A different dietary approach for everyone?

[MasterD]

All cows eat grass. All tigers eat meat. All birds eat grains, fruits and a variety of other stuff. Etc.. Their blood types may vary (dogs have about 4, just like humans, cats 11, cows about 800). A whole bunch of stuff may vary. But every individual member of the same species eats the some foods as the rest of the members of that species.

Every human being has a liver, a stomach, small intestines, large intestines, a heart, etc... of pretty much the same texture and size with similar characteristics. So, I would assume that every human being is designed to follow a similar dietary approach, just like every other species, regardless of what that approach is. Why would the human species be the only species where a different approach is followed for every individual member?

I am posing this question, because a common theme on this board seems to be that everybody has to find the diet that works for them in particular.

I am curious about any perspectives.

[Dimond]

I believe raw vegan (organic) is the optimum diet for every single person, it's just a matter of finding the correct way and foods for you.

Other diets can work to some degree, but rarely are they eliminating all health issues for the rest of their life.

[Grindin]

Why? People are weird.

Personally, I'm a strong proponent of being a heavy meat eater. I feel BEST and the most full of energy when I've eaten a nice 6-7 healthy meals a day rotating protein/carbs and protein/fats. Of course you have to be lifting weights or something to have the process not make you fat and obese, but thats the fun part.

Everytime I've tried a vegan diet I felt more introverted and out of energy. Sure, I felt 'healthy'...thats to say my body felt cleaned out, but it wasn't a good and fun feeling for me. Meat keeps ya on ya feet.

[Dharma]

Originally Posted by MasterD

Every human being has a liver, a stomach, small intestines, large intestines, a heart, etc... of pretty much the same texture and size with similar characteristics. So, I would assume that every human being is designed to follow a similar dietary approach, just like every other species, regardless of what that approach is.

Why would the human species be the only species where a different approach is followed for every individual member?

Why? Because we are the only species that thinks (to a large degree) on the planet. We only see differences in diet because we think. We add the differences with our mind. We add the polarity of right and wrong to EVERYTHING; where in the natural world, right and wrong do not exist.

We are a species that eats everything. That's seems quite obvious, but some want to make their diet "righter" than others, and say their food gives them more energy, clarity, health... etc. Then we fight to justify it...

But....look at the science!!!! All logic is denial. Sorry. I know y'all love your logical progressions... but logic of the mind = bull-dookie. When you get down to brass tacks, logic is all fake[/I].

On edit:
Reality, energy, health is all created with 'choice', an energy of manifestation, not food. You choose to be healthy... or not. It doesn't matter, but it helps to be conscious of what you're choosing by looking at things like health, your energy level, etc.

[Lena Carpenter]

That's a very valid question, that I've been asking myself a lot.

Personally, based on my first hand experience and second hand experience (research), I made a few conclusions for me, that seem to hold up no matter what diet I'm eating.
1. Lots of fresh (especially raw) fruits and vegetables, as well as greens.
2. Fresh, local and organic are best. Raw is best because it's simply more fresh.
3. Positive outlook and belief: enjoy whatever you eat and believe that it keeps you strong and healthy.

Those are things that I strongly believe in. Other things are still up to debate for me. For now, I think I'll just eat what feels the best, and experiment with different ways of eating. For example, I love picking berries, but I don't like gutting fish so much. That to me is a sign that I enjoy eating berries better than fish at this time. I definitely don't like supporting unethical practices, like animals raised in enclosed spaces and pumped with antibiotics. I'll take my berries. Thank you very much. Perhaps, if I grew up in a different region and different environment, I would enjoy hunting? I would eat fresh killed animals, and it might feel good to me. I'm not disputing that, but what's the point of wondering? If I happen to crave meat and a relative takes me on a hunting trip, and I will enjoy it, then I'll eat it. I bless both animal and vegetable foods and thank them for providing me with nourishment.

[Dreamline]

So this thread is for me.

Humans are the only species that eats outside of it's ancestral, natural and local diet. (with the exception of scavengers which are now eating what unnatural humans leave around and our pets who suffer from remarkably human-like diseases.) We are the only species to cook our food, to drink the milk of other species and to eat things outside of our ancestral backyard.

