The blood type diet: Are you a hunter or a farmer?

If you resolved to lose weight this year but you just can’t seem to stick to your diet plan, you're still feeling bloated and you're not losing the kilos, then maybe the diet's not right for you.

I thought I would throw this one out there; I know there are people who do not agree with this at all, and there are some who follow it like a religion.

I wanted to make people aware of it so they could look into it and make their own educated decisions.

Personally, over the years I’ve had problems with my digestive system. I though I was allergic to red meat, dairy, wine (if you know me I obviously ignored that one!), real ale, and the list goes on.

One by one I cut them out.

At some point a colleague mentioned the blood group diet and I decided to look into it. To my surprise, I fitted the blood group A diet, so I then decided to find out my blood group. Guess what? I’m an A!!

I now naturally lean towards this ideal and I have absolutely no digestive issues.

The blood type diet was created by naturopath Peter D’Adamo, who believes that people need to eat certain foods based on what their blood type is, as nutrients in food react differently with your blood depending on what type you are. D’Adamo recommends specific dietary restrictions based on the eating habits of mankind when your blood type first evolved.

Blood type O, which was the first to evolve in around 50,000 B.C., is associated with our hunter-gatherer days when we survived primarily on meat. Because of this, type Os are prescribed a high protein, low carb diet, free of dairy, wheat and grains.

At the other end of the scale, blood type A evolved around the time our ancestors had settled down into a farming lifestyle. Therefore people who are type A should eat a meat-free diet with lots of grains and vegetables.

Those who are type B have slightly more room to breath on this diet as this blood type is based on times when our ancestors started to travel and explore, exposing themselves to a greater variety of food.

Finally, the rarest and most recent blood type, AB, combines the diets of types A and B, meaning they should generally follow a vegetarian diet but are allowed meat and dairy on the odd occasion.

Some celebrities have supposedly taken this diet on board, with positive effects on their health and weight. However, there is no solid proof behind the theory and medical experts and healthcare professionals, including dieticians and nutritionists, generally agree that it is nonsense!

If you were to strictly follow the blood type diet it probably would in fact lead to weight loss, but this is simply due to the amount you are restricted in what you can and can’t eat. Restricting the different types of food you eat to this extent is not generally recommended by those in the know, as you are depriving your body of certain vital nutrients. Having a more well-rounded diet, including everything in moderation, is a much healthier and more sustainable way to lose weight and improve all-round health.

If you’d like to find out more about the blood type diet and its founder, click here .