The Eat Right Diet

The individual diet solution to staying healthy, living longer and achieving your ideal weight

THE EAT RIGHT DIET

Peter D'Adamo with Catherine Whitney

ISBN 0-7126-7784-4 : Published by Century Books

I purchased this book over 18 months ago and it has been sitting on my shelf ever since. I am not sure now why I bought it - it just sort of "jumped out" at me whilst I was browsing in a book shop killing time one day.

Since then however, Peter D'Adamo's name has been staring back at me from almost every journal/magazine or newspaper I have read. Then in late October I received, through the post, a "cold call" mailshot.

I was more intrigued to begin with that the company was based in Dollar, a little village in Scotland where I spent 3 years when my children were very young. In fact Dollar was where I "discovered" alternative medicine if you like.

The GP I was registered with happened to be a Homeopath. When I was very upset one day because my youngest son was diagnosed with Glue Ear, I confessed to a fear of not being able to cope with going down the same path of antibiotics and surgery as I had done with my oldest son. Dr Geddes suggested Homeopathy as an alternative route ... I had never heard of it but we had so much success with both my children that I began to get curiouser and curiouser, and the rest, as they say, is history.

I digress .... the company were advertising products which are used in connection with Dr Peter D'Adamo's revolutionary blood type diet and so here, I thought, was a sign, a sign to get on and read the book. There had to be a message in there for me ! So on New Year's Day, determined to take some new knowledge into 2001, I sat down and read it from cover to cover. I was hooked from Page 1.

It was even more intriguing because before I started I caught up with some journals I subscribe to, one being The Nutrition Practitioner. The theme this issue was "Grains". The link throughout was Lectins a protein found in grains, cereals and pulses and the effect they have on the body. (Gluten is a Lectin). You may well ask at this juncture. What does this have to do with Dr D'Adamo's book ? the answer is .... everything.

The Introduction describes the history of mankind and the inherent differences in blood types. D'Adamo begins by stating "your blood type is the key that unlocks the door to the mysteries of health, longevity, physical vitality and emotional strength."

He goes on to say "your blood type determines your susceptibility to illness, which foods you should eat and how you should exercise. It is a factor in your energy levels, the efficiency with which you burn calories, your emotional response to stress and perhaps even your personality". He suggests that blood typing is not radical, rather it is fundamental and describes the process as "the signature of our ancient ancestors in the indestructible parchment of history".

Dr D'Adamo states that he did not just stumble upon this revelation. He describes himself as a second generation naturopathic physician, following in his father, Dr James D'Adamo's, footsteps. Over the many years of consulting countless patients studying individual dietary needs, he began to see a pattern emerging with regard to blood typing. For instance, Type A's "seemed to do poorly on high-protein diets but did very well on vegetable proteins such as Soya and Tofu's". Conversely, Type O's "thrived on high-protein diets"

Dr Peter D'Adamo's breakthrough came when he made connections between blood types and two major diseases of the stomach, namely Peptic ulcer and Stomach cancer. He states that Peptic ulcer (reported to be more common in Type O) often relates to higher than average stomach acid levels whereas Stomach cancer (more often found in Type A) is often linked to low levels of stomach acid levels.

He also cites Pernicious anaemia as more often being found in Type A's. It's interesting to note that Pernicious anaemia is related to a lack of vitamin B12 which requires sufficient stomach acid for its' absorption.

Fascinated ? We have only got as far as Page 4 of the Introduction !

The book takes you through the history of mankind beginning with Neanderthals (500,000 years ago) who were the hunter gatherers and found to be Type O's. As the human race evolved and travelled, we were forced to change our diet to the conditions we were faced with, provoking "adaptations in the digestive tract and immune system".

These changes were reflected in the development of blood types which appear to have "arrived at critical junctures of human development". For instance, Type A's emerged when the change from "hunter-gatherer" to Agrarian lifestyle came about (a mere 20,000 years ago). Agriculture and animal domestication were the hallmarks of its' culture. Type B arrived next somewhere between 10 000 and 15 000 BC.

Dr D'Adamo informs us that of all the blood types, Type B shows the most clearly defined geographic distribution. Apparently, Type B's are found in increased numbers from Japan, Mongolia, China and India. Type AB's (D'Adamo describes as "mingling of the groups" ) are the youngest of the blood types, said only to be between 500 and 900 years old.

(Reviewers note : There is an argument which says that we will eventually evolve enabling our digestive and immune systems to cope with modern farming methods, fast foods, processing and refining - how many hundreds of years will it take I wonder ?) Meanwhile we suffer the miseries of allergic reactions, sensitivities, cancers, auto immune diseases and whatever else is to come).

