Eat right for your type

A few weeks before we started with our Comeback Kid challenge on Sleek Geek, my training buddy, Graunt, told me about his recent discovery of the Blood Type Diet.

At first i was a bit skeptical because i thought this was just another fashionable fad that some Hollywood A-lister mentioned in an interview then the whole world went WOW!

But after having done some reading on Dr. Peter DÁdamo's book "Eat Right For Your Type" it all started making sense.


The Blood Type Diet was created by Dr. Peter D’Adamo to help people to become healthier, age gracefully and reach their ideal weight.

The basic premise behind the diet is that your blood type determines how food is metabolized by your body. D’Adamo outlines specific foods to avoid based on your blood type. These are the foods that interact with your blood in such a way that leads to an acidic condition.

When the body becomes too acidic, it can lead to a range of health problems.

So on Saturday morning, the weekend before we started the challenge, I went to have my blood type tested and came back with the results - I'm AB+. 
The AB blood type is thought to be more complicated than the other blood types. It combines some of the vulnerabilities of both the Type A and Type B blood types.


Now to give you a bit of background, I suffer from chronic sinusitis, i cant remember the last time both nostrils were clear at the same time.

Whenever i eat cheese or drink full cream milk, i feel bloated and sick.

Suddenly, Lactose intolerance clicked... and i realised that i should try and avoid dairy.

Being the Afrikaans boerseun that i am, i've always been pretty partial to a good rare steak, but felt ill after eating it, always thinking to myself that i had overindulged.

The list of trigger foods goes on - but Dairy and Meat are two main ones.

Nevertheless, i continued eating a steak or some yoghurt because i like those.


Then, I looked at the food restriction list for Type AB+ and things started making 100% sense.

Each of the food groups are divided into three categories: Highly beneficial ( food that acts like Medicine), Foods allowed (food that are no harm to the blood type) and Foods not allowed (food that acts like a Poison)

Here's a pic of my food restriction list:

Below is a clearer discription of foods Type AB should avoid.

1. Meats to Avoid
This blood type does not have sufficient stomach acid for digesting and metabolizing animal protein. Meats to be avoided by this blood type include chicken, beef, ham, pork, veal and bacon. Recommended protein sources are lamb, rabbit, mutton, turkey, tofu and a wide range of seafood.
Chicken is especially problematic for this blood type because it contains lectin in its muscle tissue that can potentially lead to autoimmune disorders. Turkey can be used to replace chicken as it does not have the same effect.

2. Dairy Products and Health Issues
Individuals with Type AB blood are prone to mucus excess. If this is your blood type, watch for sinus attacks, respiratory issues or ear infections. In that case, you may want to cut out specific diary foods such as butter, American cheese, whole milk, provolone cheese and Parmesan cheese.

3. Type AB Blood and Wheat Products
Type AB individuals should limit their consumption of wheat products. This is especially the case if weight loss is an issue or if you are prone to mucus production. Occasional consumption of wheat products is okay. Better replacements include rye, rice and oats.

4. Fruits to Avoid
Although most fruits are healthy for this blood type, a few should be avoided. Mangoes, bananas and guava, for example, are on the avoid list. Oranges are especially forbidden for this blood type because they irritate the stomach. Grapefruits may be eaten in place of oranges; they have an alkalizing effect in the body after they have been digested.

5. Vegetables to Avoid
Type AB individuals may eat a wide range of vegetables. The ones on the list of foods to be avoided create an acidic condition in the body. The specific vegetables to avoid include avocados, lima beans, radishes, artichokes, green peppers, red peppers and yellow corn.

6. Oils to Eliminate
The highly beneficial oil for this blood type is olive oil. The oils to avoid include corn oil, cottonseed oil, sunflower oil, sesame oil and safflower oil. The oils that have a neutral effect on the body for this blood type are canola oil, peanut oil and linseed oil.



Then, i also found the below - which makes absolute sense when i think of my sinus problem and bloatedness when eating meat.

Type AB do best when their muscle tissues are slightly alkaline. Type ABs can't metabolize meat efficiently because of low stomach acid, so it is important to watch the portion size and frequency. Chicken has lectin that irritates the blood and digestive tracts of Type ABs also. Tofu is a good protein supplements for Type ABs. Nuts, seeds, beans and legumes present a mixed picture for Type ABs. Eat nuts and seeds in small amounts and with caution. 
 
Type ABs can tolerate dairy foods fairly well. But watch out for excessive mucus production.
Generally Type ABs do well on grains, even wheat, but keep in mind that the inner kernel of the wheat grain is highly acid forming in the muscle for Type ABs. Type AB benefits from a diet rich in rice rather than pasta. 

Type ABs has a weaker immune system, so you will benefit from the vegetables, which are high in phytocheicals and the more alkaline fruits, which can help to balance the grains that are acid forming in the muscle tissues. Tomatoes do not impose any ill effects on Type ABs. 


So with all this in mind, I've taken on this challenge, i've drastically adjusted my diet and I'll definitely keep you up to date with the progress on these improvements. 

Watch this space.

Leo