• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Breaking Muscle

Breaking Muscle

Breaking Muscle

  • Fitness
  • Workouts
    • Best Shoulder Workouts
    • Best Chest Workouts
    • Best Leg Workouts
    • Best Leg Exercises
    • Best Biceps Exercises
    • Best Kettlebell Exercises
    • Best Back Workouts
    • Best HIIT Workouts
    • Best Triceps Exercises
    • Best Arm Workouts
  • Reviews
    • Supplements
      • Best Pre-Workouts
      • Best Whey Protein
    • Equipment
      • Best Home Gym Machines
    • Certifications
      • ISSA Review
  • News
  • Exercise Guides
    • Legs
      • Back Squat
      • Bulgarian Split Squat
      • Goblet Squat
      • Zercher Squat
      • Standing Calf Raise
      • Hack Squat
    • Chest
      • Bench Press
      • Dumbbell Bench Press
      • Close-Grip Bench Press
      • Incline Bench Press
    • Shoulders
      • Overhead Dumbbell Press
      • Lateral Raise
    • Arms
      • Chin-Up
      • Weighted Pull-Up
      • Triceps Pushdown
    • Back
      • Deadlift
      • Trap Bar Deadlift
      • Lat Pulldown
      • Inverted Row
      • Bent-Over Barbell Row
      • Single-Arm Dumbbell Row
      • Pendlay Row
Fitness

Blood Type Diet Debunked

The blood type diet has garnered quite a following since its introduction, but a new study suggests it might not actually work. In fact, it seems maybe we should all eat similar diets.

Written by Jeff Barnett Last updated on January 28, 2014

Eat Right for your Type, the 1997 book by Peter D’Adamo, has sold millions of copies. D’Adamo claims that our dietary needs differ by blood type. People with type A blood should eat mostly vegetables and eschew meat. Those with type O blood should eat more meat. Type B and AB are moderate, falling somewhere between the extremes. But does science back up these claims?

“Of course not!” said a recent study in PLOS One. Researchers examined data from a large study in Toronto that collected data from almost 1,500 participants, who recorded their dietary habits in detail. Then the researchers compared participants’ habits to their blood type and general markers of health, like cholesterol and blood pressure. Would those who ate right for their blood type have better health than those who did not? Not a chance.

But here’s the best part. Those who ate according to the type A, type AB, or type O diet all had better health markers – it just didn’t matter whether their diets were matched to their actual blood types. Anyone who ate the type A or AB diet showed lower blood pressure and lower triglycerides. Type A dieters even had a smaller waist. Anyone who ate the type O diet showed lower triglycerides.

How can this be? Because each of the blood type diets contains some recommendation for either increased lean meat or vegetables. And that’s going to improve your health regardless of your blood type. So while matching your diet to your blood type is a futile exercise, eating according to any of the recommended blood type diets can actually result in positive progress.

I’m not sure why anyone ever believed that different blood types have different dietary needs. I suspect it’s rooted in the idea that we are all special, when in fact, we are not. I know you probably feel like you have a unique situation that has never been faced by anyone else. Your blood type is AB negative. You don’t like the taste of fish. And your son, Faustian, must be driven to soccer practice three times per week on a route that passes Taco Bell. Guess what? Nature doesn’t care. You’re just a homo sapien. Your genes are programmed to respond to your every decision about diet and lifestyle, and nothing gets you a free pass from the consequences. We aren’t a society of special snowflakes. We are a society of people who are remarkably similar in needs. The sooner we all accept this, the better off we’ll be.

References

1. Jingzhou Wang, et al. ABO Genotype, ‘Blood-Type’ Diet and Cardiometabolic Risk Factors. PLOS One. Published: January 15, 2014. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0084749

Photo courtesy of Shutterstock.

About Jeff Barnett

Jeff Barnett is a CrossFit affiliate owner, mechanical engineer, and former Marine. He is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist. He holds specialty certifications as a CrossFit Mobility Trainer, CrossFit Olympic Lifting Trainer, CrossFit Gymnastics Trainer and is a USA Weightlifting Sports and Performance Coach. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering and an MBA.

Jeff served as a Marine officer from 2003-2007 and deployed to Fallujah in 2006. After leaving the Marine Corps he co-founded CrossFit Impulse in 2009. His writing focuses on fitness, nutrition, and leadership. Jeff’s writing has appeared in publications as diverse as The New York Times and CrossFit Journal.

Jeff competed in the CrossFit Games Southeast Regionals in 2010 as an individual competitor and 2012 as a team competitor. If you don’t find him training hard or coaching athletes to PRs at CrossFit Impulse, then he’s probably wakeboarding, snowboarding, or eating meat off the bone.

View All Articles

Recommended Articles

intermittentfastingandcircadianclock
Beating Your Genetics with Time Restricted Eating Patterns
When It Comes to Food, Options Can Be Obstacles
Method Man Incline Dumbbell Presses December 2022
Check Out Rapper Method Man Cruising Through 120-Pound Incline Dumbbell Presses for 10 Reps
Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson Leg Workout
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson Crushes 5 “Monster Sets” of a Leg Workout

Primary Sidebar

Latest Articles

Powerlifter Jimmy Kolb Logs 612.5-Kilogram (1,350.3-Pound) Equipped Bench Press World Record

The Ultimate Back and Biceps Workout for Every Lifter From Beginner to Advanced

Strongman Legend Hafthor Björnsson Receives International Sports Hall of Fame Induction

Iain Valliere Believes the 212 Division Should No Longer Exist in Bodybuilding

Latest Reviews

ISSA Personal Trainer Certification Review

ISSA Personal Trainer Certification Review

Best Whey Proteins for Packing on Muscle, Shredding Down, Meal Replacement, and More

Best Pre-Workouts for Building Muscle, Running, Taste, and More

Best Home Gym Machines

Best Home Gym Machines

woman lifting barbell

Be the smartest person in your gym

The Breaking Muscle newsletter is everything you need to know about strength in a 3 minute read.

I WANT IN!

Breaking Muscle is the fitness world’s preeminent destination for timely, high-quality information on exercise, fitness, health, and nutrition. Our audience encompasses the entire spectrum of the fitness community: consumers, aficionados, fitness professionals, and business owners. We seek to inform, educate and advocate for this community.

  • Reviews
  • Healthy Eating
  • Workouts
  • Fitness
  • News

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS Feed

© 2023 · Breaking Muscle · Terms of Use · Privacy Policy · Affiliate Disclaimer · Accessibility · About