Blood type diet. Naturopath route

So I went to a naturopath out of curiosity and the wanting to do anything that is within my power to help and not hurt. She is the protege of the blood type diet person. I am a type O positive secretor blood type and a hunter gatherer. My diet I would say most closely resembles Paleo except that there are beans and grains that are allowed for my specific blood type.
I have a 42 page binder of information specific to me, it all sounds good. Now if I can just take the time and discipline to do it.
Anyone else try this?
I just started Humira am hoping to wean off of entocort right away. The naturopath did not try to talk me out of the medication, she just told me that in her opinion I could remain in remission with just the diet. I imagine my GI would be highly against me coming off of my Humira. We are not there yet but I'm just considering all possibilities. I've heard both. Some people swear by yhen natural approach, others sound as it is ludicrous to think it can help a diseAse like crohns. I am interested in any and all experiences!

Have never tried it myself but reading wikipedia it seems there is no evidence to substantiate these claims it works.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_type_diet

If it isn't going to cost you then you can always try it, but make sure you are still getting all your vitamins as need, and if you feel worse or your blood results see a negative impact I would stop asap

Personally I would rather go for a paleo diet

The natural approach and the naturopath approach are different things, unfortunately.

The blood test has been pretty thoroughly disproven at this point as far as eating recommendations go.

I'd also recommend paleo or paleo auto-immune and then work forwards from there.

Trevor said:

The natural approach and the naturopath approach are different things, unfortunately.

The blood test has been pretty thoroughly disproven at this point as far as eating recommendations go.

I'd also recommend paleo or paleo auto-immune and then work forwards from there.

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Do you have specific proof the blood type diet does not work or is that just your opinion? Just wondering because it is alive and well in many naturopathic practices. I'd love to see the information you have to back up your statement.

I,ve read some articles from nhs web-sites and practioners which seem to say there is no measurable improvement with these homeopathic/naturists treatments and need to be treated with caution and one article kinda sarcastically points out that these treatments generally end up recommending sufferers buy rather expensive books off the internet.treat with extreme caution.good luck

I wouldn't touch it with a 10-foot pole...

http://www.skepdic.com/bloodtypediet.html

And if your naturopath suggests homeopathic remedies, take your money and RUN.

The problem with most homeopathic/naturopathic ideas is there is usually a kernel of sense in them but little or no science to back it up.i mean let's be honest if one these people discovered the golden bullet for cancer,Alzheimer's or crohns why wouldn't,t the big pharmaceutical companies not be all over it like a bad rash?the tiny kernel is usually we all know a better diet more exercise,no smoking and little or no alcohol is better for us,it's boring but good for us.

Ckoenig said:

Do you have specific proof the blood type diet does not work or is that just your opinion? Just wondering because it is alive and well in many naturopathic practices. I'd love to see the information you have to back up your statement.

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In science, if you have an idea its up to you (as believers) to prove it works, not for others to disprove it. If you look at that wiki link you will see there is no research to prove it works (and actually some that shows it doesn't)

Ckoenig said:

I am a type O positive secretor blood type and a hunter gatherer. My diet I would say most closely resembles Paleo except that there are beans and grains that are allowed for my specific blood type.

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My suggestion.....
If you are type O then try paleo and only add in the beans and grains once your digestion is improved and see how you handle them then.

There is quite a difference between being disproved and just being unproven, but i take the BTD with a grain of salt, (tried it for a while, type b, preferred the results i got with paleo, and too many gimicks to purchase on BTD)

Try this post to help disproved what he said

http://donmatesz.blogspot.com.au/2010/12/blood-type-diet-primal-perspective.html

rygon said:

In science, if you have an idea its up to you (as believers) to prove it works, not for others to disprove it. If you look at that wiki link you will see there is no research to prove it works (and actually some that shows it doesn't)

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I appreciate the info. However you know anyone can post to wiki right? It is not a valid source for anything

Also the only things I've been suggested to purchase via naturopath are butyric acid which can only help and a better and cheaper probiotic than the florastor I have been taking. My insurance covers it otherwise so she hasn't tried to sell me a thing or even tell me not to take the Humira.

I think susan2 uses a blood type diet.

Well that's good you haven,t been sold or stung for anything.i got my info off nhs websites and a university website.a few years ago the nhs had a homeopathic only hospital which is now closed because it didn't,t cure anything and there was no independent scientific research that homeopathy worked.I also now that a lot of our present drugs are or were based on plant extracts,but I need proof myself and I know acupuncture does something as long as everyone is carefull it wouldn't,t be good if it made things worse.good luck

Ckoenig said:

Some people swear by yhen natural approach, others sound as it is ludicrous to think it can help a diseAse like crohns. I am interested in any and all experiences!

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There are alot of sensible things in the BTD, no processed foods, low sugar, all sorts of good measures, along with a few unproven things particular to that diet.
They all work that way, paleo, vegan, SCD, even weight watchers....

