Random thought:
My obsession for the past few days has been the blood type diet. Someone spoke to my husband about it, and now it has been racking my brain. What is it and does it work?
The "blood type diet" is a lifestyle developed by Dr. Peter D'Adamo as "a way of eating and living that has transformed the health of millions." His website http://dadamo.com/ doesn't give huge details on the diet (you have to buy the books), but it has a plethora of information concerning his diet and how it supposedly is "following decades of ongoing research and clinical work." Whether that statements means he has the research to back up his claims, we will soon find out.
Anyone that knows me would say that I refuse to give diet advice that is not backed up by scientific research, and if I am giving my personal opinion, I make that clear. So I tried to find research about the blood type diet. I found an article from Natural Solutions magazine, a posting by the American Chiropractic Association, and countless mini articles about the subject, but none of the specifically test whether the diet works.
D'Adamo's website has a scientific basis tab; however, all of the articles seem to have been written by him, most of which were not published in big journals, and seemingly none of them has any scientific proof that the diet works. They all are about blood types, but not necessarily what would justify you needing a different diet to lose weight because of your blood type. All statistics are based on consumer claims. So it sounds like there isn't research yet that validates the diet's rules. Let's get into what those guidelines are.
The diet suggests to individualize your diet based on your blood type. With each type there are foods to avoid, foods that are neutral, and foods that are good supposedly because lectins in the food react with your blood cells and cause health problems. Some of the claims are that type A people cannot digest meat as easily because they don't make as much stomach acid, while type O people can eat all the meat they like, but they can't have grains. The site even sounds like astrology, making claims on your personality based on your blood type. I put this diet in the "fad diet" category, because people are likely to not follow it properly like they did with the Atkins diet (let's eat all the meat and cheese we want, carbs are the enemy).
Obviously, restricting entire food groups can have drastic effects on your nutrient intake over time. We have the 5 major food groups for a reason, people. Those who are restricting them must find suitable replacements to avoid malnourishment. For instance vitamin B12 is only found naturally in animal products. Those avoiding meat should have fortified foods like soymilk or take a supplement.
Here's an idea:
How about we individualize our diets based on food preferences and nutrition guidelines set by the USDA instead of killing ourselves with restrictive diets? God forbid we do things the good old fashioned way with eating healthy and exercising. Hmmm..what a crazy concept?! We eat fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat milk, and lean meat, we stay moderately active, and we lose weight?! We don't have to deprive ourselves to be "skinny". In fact, when we do deprive ourselves, we are more likely to go crazy and binge one day because we are unsatisfied. Let's be realistic with our weight loss goals and with our food choices.
On a random side note:
It drives me crazy when people spread what my textbook likes to say "nutrition misinformation" without fully understanding the subject. Does your relationship with the manager at GNC make you an expert in biochemistry and nutrition intervention? Does your obsession with pricey "health" food make you certified to spread your wealth of nutrition knowledge? Does watching Dr. Oz make you qualified to give diet advice? I think not...know your stuff before tainting America with your nutrition nonsense. *sigh*
