Blood Type Tendencies
Background and General Comments
Many years ago I heard Dr. James D’Adamo Sr. speak at a naturopathic conference about the role of blood type in disease and treatment. Since then, my clients and I have found many of his ideas valid. Later, his son, Peter, wrote several books (Eat Right 4 Your Type,…) which brought laboratory validation to his father’s work using live blood cell analysis. Some of the info contained below is a result of the older D’Adamo’s work, some the younger, and some of my own observations. (You can order a kit to find your blood type, but I also have kits at my office)
The Blood Type diet is NOT based on an eating philosophy or theory, such as vegan, no/low fats, no/low carbs, no/low cooked foods, no red meat, etc., but rather, on actual observations of the change of blood quality after the ingestion of specific foods. These blood changes show whether inflammation has been introduced, and, are related largely to blood type (genetics). So for some blood types, red meat is needful, and others should be avoiding it. According to my clients’ results it is the most relevant and therapeutic ‘diet’ to avoid inflammatory conditions AND weight gain.
So for each blood type there is a list of foods which cause inflammation. There is nothing wrong with the food, but rather with our genetic incapacity to reduce that food without creating inflammation. If you have any inflammatory disease or are slow to resolve an inflammation, then it is important to avoid the inflammatory foods for your blood type. Also, if you want to reduce high blood pressure, or lose weight, avoid inflammatory foods. There is an app for the smart phone with an icon that looks like the cover of D’Adamo’s book (Eat Right 4 Your Type) that is very useful. It is kept updated with new info and has many features (about $4).
Missing from the information D’Adamo supplies is HOW MUCH inflammation is introduced. That is, a serving of some inflammatory foods may not produce noticeable or immediate symptoms, and others may produce symptoms within the hour.
The most common manifestations of food-induced inflammation are flu-like symptoms, ‘tummy bug’, itching, or joint pain, or bloating, or headaches, or swellings leading to increased blood pressure..based on the feedback I get from my clients.
Finally, people are often taken aback by the fact that some foods they have eaten all their life are deemed inflammatory. Why stop eating them now? Because, over time, the by-products of the inflammation start congesting the liver, creating many of the above symptoms. Also, when you were young, it was relatively easy to recover from the insult. But if we eat a lot of these foods, no matter what the age, symptoms, including weight gain, creep in.
Blood Type O
I find that O’s (the most common blood type in the USA) are best characterized by their overall hardiness and their vigorous digestive capability – sometimes too vigorous as these are the people most commonly plagued by the over-acid stomach. To calm a stomach over-stimulated by worry consider Catnip (#180-4). A helpful aide to heal the tissue is Stomach Comfort (#1820-0)
Type Os don’t generally do well on a multi vitamin but benefit greatly from Super Algae (#1056-5) instead which balances their endocrines, gives them sustainable energy, and provides them needed minerals.
O’s that tend to be tense or constipated often find benefit in taking the mineral Magnesium. They usually test for the magnesium mix in Magnesium (#1786-6). If an O has hypertension they respond to this very well over time. Other ailments that show O’s that they have a Magnesium deficiency are the following: allergy to dust, joint pain due to tight muscles (magnesium is THE muscle relaxer), constipation (the bowel is a muscle – which is why Milk of Magnesia works), general muscle spasms or cramps whether menstrual, leg, abdominal, bladder, intercostals, etc. If it is tight or spasms or cramps and you are an O try Magnesium. If Magnesium does not completely resolve those conditions, add Lobelia (#430-1). In fact the #1 deficiency in the US is magnesium NOT calcium. Magnesium is necessary for the proper utilization of calcium. Deposition of calcium can be due to long term magnesium deficiency (or ill-advised Calcium supplementation) and results in kidney stones, and other calcium deposits like cataracts and bone spurs. (If you have any of these calcium deposit problems add Hydrangea Root (#395-6) to Magnesium (#1786-6) and drink lemon water often. Hydrangea Root dissolves calculi. And visit the Kidney document for more info)
O’s don’t usually do grains very well (particularly corn and wheat) and will likely crave them and wear them (weight gain). The solution is to replace the carb portions with light protein like eggs or turkey bacon especially in the morning. This reduces sugar cravings as well as carb cravings (dysglycemia). If O’s plan to do the Adkin’s diet, they would do well to supplement with lots of Kelp (#410-3) or Super Algae (#1056-5) (see Quality Issues because once much of the Kelp on the market had high levels of arsenic in it – Kelp (#410-3) has been checked for this). This helps the kidney with some the protein products it is receiving. Magnesium too will help the kidney to remove the metabolic waste of protein breakdown from the body. To loose weight O’s should avoid all wheat and corn products (especially if they are diabetic), or any of the inflammatory foods on their Blood Type list.
