Blood type diet

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The blood group diets are an alternative medical diet concept based on the theory of the American naturopath Peter J. D'Adamo. D'Adamo holds an ND (naturopathic doctorate) degree from Bastyr College (Seattle, WA, USA). Representatives of the blood group diets postulate that people with different blood groups tolerate food “ evolutionarily ” differently. A corresponding restriction of the selection should improve health and well-being and reduce the risk of illness. Representatives of the blood group diets assume that people of the different blood groups developed at certain points in time in human history . The 0-type (“the hunter”) is more of a meat eater ; Among other things, some legumes , wheat , milk and dairy products are rather unhealthy for him. The A-type ("the farmer") is vegetarian by nature ; he should avoid meat and dairy products, but also some beans and wheat. The B-type ("the nomad ") is described as an omnivore ; he tolerates all foods with a few exceptions such as chicken. The AB type (“the enigmatic”) is mixed food ; for him little meat, a lot of dairy products, grain and eggs, bread and pastries are cheap. In the context of this theory, D'Adamo assumes that people with different blood groups react differently to nutritional lectins . He claims that the inclusion of lectins with the antigen are incompatible one's own blood to clumping of red blood cells causes and diseases. Evidence for these hypotheses has not yet been described in the scientific literature.

Diet theory

According to Peter D'Adamo, blood group 0 is said to be the oldest blood group. It already developed when humans were still hunters and gatherers . Therefore, according to the blood group diet, people with blood group 0 are used to food rich in meat, but not to grain or dairy products , as there was neither agriculture nor cattle breeding at that time . So people with blood group 0 should still eat meat every day in order to stay healthy and should avoid grain, especially wheat and milk. It has not yet been scientifically possible to clarify which human blood group is the oldest “primordial blood group”. Molecular biological research shows that blood group 0 probably arose as a genetic mutation from blood group A at least 5 million years ago. Since great apes also have blood types 0, A and B, it is considered unlikely that the blood types have anything to do with human economies.

According to D'Adamo, blood group A emerged with the first farmers . They should mainly eat vegetables and grains, but no meat or milk, as the first farmers supposedly did not keep animals for food production. Blood group B is said to have developed among ranchers in Asia , the "nomad type", so people with blood group B are used to milk, and certain types of meat and grain are also part of their natural diet. The blood group AB emerged from the mixing of the blood groups A and B in recent times and symbolizes modern humans.

Blood groups and diseases

D'Adamo refers to related blood type study results to support his theory.

Certain blood types are more susceptible to certain pathogens than others because they each have specific antibodies and antigens . For smallpox therefore particularly people with blood type A are susceptible, while carriers of blood group 0 formerly particularly the plague fell victim to and from today ulcers are particularly affected causing bacteria. People with blood type A are statistically more prone to various types of cancer, such as breast cancer, as well as heart attacks . However, other studies showed an increased cancer risk for blood group B. The statements are therefore inconsistent, the reasons are unclear. Carriers of blood group B are statistically more likely to be affected by asthma .

criticism

The neutrality of this section is controversial and needs to be revised. More details should be given on the Wikipedia: Neutral standpoint . Please help to improve it , and then remove this flag.

The recommendations and prohibitions are based on misinterpretations. For example, the alleged milk intolerance of blood groups 0 and A is only the result of a name confusion. Alpha-ND-galactose belongs to blood group B, whereas milk contains beta-ND-galactose. The molecules of these galactose species are similar (hence the similar name), but the effect in the organism is completely different. Even if the lectin theory were correct, a negative effect of milk on people with blood group 0 or A is very questionable.

D'Adamo advises blood groups 0, A and AB to avoid milk. In Germany that would be 80 percent of the population. Only in Asia is blood group B most strongly represented. The regional distribution of lactose intolerance contradicts his hypotheses, because it is far more common in Asia than in Europe. Primary lactose intolerance is not an allergy, but a missing mutation on chromosome 2.

