals of wheat, buckwheat, corn, rye;
- olives, radishes, radishes, rhubarb, tomatoes, sauerkraut;
- avocado, pomegranates, persimmons, melon, coconut;
- pepper, cinnamon, soy sauce, gelatin, ketchup;
- strong carbonated and alcoholic drinks, lemonade, sparkling water.
Nutrition for people with blood group IV (AB)
This blood group is the rarest, it is found in only 7% of people living on our planet.This group of people was defined by naturopathic doctor D'Adamo as a mixed type or "new people."Like those with blood group III, the “new people” were much luckier when it came to diet than the population with groups I and II.
Healthy products
- lamb, rabbit, turkey;
- chicken eggs;
- mackerel, salmon, sardines, tuna, cod, pike perch, pike, sturgeon;
- dairy products, but cheeses in limited quantities;
- walnut and olive oil;
- peanuts, nuts;
- lentils, soy, pinto beans;
- millet, oats, rice, rye flour and products made from them;
- beets, broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage, cucumbers, garlic, sweet potatoes, carrots, eggplant, parsnips, mustard greens, tomatoes;
- cherry, fig, grape, grapefruit, kiwi, pineapple, plum, watermelon, lemon, currant, cranberry;
- curry, turmeric, ginger, parsley;
- green tea, sparkling water, white and red wines.
Harmful products
- pork, beef, chicken, goose and quail eggs;
- flounder, perch, beluga, halibut, haddock, hake, eel, trout, arthropods and molluscs;
- butter, margarine;
- processed cheese, blue cheese, whole milk, cream;
- lima beans, black beans, adzuki beans, chickpeas;
- hazelnuts, poppy seeds, sesame seeds, pumpkin and sunflower seeds;
- buckwheat, corn, wheat and products made from these grains;
- artichoke, Jerusalem artichoke, olives, peppers and hot peppers, radishes, radishes, rhubarb;
- sunflower, corn, sesame, coconut, cottonseed oils;
- avocados, bananas, melons, guavas, persimmons, pomegranates, quinces, coconuts, mangoes, oranges;
- pepper, vinegar;
- strong alcoholic and carbonated sweet drinks, black tea and coffee.
Criticism of the American Blood Type Diet
Opinions of traditional doctors about this diet are divided, but the majority are still inclined to believe that it is not scientifically supported and has no factual basis.Perhaps its only advantage is that from the list of products intended for people with different blood groups, you can, with some effort, create a complete and balanced diet.However, completely avoiding certain foods can still lead to a decrease in certain substances in the body.For example, people in group I are almost completely prohibited from consuming dairy products, which can lead to calcium and phosphorus deficiency.
Many doctors agree that the blood group diet is too general and does not take into account the individual characteristics of the body, lifestyle and other factors that do not depend on a person's blood group.Additionally, as you know, there are many more blood types than 4;Dr. D’Adamo took one of the most simplified systems (AB0) as a basis for developing his diet.
Initially, medical books used the term “amino acids” to talk about protein products.The protein in its original form does not enter the blood;it is first broken down into amino acids.But the body, in fact, does not care from which proteins, plant or animal, these amino acids are obtained, and therefore it turns out to be inappropriate to limit dairy products and meat for certain categories of people.After this fact was pointed out to the author of the diet, the term "amino acids" was replaced by "lectins", which is not clear even to many doctors, much less to the average person.In general, many doctors of traditional medicine are inclined to believe that the book presenting this diet is “overloaded” with scientific terms, many of which are inappropriate and incomprehensible to readers.
Summing up, we can say that the blood group nutrition system did not find a response in the medical community and even received serious criticism, but the large number of positive reviews about this diet has a logical explanation.First of all, this is due to the general improvement in the diet, because strong alcohol, sweet carbonated drinks, fatty meats, many "heavy" vegetables, foods rich in saturated fats and other harmful foods are completely removed from the diet, regardless of blood group.In addition, the placebo effect is one of the important factors in the positive effects of any popular diet, and the development of the American doctor D'Adamo is no exception.