O’s with ulcers or with irritable or sensitive bowels should be taking Slippery Elm (#670-7) – 3 before each meal. They can also do the powder (#1391-2) 1&1/2 tsp in about 3/4 c water. They also benefit from Skeletal Strength (#1806-7) a supplement which tends to soothe the bowels and provide tissue rebuilding materials. Omega 3 (#1515-7) is generally the best anti inflammatory for O’s whether for bowel or joint pain. If stress is also involved, add GrapineHP (#1699-3) for its natural anti inflammatory action.
Although O’s are rarely sick (if they follow their O-diet), the best approach to ward off an infection is to take kitchen herbs like Ginger, Cayenne and Garlic, to heat up their kettle. They commonly test for CC-A (#840-5). This is Paavo Airola’s formula for colds and congestion. I’d also recommend a heating pad. The popular herb Echinacea doesn’t seem to work as well for O’s as the herbs in CC-A.
Finally, I’ve found that because O’s are a hardy folk, they are the ones most likely to ignore signs of imbalance because they often go away with time. They are the ones who are rarely sick as they grow up if they are blessed to be raised in a low stress family. Their Achilles heel is blood sugar regulation and are more likely to have problems with hypoglycemia (ADD & ADHD) and diabetes. O’s do not physically handle stress very well, and usually test for Chinese Stress Relief (#1863-5) to help with stress. Typically O’s will say to me, “…but I’m never sick – I rarely have a cold – I can’t believe I’ve been diagnosed with ___________” O’s can beat themselves up with poor diet and health habits and snap back fairly quickly to apparent good health. Deficiencies and stress catch up with them as they age and they are the most surprised. Download the dietary recommendations for an O blood type (NOTE this is NOT up to date).
Blood Type A
Unlike O’s, those with blood type A (the second most common blood type) usually know from experience which foods and health habits they must abide by. When I give A’s a diet for their type they look it over and say, ‘Oh, I already know I can’t eat ______ or _____’. Their bodies are more sensitive to their environment and their foods. The most important rule for A’s regarding eating is to NEVER eat too much at one time NOR eat while stressed. I think of A’s as having a low horsepower digestion. Overeating clogs and putrefies the digestion system of an A. An early indicator of this is chronic sinus problems. Stress disables the release of digestive enzymes onto the food we have eaten, A’s become toxic with undigested foods, which gums up their circulation, then their lymphatic system, and then their respiration. Most A’s benefit from a course of Food Enzymes (#1836-9). Some do better on PDA (#1837-5) especially if they have to run to the bathroom immediately after eating. I don’t recommend staying on these but for maybe 1 bottle. We want the body to make its own enzymes.
A’s sensitivity makes them the most vulnerable to toxic exposures. They are the ‘canary in the well’. Also because of their sensitivity, A’s make the best spouses because they easily read other people. They ‘get it’.
A’s do much better in every other department when their digestion is working. Their other characteristic weaknesses are heart problems and mucus problems. These are greatly exacerbated by poor digestion. The heart can be supported in many ways. The circulatory discussion will help you choose which kind of supplementation is best for your circulation. To take the digestive load off the heart the Abdominal Massage is an important exercise. A’s are commonly plagued by poor circulation caused by thick blood.
Mucus is our body’s way of removing irritants. It is supposed to be sticky (to capture the irritant), gooey (to soothe the irritated tissues in your body), and flowing (to carry the offenders out). So why so much mucus? Undigested food putrefies in the intestines, creating signals to make mucus to flush out the putrefaction. The whole body responds to the call for a mucus cleansing, IF you have the ingredients to do it. If not, you are in big trouble because many of these irritants that the body is trying to flush out are carcinogens. And A’s are much more susceptible to cancer. Mucus is NOT the enemy, it can save your life.
A’s are more susceptible to ulcers and stomach cancer especially with lots of stress (stress inhibits mucus release in the stomach to protect it from the contents). To avoid this scenario, they should consider taking good care of their tummy with products like Whole Leaf Aloe Vera (#1693-4). Two tablespoons in water 2X/day between or before meals will feel wonderful. Ginger (#300-6) is another wonderful aid to deficient stomach function as is Burdock (#140-2).
If I had to recommend a multi for A’s to take to address their underlying weaknesses it would be NutriCalm (#4803-3) as it will relax the A’s sensitive nervous system.
A’s do well with Echinacea for infections but Dr Christopher’s IN-X (#1220-1) formula is better for them in that it helps A’s with their sluggish lymph flow. A’s do well to keep this on hand.
Download the dietary recommendations for an A blood type (NOTE this is NOT up to date).