Dr D'Adamo asks "why is your blood type so powerful?" and answers "because it is the key to your body's entire immune system" and suggests that this is as true today as it was thousands of years ago.

He goes on to explain that the immune system "controls the influence of viruses, bacteria, infection, chemicals, stress and the entire assortment of invaders and conditions that might compromise your immune system".

He further explains that the immune system "works to define self and destroy non self. Another way he puts it is "recognising us and killing them".

D'Adamo describes the body as "a large - invitation only - party". If the prospective guest supplies the correct invitation, the security guards allow him to enter. If an invitation is lacking or forged, the guest is forcefully removed".

We are encouraged to think about our blood type as the Chief Security Guard. Your blood contains markers (antigens) for recognising invaders. If the invading antigens do not match up with the antigens in your blood type then the battle begins. Blood type is named by the antigen in your red blood cells, ie Antigens A, B, A and B, or O.

As soon as your blood detects that there are foreign antigens trying to enter the body, the first thing it does is create antibodies which are designed to seek out, literally stick like glue to, and destroy the foreign antigens. "A continual battle wages between the immune system and intruders" in order to keep us healthy.

The gluing factor is extremely important in this process. It is called "agglutination". Mutated cells, viruses, parasites and bacteria are clumped together via this process which ultimately makes it much easier for the body to dispose of the invaders. D'Adamo describes it rather like "handcuffing criminals together. They become far less dangerous when they are not allowed to move around freely". This is why Blood Type A's can not donate their blood to Type B. In that situation, the body will see the Antigen B as an invader and reject it.

It is here that we find the link with Lectins and blood types - this process of Agglutination. Why ? because it has been found that foods also contain agglutinating properties which affect your blood. Therefore a food which may be harmful to the cells of one blood type may be beneficial to another. Plants, Pulses, Grains and Cereals also use the "superglue" aspect of agglutination for survival purposes, to stave off bacteria and parasites.

Dr D'Adamo suggests that if a chemical reaction occurs between your blood type and the foods you eat, "the reaction could be part of your genetic inheritance".

There is another problem. Many antigens have characteristics so closely related to the host antigens that these clever intruders can mimic the cells in your body to try and fool the security guards into allowing them into the party, ie they have forged invitations.

If that happens in your body and a Lectin protein settles in and around vital organs, it literally has a magnetic effect on ALL the cells in that region (invaders or not). This is when the immune system can turn in on itself and self destruct. It literally can not tell the difference between self and non self. Rheumatoid Arthritis, Lupus, Multiple Sclerosis are a few of the conditions where this happens..

"Clumping" as D'Adamo describes it, can cause "irritable bowel syndrome", cirrhosis of the liver, block the flow of blood through the kidneys" and so on. The powerful action of Lectins in the digestive tract, he suggests, can create violent inflammation and the agglutinative action may mimic food allergies.

The advice from Dr D'Adamo is, rather than become fearful of EVERY food you eat and cut it out of your diet, the key is to avoid the Lectins that agglutinate YOUR particular cells. Remember, these are determined by your blood type.

The example D'Adamo gives is gluten. "The Lectins found in wheat have a different shape and attaches to different combinations of sugars than Lectins found in Soya, making each of these foods dangerous for some blood types but beneficial for others". "Injections of lentil Lectin into the knee joint cavities of non sensitive rabbits resulted in the development of arthritis that was indistinguishable from rheumatoid arthritis. Many people with arthritis feel that avoiding the so-called "nightshade" vegetables, such as tomatoes, aubergines and white potatoes seems to help arthritis. That's not surprising since most nightshades are VERY HIGH in Lectins".

The book goes on to help you identify your blood type and describe, in great detail, the right plan for each blood type.

For each type, it sets down the foods which are highly beneficial, those which are neutral and those which should be avoided. Ie the specific foods which contain the Lectins which will cause problems for you.

It appears not to be a diet in the sense of deprivation, of counting calories or of complicated recipes, more a balanced lifestyle change. For example the vegetarian diet (Blood Type A) allows some fish and shellfish but strictly no meat.

This book is highly recommended for those who have seriously and honestly tried everything to lose weight without success and for that matter anyone who is fed up with feeling unwell for "no obvious reason".

"The Eat Right Diet will teach you about the fundamental relationship between YOUR blood type and the dietary and lifestyle choices that will help YOU live at YOUR very best".

For more information or help/support with the dietary plans please contact Bromley Health Management. We also have in stock, a supply of Blood Testing Kits if you wish to determine your blood type before embarking on the Plan.

There is a Kitchen Companion which accompanies this book entitled "Cook right for your type". It includes more than 200 original recipes as well as 30 individual meal plans.

ISBN 0-425-17329-1

Monday, 15 January 2001

© 2001 Bromley Health Management