If you go back to when your mutation occured (Blood type is a mutation) you have to ask yourself what was it about that place and that time caused my mutation to occur? The advent of agriculture. Nomadic activity mostly. Climate change. Interbreeding. Or just general mutatogenic activity. (Cosmic radiation, etc.)

Blood type O (the original, oldest) originated with the homo sapien species, for all intents. People with blood type O are almost genetically identical to the original hunter/gatherers. Their DNA has changed very little since that time. So they are the least likely to be able to tolerate modern food life and often respond with terrible diseases. Allergies and autoimmune problems being most prevalent. Statistics bear this out.

Blood type A were the original farmers. When hunting and gathering was replaced with agriculture. Less feast or famine, more reliance on grains and a predictable growing season. Domesticated animals, etc. The original vegetarians. They are statistically most prone to cancer.

Blood Type B were generally nomadic. A merger of Africans to European and Asian and American continents.

Blood Type AB are a modern interbreeding of disparate groups. Relatively young in the scheme of things. Maybe only a few thousand years old.


The basis for this diet is: When we eat outside of our DNA's preferred food basket, we expose our immune systems to foods and substances that it sometimes deems foreign. So it mounts an immune response to those foods. The blood type diet research proves that these immune responses for each blood type, with respect to specific foods, is measurable, predictable and reproduceable. (Just like REAL science!!)

So not everyone should eat the same things. Not everyone's body responds to every diet the same way. There is no one ideal diet for everyone and if you care about fine tuning your health and diet, this would be an excellent book to read.

Amazon.com: eat right 4 your type: Books


My personal experience with this diet is interesting. I was a vegan for, give or take, 12 years. I did very well at first, lost weight, felt energetic, but my health was still not ideal. The longer I was a vegan, the less healthy I felt. I was plagued with acne, digestive problems, multiple food allergies and sensitivities. Migraines. I was being tested for narcolepsy and MS.

I happened to stumble upon this book at the bookstore and read my "avoid" list for blood type O. Every single food that I tested allergic to was on the avoid list for my blood type. That is over 25 items. Nothing on the beneficial or neutral lists were among my allergic foods. The statistical likelihood that this would be random chance is impossible. Needless to say, I bought the book.

Turns out, I am metabolically and ideally, a protein type. Type O. Caveman. Meats, eggs, certain vegetables. Certain fruits. Lower carb. I had tried the Scarsdale Diet way in the past and done very well. I tried Atkins, within the context of The Blood Type choices, and felt remarkable.

Acne gone. Allergies significantly reduced. (All I have left is mild dairy and soy.) No more narcolepsy or MS symptoms. No more migraines.

Interestingly, my aunt was the one who gave me the Fit For Life book that led me to assume the vegan lifestyle. She said she just didn't feel energetic on it. She went back to having some meat. (Yes, she is O as well.)

My sister and dad who are A types are plagued with everything Dr D'Adamo says As who don't take care of themselves will be plagued with. She ignored his advice to never go on Atkin's because it would surely mess up her gallbladder and boom she needed a cholecystectomy within a year of doing Atkins.

My friend who tried the diet and is a B no longer needs her Prozac.

The examples that I can speak of are endless. It's just an amazing diet and lifestyle and proves that when it comes to humans, one size does NOT fit all.



Jennifer

[Lena Carpenter]

Hi Jennifer, I find your experiences with the blood type diet pretty cool. However, I don't completely understand this way of reasoning. For example, the original hunters gatherers, what percentage of animal foods would they have? That would depend on where they lived and what climate they lived in, wouldn't it? If they lived in a tropical paradise, they might eat mostly tropical fruits, with some seafood thrown in. Secondly, they would probably eat most of their foods raw, which the Blood Type Diet doesn't seem to advocate.

Another problem I have with this reasoning is that vegan can mean a lot of different things, just like omnivore. I would venture to say if you ate a lot of processed foods, like sugars, processed grains, and processed soy foods, if you changed to eating lots of raw fruits and vegetables and nothing processed, you would feel a lot better too.