This is a good article on diets and how much we know about WHY they work:

Raw Vegan, Blood Type O and the Paleo Diet – what do they have in common?
http://paleozonenutrition.com/2012/...d-the-paleo-diet-what-do-they-have-in-common/
"When people change their diet and achieve significant health improvements, they often change multiple factors – i.e they remove many foods and add in many foods, so most people have little idea what specific change in their diet caused the biggest improvement in their condition. As a result they become passionate about the dietary philosophy that improved their health, and are convinced if only others followed this particular eating plan – they too would get dramatic health improvements."

"Foods that made up our entire diet for 99% of our existence on earth:
- Animal foods of many types, nose to tail – meat, fat, organs, bone marrow
- Insects, larvae
- Seafood, both caught and gathered (shellfish, aquatic creatures)
- Plant starches; tubers, squash, starchy roots
- Plant sugars – whole fruit, honey (i.e. plant nectar)
- Sea plants – seaweed
- Green and coloured plant foods, vegetables
- Nuts and seeds, e.g. coconut (but not cereal seeds as too inefficient / toxic for a hunter gatherer)"

"Food we have added that we now eat daily, if not at every meal:
- Cereal grains with a high gluten content
- Cereal grains without gluten, but are dense and high glycemic index, and contain other anti-nutrients
- Sugar and fructose
- Foods with nutrients / fibre removed – grains, sugars, refined carbohydrates
- Vegetable seed oils, chemically extracted, high in omega 6 and damaged / oxidised fat
- Legumes, including peanuts and soy (none prepared or fermented in traditional ways)
- Dairy products
- Added synthetic chemicals, flavours, antioxidants, sweeteners, colours, preservatives"

and these make up approx. 70% of many peoples diet (apparently).

To that list i would add Processed Meat and Processed Vegetables, so any diet that increases the amount of food and decreases the amount of 'food-like' product will be beneficial.

Ckoenig said:

I appreciate the info. However you know anyone can post to wiki right? It is not a valid source for anything

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Yes I understand that, and I know wiki isn't a valid source, but they do need citations, which are listed at the bottom.

If there was citations for the pros of blood type diet, I would assume that someone would have entered them onto wiki by now.

Maybe this link would be more helpful http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/early/2013/05/22/ajcn.113.058693

I try to be non biased, but really have not found any research to support his claims

If you seriously think wiki is unreliable because 'anyone can edit it' I don't think I can help you

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ayala-laufercahana-md/blood-type-diet_b_3351710.html

There's a good overview of why it's not just my opinion. Googling will produce plenty of studies and articles aside from that one, but it's a good start.

If you like it or it works for you that's awesome but it's got nothing to do with blood type.

I don't mean to rain on the parade but I'd want to know before committing to a diet. There are better options.

Hi! So glad I saw this! The Blood Type Diet makes total sense to me. How can it be so important that we give the right blood to someone or else, but it has nothing to do with anything else??? I am a Type O non-secretor. I also did a SWAMI and am an explorer. I made a list of foods from both the SWAMI and the BTD lists, and stick to that. There a few things I don't eat that are supposed to be ok - ALL legumes are a no for me...but the list definitely helps me figure out what foods are most likely a problem, and which ones are beneficial. It is definitely not for everyone! I gave up all caffeine and coffee and dairy, and there are a lot of people who think that is crazy! It took me a while to give up white potatoes, but I feel better now that I did. People ask me why I am so strict with my diet, and I just say, "because I would rather keep my colon than drink coffee." Anyway, now that my son has Crohn's, I am worried about pushing the diet on him, bc that's a lot for a 12 yr old to deal with...but, I don't want him on damaging medication, and he has already given up gluten and corn.

I tried the naturopathic route in the very beginning of my symptoms (2011), but her ideas were that I had a parasite infection. Two months later, 30 lbs lighter, after 7 days in the hospital, the docs found a Shiga toxin... So, hmm... not sure about parasites, but darn sure about bacterial infection. Diagnosed with Crohn's in 2012. I was on and off prednisone for months after that, then about a year later ended up in the the hospital for a month straight after losing another 20 lbs, bringing my grand total to 97lbs at 5'3''. I went on 6mp for a year, symptoms subsided and weight gained. Energy/passion (for anything) subsided, went to acupuncturist, had great results, got off 6mp...

Long story shorter... I am also having trouble deciding on a diet. I am Type A though, so going a bit in circles trying to find the right diet for me. I am really interested in hearing about your experience with the naturopath, since it could simply be a case of finding the right one. Many of them seem to be Paleo-Oriented now. Looking forward to checking out your progress.

Thank you so much for your input. I will let you know! I went to a homeopathic dr once for my older son that I wasn't too impressed with, so I am cautiously optimistic about this ND appt. However, I have read his books and they make a lot of sense to me. I am planning to wean my son off of prednisone as soon as tomorrow, if I can get support from a doc.

Also, to the detractors: yes, he has bibliographies in the back of his books. And they are reasonably priced, AND, he did not write the books in order to sell supplements. Yes, you can buy supplements from him now, but it is not a requirement nor pushed in his books. Hello! Such a ridiculous argument that $$ have to do with natural healing bc what do you think the drug companies think about naturopathic diets? My gosh, if someone heals themselves with food, how are the drug companies going to make the big bucks??