Blood Type B
B’s comprise only about 10% of the U.S. population so consequently I don’t have as much clinical experience with their problems and remedies but, ‘yours truly’ and most of my family have this blood type. Like O’s, B’s don’t do well with stress, in fact B’s suffer the most damage from stress and it is evidenced in their nervous system. A good ‘multi’ for a B blood type to take often is Chinese Stress Relief (#1863-5) or Valerian Root (#720-0) or Wood Betony(#740-6). B’s are also more susceptible to the stress diseases, nervous breakdowns, viral diseases, and nerve related disorders so an ounce of prevention is done with these herbal formulas. B’s need to practice relaxation all day and they benefit from doing the emotional stress release exercise. Their nervous system is their Achilles heel so anything that soothes the nervous system and calms the muscles needs to be part of their regular supplementation. Herbs like KavaKava (#405-9 is a concentrate) helps as do the nervine formulas like Nerve 8 (#873-6) and Nerve Control(#1242-4). See the discussion of magnesium under blood type O above. Skeletal Strength is also a wonderful sleep aide for children or adults with difficulty settling down for a night’s rest. My kiddo who used to toss and turn all night sleeps like a log on Skeletal Strength. It has also helped my children with growth and growing pains, their teeth coming in on time, hyperactivity and hypersensitivity – since the minerals are sedative.
B’s seem more susceptible to viral infections likely because viruses work on the nerves damaged by stress. An effective formula for any kind of infection in B’s is the concentrated Chinese Trigger Immune (#1034-0). It is good to have this on hand. Another family favorite is AdaptoMax (#872-9).
Download the dietary recommendations for an B blood type (NOTE this is NOT up to date).
Blood Type AB
AB’s are rare birds, comprising only 4% of the US population. Like A’s these folks have a delicate constitution which will not take much abuse. They have the digestive weaknesses of A’s and the nervous sensitivities of B’s. An over all ‘multi’ for type AB’s would be Paavo Airola’s formula HY-A (#950-0). This both balances digestion and balances their blood sugar to postpone their dysglycemic tendencies.
To address infection, AB’s do well to have Golden Seal (#340-7) on hand.
Download the dietary recommendations for an AB blood type (NOTE this is NOT up to date).
©Pat Block ND 2007, revised 2011
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Hi Pat, I have been taking the Chinese Nervous Fatigue capsules. I find that they enhance my sense of well being but give me acid reflux. Do I have something in my herb arsenal that could help?
Also, finally had my blood tested and it showed that my blood is B positive. I am looking forward to seeing you when I return to Williamsburg in late Oct. Vicki
The best remedy in your arsenal is your own hands. Do the ab massage. This is best done every night but a shortened version can be done before each meal. Also the herbs should go down BEFORE the meal.
See ya in Oct.
Pat,
Just wanted to tell you that since my last visit with you when you encouraged me again to go on the type O diet, I have stayed on that diet totally and it has made a huge difference. The hot flashes stopped and the gas and bloating stopped. Thank you so much for continuing to tell me what I needed to do. I should have listened to you sooner!!
God bless,
dd
Any word on coconut oil for type B? I’d love to still be able to use it for cooking and supplementing.
Thanks!
Amy
Hey Amy,
There is a cell phone app that helps you stay informed on the various foods for each of the blood types. Unfortunately coconut is inflammatory for B’s (I’m a B too.)
how does one balance using some of these herbs with say 5-HTP or the other one for dopamine deficiency?
Hey Robyn,
The mood is held by the liver so you can get on the right track by doing the Gentle Liver Cleanse.
Pat
I found out I am blood type B. I can’t believe how spot on your description of their tendencies are! It explains a lot and I’m very hopeful that I’ll be able to have a better quality of life knowing this information. Thank you!
My boss’s Brother was exposed to sewer gas thus methane gas undiscovered for Y E A R S but treated with drugs for all the side effects ; not KNOWING their cause! Lead to a massive brain bleed, perhaps preceded by TIA’s. resulting in damage to vision in the left eye and memory loss and difficulty finding word ,not able to read or write. What would help him recover???? He always was a highly sensitive man and anxious, now MUCH more so.
Hello Diane,
To begin, do the Gentle Liver Cleanse to clear the drugs out of his body and improve blood quality to the brain. Eye symptoms mean liver involvement! Also anxiety and depression begin in the liver.
Pat
HI Pat!
I just downloaded the Dietary Recommendations for A Blood Types and noticed that there are no meats or fish listed in the “Therapeutic Foods” column. I did read that an unlisted food is one that is neutral but I just wanted to ask, “Are there really no therapeutic meats/fish for type A’s?”
Hey Anna
Congratulations on finding your blood type!
There are no beneficial meats for the A blood type, but there are some that are neutral such as chicken and turkey. There are many beneficial fish. That was unfortunately omitted in my website page. I recommend people get the app for their smart phone. There are many apps, but the one that is kept updated has an icon that looks like the cover of his book Eat Right 4 Your Type.
Pat
Thanks, Pat!
I appreciate the help and the congrats and to know there are beneficial fish! I’m gunning for salmon! 😉
Blessings and Gratitude,
Anna
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