ABO BLOOD TYPE AND DIET

Should I determine my diet based on my blood type?  What is the science behind this theory?


A New York Time’s Bestseller book, published in 1996, called “Right 4 Your Type” describes the difference in disease manifestations based upon your ABO blood type.  Written by Dr. Peter A’damo, ND, he develops his father’s theory of the prevalence of certain diseases based on blood type and even furthers these ideas by adapting them not just on the cellular level but the genomic level.  The basis of the blood type/diet/disease paradigm is based on the anthropological premise that human beings have migrated to different parts of the world and have separated not only into different cultures and ethnicities but also have become divided phenotypically into different blood types.  For instance, Hispanic people, for example, have a relatively high number of O’s, while Asian people have a relatively high number of B’s (http://www.givelife2.org/aboutblood/bloodtypes.asp).  The blood type, A-B-O, is a surface molecule found on the red blood cell.  These molecules, also known as surface antigens, may cause a blood transfusion reaction when blood is disseminated erroneously.  Why?  Because a blood type A individual naturally creates antibodies to type B surface antigen and sees this surface molecule as foreign.  Just like an animal will protect itself against a foreign threat, the body sees the strange type B surface molecule as a threat and the body attacks it leading to a systemic shock.  These same surface antigens can resemble many common proteins, bacteria, fungi, and viruses found in the environment.  If some one were to ingest or become infected with an antigen that resembled a foreign blood type, that person may also experience a “bad reaction” to this alien entity.  Now since 70% of one’s immune system is in the gut, there is a constant surveyance of foreign material entering the body that is either metabolized for energy, filtered, or destroyed.  However, depending on the body’s recognition of foreign proteins, based on blood type, A’damo suggests that the diet one eats may have a larger impact then imagined. His discusses that agglutination reactions, the reactions between foreign particles and antibodies, in essential organs will lead to micro infarctions and thus conditions such as heart disease.  Based on vast article readings, he has come to the conclusion that Type A individuals necessitate a vegan, whereas as Type O individuals require a carnivorous one.  Type B individuals are “idiosyncratic omnivore”. More information about this subject can be found on Dr. A’damo websites: http://www.4yourtype.com/



My take:  Dr. A’damo’s theory has no real scientific and by collecting thousand’s of articles on the subject does not substitute for real evidence-based medicine.  I would not recommend following a diet based on blood type.  For more an extremely informative and funny conclusions about the blood type diet follow this link: http://www.skepdic.com/bloodtypediet.html

OBESITY AND GENETICS?


In the era of the Human Genome Project, we participate in a scientific community that identifies and predicts disease, behavior, and development based upon the genomic make-up of an individual.  Rather than victimizing a person with a nicotine habit, we instead intellectualize his problem with the fact that he may carry a “genetic susceptibility” for addiction, a group of genes that contribute to his addiction, genes that can be linked to a pattern of inheritance. Therefore, the nicotine addict is not only protected from blame, rather his stigmatized behavior is actually defended by science, and in some instances, even tolerated.  Using this genetic perspective, many individuals will think that one’s fate is determined by one’s genetic makeup and our ability to alter our destiny is quite limited.   In fact, many obese individuals see their weight as a genetic predisposition, since their parents and even grandparents may be obese.  “Obesity, just runs in our family.”  Also, there are studies that point to a group of “obesity genes” and genes that contribute to satiation or the feelings of fullness.  These genetic discoveries lessen the feelings of burden of being overweight and discourage one’s potential to lose weight.  Major scientific studies emphasize the environmental influences that govern the state of disease and obesity and should be the impetus for provoking the motivation for lifestyle and dietary changes to combat obesity.  Most importantly, the studies of familial migration patterns and the change in environmental exposure of rural communities to industrial processing of food and their incidence of disease will be a major impetus in motivating the shift from genetic to environmental paradigms.  


What is the difference between a "vegan diet" and a "plant-based diet"?