SAHM said:

Hi! So glad I saw this! The Blood Type Diet makes total sense to me. How can it be so important that we give the right blood to someone or else, but it has nothing to do with anything else??? I am a Type O non-secretor.

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Just another FYI: Blood Type Diet Debunked

Interesting...I don't appreciate the speaker's saccharine lilt, but I am also not without my doubts.

However, I have had success with the diet. I have also read "Clean Gut", which does not speak of blood type, but speaks of healthy eating along similar lines of the BTD. I have also met many people who have certain blood types that eat along the lines of what D'Adamo has written in his books, for example, Type A blood folks finding more energy and health with a vegetarian diet, and folks who are Type O blood who finally gave up on vegetarianism bc they found they had much more energy when they ate meat.

So, we can spend our time debunking theories, or we can spend time looking at theories and how they might help us. We are all individuals, despite our Blood Types, so I use the BTD as a guide: A starting point to finding foods that make me feel better and others that I should stop eating bc they don't make me (or my son) feel well. "Take everything with a grain of salt"

As for the report on the Naturopath visit... we went to the visit, my son was given a examination, and we were given an elaborate print out as to recommended foods and foods to avoid, as well as supplements to take. If this is all a lie, yes, it is an elaborate one! Regardless, my son seems to be improving, although he is not back to normal yet. He is currently on Lialda, and has weaned down to 10mg of prednisone. He is eating more fruits and vegetables, avoiding dairy and gluten, corn, potatoes, and eating more ocean fish and vegetables. I understand that lots of people want to debunk natural theories, but unless you have tried these, please keep your comments to yourself. Scientists love to argue against "anecdotal evidence", but "old wives" have been relying on them for millenia....just sayin'

There is nothing inherently wrong with the actual diets, they will most likely improve how you feel as you are eliminating all that processed crap from your diet. There is no harm in following the diet. But there is no actual science behind the theory, and some of the presented science is incorrect.

The entire theory is based on the idea that O is the oldest blood type, therefore most primal, and A is the newest and more agrarian (hence vegetarian) when in reality A is the oldest, followed by B branching off of A, and then O also branching off of A due to mutations. And all of these changes happened millions of years ago, before there were agrarian societies are traits present amongst all great apes, humans included (as well as Neanderthals, genetic studies on Neanderthal remains have determined blood types).

It also lacks the basic understanding of how blood types work. It views it as if it is a genetic heritage, something inherited through lineage or ethnicity as opposed to reality where blood types are determined through a system that can only really be described as algorithmic with some minor random chance.

Also University of Toronto completed a study earlier this year, I've not dug around for a link to the study yet. But here's the press release http://media.utoronto.ca/media-releases/health-medicine/theory-behind-popular-blood-type-diet-debunked/

Also I had typed that way earlier this afternoon, and then got distracted and forgot to hit send.

I'm happy to hear your son is doing better. Minor variations can have huge effects. I know someone also with crohns who simply eliminated beef (which she ate often) and she improved massively.

SAHM said:

As for the report on the Naturopath visit... we went to the visit, my son was given a examination, and we were given an elaborate print out as to recommended foods and foods to avoid, as well as supplements to take. If this is all a lie, yes, it is an elaborate one! Regardless, my son seems to be improving, although he is not back to normal yet. He is currently on Lialda, and has weaned down to 10mg of prednisone. He is eating more fruits and vegetables, avoiding dairy and gluten, corn, potatoes, and eating more ocean fish and vegetables. I understand that lots of people want to debunk natural theories, but unless you have tried these, please keep your comments to yourself. Scientists love to argue against "anecdotal evidence", but "old wives" have been relying on them for millenia....just sayin'

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That's great to hear that your son is feeling better.

I also received a print out when I visited with my naturopath, but there's a difference between saying that eating better foods reduced symptoms because you replaced offending foods vs. feeling better because you ate foods complimentary to your blood type, since the blood type theory is baseless and unsupported.

Just because something has been done for millenia, doesn't mean it's correct. That's why we need to put those ancient theories to the test to see if they are actually valid. If someone claims that doing a ritual causes rain, it's needs to be tested. Likewise, if someone claims that blood type dictates what foods we should eat, then we can test that claim too - and it seems that specific claim fails.

Axelfl3333 said:

The problem with most homeopathic/naturopathic ideas is there is usually a kernel of sense in them but little or no science to back it up.i mean let's be honest if one these people discovered the golden bullet for cancer,Alzheimer's or crohns why wouldn't,t the big pharmaceutical companies not be all over it like a bad rash?the tiny kernel is usually we all know a better diet more exercise,no smoking and little or no alcohol is better for us,it's boring but good for us.

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This is true. Why is alcohol worse for us persay? Just want to hear your ideas. I have completely quit drinking and I don't know as far as my stomach, but alcohol was doing all sorts of weird things to me. I would "flush" turn all red and get hot as soon as I had a drink, have a racing heart, and a whole assortment of "fun" things. So I finally just quit. Once and awhile I miss it, but I always feel badly when I do it, so not worth it. Just curious why or how you personally have figured out it isn't good to drink and what info you know of.