[Bleicke]

I thought it was clear by now that Blood Type Diet is a fad?

To my current knowledge, vegan is pretty much impossible to be healthy. There are not enough sources of protein and fat to make it varied.

Only vegan sources of protein are legumes and nuts.

Only vegan sources of fat are nuts, coconuts, avocados and olives.

I do like legumes and nuts and coconuts, but it still gets boring very fast.

At the moment I like Primal (kinda Paleo) ala MarksDailyApple.com and it feels pretty good. His arguments are a little better than "Look at gorillas! They eat grass all the time and are strong!".

[ginkgo]

Most of the food that people eat is not for their body but for their emotions. Each person has a different emotional make up. People, unlike animals, have a mind that can think about things. But I feel that physically all people could eat a similar diet for their health of their body.

[Rose of Cairo]

Originally Posted by Bleicke

Only vegan sources of protein are legumes and nuts.

Wrong. Greens for example contain all the essential amino acids you need to build protein.

Plus, all plants contain protein to some degree.

And we don't need as much as most people think.

Only vegan sources of fat are nuts, coconuts, avocados and olives.

Wrong. You forgot seeds. And oils. Plus, all plants contain fat to some degree. Even clementines.

You're free not to like a vegan diet, but don't distort the facts.

[ginkgo]

Originally Posted by Dreamline

So this thread is for me.

I was a vegan for, give or take, 12 years. I did very well at first, lost weight, felt energetic, but my health was still not ideal. I was plagued with acne, digestive problems, multiple food allergies and sensitivities. The longer I was a vegan, the less healthy I felt.Migraines. I was being tested for narcolepsy and MS.

Jennifer

This sounded like an intelligent and honest post, but you said "this thread is for me." So as far as this post goes, I have no problem with it. An honest response does not get my suspicions going.

But it means that I knew something was up with you on the other thread. You did not say the above on the other thread. Here is what you said on the other thread.

"I have no beef against veganism having enjoyed the benefits of it for over 12 years"

"I had no problem being a vegan."

So apparently I knew something was up and that is why you thought I was picking on you. You were being less than honest on the other post. Again you said only a day ago:

"I had no problem being a vegan."

Now you say:
" I was plagued with acne, digestive problems, multiple food allergies and sensitivities. The longer I was a vegan, the less healthy I felt.Migraines. I was being tested for narcolepsy and MS. "

I knew on the other post that you had a personal bad experience with the vegan diet but you said I was wrong. You were hiding it. This means that you were being dishonest with the guy who was originally asking about the vegan diet.

On that other post, you never said that you were no longer vegan. You did not tell him that you had a bad experience with it yourself. You told him that he would have a problems with it. Do you agree with my friend, George? He says that I like to beat a dead horse, meaning that I keep making the same point over and over again.

[MasterD]

Thanks for the replies people; however, most people are getting off topic. It's not about what the right diet is, it's about discovering the reason why everyone should discover the right diet for them, or finding out the reason if there is one particular diet for everyone (regardless of what that is, though you might have to choose a camp before being able to answer this).

Dimond: Yes, even if there is a species specific diet, you probably have to make small adjustments and find out your personal preferences.

Grindin: Meat is surely stimulating.

Dharma: So you would eat a strong poison if you could convince yourself that it was healthy? I agree about attitude and choosing health being extremely important. However, we live in a physical reality so there will be a difference when you supply different raw materials. You can't have a real banana taste like a real strawberry, no matter how hard you try. The mental attitude of a person affects absorption of nutrients, just like sleep, exercise and simple eating. So a person who has a positive mental attitude, getting enough sleep and exercise, but eating a bad diet may be better off than a person eating a healthy diet, but who has a negative mental attitude.

Jennifer: It's great that the bloodtype is working out for you and so many other people. However, it does not convince me of it's truthfullness. For example, if you could not handle grains very well and were eating them a lot on a vegan diet and then as a blood type O cutting out a lot of grains and adding a little meat it would make you feel a lot better. However, you might feel just as good, or better when changing the meat for another food. I have read the book by the way.