Although seemingly very similar because both diets are defined as strict vegetarian, a vegan diet and plant-based diet carry intrinsic differences in their origins, their cause for adaptation, and their implicit connotations. Vegans are inherently strict vegetarians, removing any animal based product from their diet including honey.  But the dietary laws of veganism are just a reflection of their fundamental views rooted in the ethical commitments to animal rights and environmentalism.  As stated in the Memorandum of Association of the Vegan Society, “[T]he word "veganism" denotes a philosophy and way of living which seeks to exclude — as far as is possible and practical — all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing or any other purpose; and by extension, promotes the development and use of animal-free alternatives for the benefit of humans, animals and the environment. In dietary terms it denotes the practice of dispensing with all products derived wholly or partly from animals.”   Because of its’ strong connection to animal activism and such, veganism carries a political connotation and hence the word vegan is interchangeable with political activist.  On the other hand, although the “plant-based diet” is also essentially a strict vegetarian diet, the motivation for acquiring a plant-based diet in not rooted in political activism, but rather for health-related benefits. Although a “plant-based diet” indirectly assists in the environmental conservation concerns present in vegan idealisms, the primary directive for someone seeking a “plant-based diet”, is essentially for its immune-related support and more specifically the elimination of chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, and diabetes.   A “plant-based diet” is subjected to the laws of nutrition, physiology, and biochemistry and is defended by evidence-based medicine.  The proponents of a “plant-based diet” are ones who are seeking honest, natural ways of providing optimum health and longevity.  On the surface, a vegan diet and a “plant-based diet” may seem like they are the same thing; however, they are extremely different in their roles on both an individual and societal level.  

Plant-based Diet v.s. Animal Based Diet? 

Except for a variety of vitamins and minerals including vitamin B12 and vitamin D, a “plant-based diet” offers the most optimum way of obtaining nutrients and minerals over an animal-based one.  The amount of nutrients per calorie that exists in plants exceeds the amount of nutrients per calories one would acquire through animal food consumption.  For comparison, take for example the nutrients per calorie that exists in a package of raw spinach versus one raw steak. 

Steak (Beef, tenderloin, separable lean and fat, trimmed to 1/8" fat, select raw weighing 149 grams):  371 calories

Spinach Raw ( 1 package – 10 oz/284 grams): 65 calories

VITAMIN/MINERAL     1 STEAK  = 371 calories     1 PKG SPINACH = 65 calories
Vitamin A    0.0 IU    26627 IU
Vitamin C    0.0 mcg    79.8 mg
Vitamin E (Alpha Tocopherol)    0.6 mcg    5.8 mg
Vitamin K    2.4 mcg    1372 mcg
Thiamin    0.1 mcg    0.2 mg
Riboflavin    0.2 mcg    0.5 mg
Niacin    7.7 mcg    2.1 mg
Vitamin B6    0.8 mcg    0.6 mg
Folate    14.9 mcg    551 mcg
Vitamin B12    1.4 mcg    0.0 mcg
Chloline    121 mcg    51.1 mg
Betaine    17.7 mcg    1563 mg
Calcium    32.8 mg    281 mg
Iron    2.1 mg    7.7mg
Magnesium    29.8 mg    224 mg
Phosphorous    271 mg    139 mg
Potassium    447 mg    1585 mg
Sodium    74.5 mg    224 mg
Zinc    4.9 mg    1.5 mg
Copper    0.1 mg    0.4 mg

Clearly, the amount of nutrients per calorie in spinach exceeds that found in steak.  

There is also a concept of plant-based nutritional totality, an idea that a complete fruit or vegetable contains a network of interwoven energy forming molecules that should not be extracted into basic units because it is in their whole form that the complete and optimal benefits of the plant is absorbed and utilized.  For instance, the complex carbohydrates that exist in a spinach leaf are connected to a protein enzyme which is interlaced with unsaturated fats to create a nutritional microcosm.  These major energy forming units are woven together the way a person knits a winter sweater out of yarn.   The sleeves and the buttons of the sweater are sewn onto the body of the sweater and the sweater would not be as functional or protective without these parts.   Fiber is great example of how plant-based foods contain a nutritional totality that is not seen in animal based foods. Fiber, a non-starch polysaccharide, aids the body in so many digestive functions and is linked to decreasing the incidence of heart disease and colon cancer.  An apple contains both soluble fiber, found in its pulp and insoluble fiber that exists in its skin.   When a person takes a bite of an apple, he will chew off some of its skin and pulp.  The pulp contains simple sugars that will eventually be broken down into glucose.  The insoluble fiber, interconnected to these simple sugars in the pulp of the apple, attracts water and converts into a gel during digestion, trapping these simple sugars and slowing absorption of glucose.  Wow, all of this going on in a simple bite! These are just a few examples of how a plant-based diet is overwhelming more efficient at obtaining nutrients over animal based ones.