It is not understandable why people with blood group A, which is particularly common in Europe (the most common in some countries), shouldn't consume most types of meat, wheat and dairy products, which have been the basis of their diet for a long time. Instead, more soy consumption is advised, which would be more suitable for carriers of blood group B: This blood group occurs most frequently in Asia, only there is soy a typical component of regional cuisine.

D'Adamo's statements also contradict the theory of the sequence and regional origin of blood groups when he claims that blood group A originated in the Caucasus region and B in the Himalayan region. Why then of all people with blood group A increasingly consume soy and milk or dairy products (people in the Caucasus region in particular are known for their kefir consumption, kefir is classified as neutral for blood group A, and digestible for B and AB), meat and Avoiding wheat lacks logic.

Depending on the blood group, the protein content of the diet is sometimes too high, which can lead to gout or the formation of urinary stones . The group of "hunters" does not receive enough carbohydrates and fiber .

In 2000, the German Nutrition Society (DGE) assessed : “In no case has it been scientifically documented that lectins from foods lead to agglutination in the blood. (...) D'Adamo uses unsecured, seductively simple-sounding assumptions as facts and presents lectins in food as a general danger. (...) Most herbal lectins are harmless. (...) In addition, heating destroys the lectin activity in almost all foods with the exception of roasted peanuts (...). "

The Stiftung Warentest assessed in 2005: “Since we are still alive despite having violated these rules for centuries, the question arises as to the sense and nonsense of the diet. (...) The role of lectins in nutrition is considerably overestimated by D'Adamo, and his blood-group-specific nutrition is completely unfounded. The German Nutrition Society (DGE) assesses the most plant lectins as harmless (that green beans or green beans may not raw in large quantities eat is now well known). A clumping of blood cells has not yet been found in a single case. And there is also no evidence that diseases are positively influenced by the blood group diet. "

The systematic review by Leila Cusack et al. from 2013 concluded that there is currently no evidence to confirm the purported health benefits of blood type diets.

literature

  • Peter D'Adamo, Catherine Whitney: 4 blood types, 4 strategies for a healthy life . 23rd edition. Piper Verlag, 2000, ISBN 3-492-04118-3
  • Anita Hessmann-Kosaris: The blood group diet. The groundbreaking nutrition program for vitality, well-being and a slim figure . Goldmann Verlag, 2000, ISBN 3-442-16283-1

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ D'Adamo's curriculum vitae on his website
  2. ↑ Blood type diets with no proven benefit . German Nutrition Society (DGE), press release, 2013.
  3. ↑ Christine M. Cserti, Walter H. Dzik: The ABO blood group system and Plasmodium falciparum malaria . In: Blood . tape 110 , no. 7 , 2007, p. 2250-2258 .
  4. ↑ 3sat article on blood groups
  5. ↑ Relationship of Blood groups to disease: do blood group antigens have a biological role? (PDF); 161 kB
  6. ^ The role of blood group antigens in infectious diseases . PMID 10791886
  7. ^ ABO blood groups and coronary heart disease (CHD). A study in subjects with severe and latent CHD . PMID 7455973
  8. ↑ Familial and sporadic breast cancer cases in Iceland: a comparison related to ABO blood groups and risk of bilateral breast cancer . PMID 3170024
  9. ^ "Blood group diet is scientifically unsustainable" , press release, in DGE aktuell 19/00, June 13, 2000
  10. ↑ Diets in comparison: diets of all kinds, psycho and blood group diets. In: test.de, May 1, 2005, Stiftung Warentest
  11. ↑ Leila Cusack, Emmy De Buck, Veerle Compernolle, Philippe Vandekerckhove: Blood type diets lack supporting evidence: a systematic review In: Am J Clin Nutr. 2013 Jul; 98 (1): 99-104. doi: 10.3945 / ajcn.113.058693 . PMID 23697707 .