[aelle]

Originally Posted by MasterD

But every individual member of the same species eats the same foods as the rest of the members of that species. .../...

Have you ever had pets, or fostered animals? Because in my experience this is not actually true.
My family has had a large number of cats over the years. Some love red meat, others are indifferent about it. Some will love birds so much they'll hunt them even on a full stomach, others won't. Some like raw broccoli. I had a cat who was driven completely nuts by olives and anything that smelled remotely of olives. We had a small table made from the wood of an olive tree and she would spend her day licking it.
Similarly, some dogs do great on a vegan diet. Some thrive on a variety of vegetables with the occasional egg. Some will do just fine on any random comercial kibbles. Others will need to be fed raw meat regularly. Some will eat anything, some will get sick unless fed very specific foods.

There are plenty of individual variations of the best diet in the animal world. Of course in the wild, animals have to survive before they are in a position to thrive, so a picky animal will die, and most will survive on what's available while not reaching optimal health. That's what our ancestors did until quite recently - survive on what's available and die toothless before the age of 50.

We humans are now in a position to do so, and to find the diet that suits best our unique body (and make these analyses and choices for our companion animals, too).

[CoolBee]

Agree with Aelle.

My two cats eat mostly the same, but they have different preferences.

One of my cats pukes violently every time she eats 'biscuits'.

I have a friend who fosters abandoned or stray cats who are often very sickly. They often have different diets for different health problems and believe me, given the expense and problems of catering to different animal diets out here, she wouldn't feed them alternative diets if it weren't absolutely necessary.

I think that with animals, if they eat the wrong diet, they die and no one worries particularly, especially for smaller ones with a much shorter life expectancy. It's only in the case of pets we go to the expense of trying to cater to their different nutritional needs.

[JRhodes]

I've tried both the vegan and vegetarian diets and I didn't really feel "well" on either. What I did is kept many of the key principles, lots of fruit and veg and added in one meal containing lean meat everyday and I'm as energetic and alret as I've ever been. I guess it's a case of "everything in moderation".

[BeyondtheWrap]

Originally Posted by Dreamline

Blood Type AB are a modern interbreeding of disparate groups. Relatively young in the scheme of things. Maybe only a few thousand years old.

So what should ABs eat?

[chezzy62]

We all follow a different diet because we each have our own complex thinking system. We are a very complex species, and once we have nourishment, we choose to explore which flavors of food suit us the best. Every person is so different, and has different thinking patterns/opinions on what a good diet should be.

[Dreamline]

Originally Posted by Lena Carpenter

Hi Jennifer, I find your experiences with the blood type diet pretty cool. However, I don't completely understand this way of reasoning. For example, the original hunters gatherers, what percentage of animal foods would they have? That would depend on where they lived and what climate they lived in, wouldn't it? If they lived in a tropical paradise, they might eat mostly tropical fruits, with some seafood thrown in. Secondly, they would probably eat most of their foods raw, which the Blood Type Diet doesn't seem to advocate.

Another problem I have with this reasoning is that vegan can mean a lot of different things, just like omnivore. I would venture to say if you ate a lot of processed foods, like sugars, processed grains, and processed soy foods, if you changed to eating lots of raw fruits and vegetables and nothing processed, you would feel a lot better too.

Absolutely it would depend on where they lived, what was local and seasonal. In fact, there are subdiets within the Type O ideal. It's even further broken down into Hunter and Gatherer as they are not quite the same. But just because someone is classically a Hunter/Gatherer doesn't mean their blood type is O. Blood type and genotype are different and he has different diets for that. If you are an O you are most likely a Hunter genotype, though.

The TBTD, within the contraints of making the diet practical for modern life, suggests portions of meat, veg, fruit and "other" per day as an ideal to strive for.

TBTD doesn't negate raw foods. It just doesn't specify. For example, it suggests that Type A strive to be a vegetarian. You can be a vegan, you can even eat meat but just be "mostly" a vegetarian. The closer to unprocessed, the better.

In fact, TBTD lets YOU choose the diet you want to be on as long as you choose from the list of foods that are called "Supebenificial," "Beneficial," and "neutral" and avoid as many of the foods called "Avoid" as you can.

So while my metabolic ideal as an O is protein, I can do pretty well as a vegan for 12 years. Why? Because when my actual food choices were broken down, the first 8 years of my vegan diet was accidentally conforming, to a large degree, to the tenets of TBTD. Only the last four years were they veering a bit.

His suggestions for the IDEAL diet for each blood type are suggestions. But he equates this diet to building walls of defense around your body. If you avoid wheat and dairy, that would be one wall. If you also add seven superbeneficials, that would be a couple more walls. If you eat predominantly protein style as an O, that is an additional wall. It's not a diet you have to be perfect with. Just as much as you can. Every little bit takes the burden off your already overburdened immune system.

When I was a vegan, everyday I ate at least 2/3rds raw, if not 100% raw.

Jennifer

[Dreamline]

Originally Posted by ginkgo

This sounded like an intelligent and honest post, but you said "this thread is for me." So as far as this post goes, I have no problem with it. An honest response does not get my suspicions going.

But it means that I knew something was up with you on the other thread. You did not say the above on the other thread. Here is what you said on the other thread.

"I have no beef against veganism having enjoyed the benefits of it for over 12 years"

"I had no problem being a vegan."

So apparently I knew something was up and that is why you thought I was picking on you. You were being less than honest on the other post. Again you said only a day ago:

"I had no problem being a vegan."

Now you say:
" I was plagued with acne, digestive problems, multiple food allergies and sensitivities. The longer I was a vegan, the less healthy I felt.Migraines. I was being tested for narcolepsy and MS. "

I knew on the other post that you had a personal bad experience with the vegan diet but you said I was wrong. You were hiding it. This means that you were being dishonest with the guy who was originally asking about the vegan diet.

On that other post, you never said that you were no longer vegan. You did not tell him that you had a bad experience with it yourself. You told him that he would have a problems with it. Do you agree with my friend, George? He says that I like to beat a dead horse, meaning that I keep making the same point over and over again.

I was not being dishonest, Ginkgo. For the vast bulk of the time I was a vegan I had no problems with it. Toward the end, I started to feel less well. I have no idea if it was veganism that was at fault or one of a myriad of other possible health issues. All I know is that I discovered this book, tried it and felt great. Even better than when I was a vegan. Why? Because it turns out I was eating outside MY ideal diet as a vegan. So the veganism was tossed aside in favor of a new paradigm.

Try not to be so suspicious.

Jennifer

[Dreamline]

Originally Posted by MasterD

Jennifer: It's great that the bloodtype is working out for you and so many other people. However, it does not convince me of it's truthfullness. For example, if you could not handle grains very well and were eating them a lot on a vegan diet and then as a blood type O cutting out a lot of grains and adding a little meat it would make you feel a lot better. However, you might feel just as good, or better when changing the meat for another food. I have read the book by the way.

I think you are complicating this in your effort to be right about this diet being wrong. I wasn't eating alot of wheat on the vegan diet. I wasn't even allergic to wheat at the time, though. That happened, symptomatically, over the last three years.

Jennifer

[Dreamline]

Originally Posted by BeyondtheWrap

So what should ABs eat?

I have no idea. It's all I can do to keep track of my Type O foods and my "Hunter" variants.

But they sell small pocket-sized books that make it easy. Though, I would suggest reading the whole book. It's important to understand why this happens the way it happens.

Jennifer

[KazeCraven]

Originally Posted by MasterD

All cows eat grass. All tigers eat meat. All birds eat grains, fruits and a variety of other stuff. Etc.. Their blood types may vary (dogs have about 4, just like humans, cats 11, cows about 800). A whole bunch of stuff may vary. But every individual member of the same species eats the some foods as the rest of the members of that species.

Every human being has a liver, a stomach, small intestines, large intestines, a heart, etc... of pretty much the same texture and size with similar characteristics. So, I would assume that every human being is designed to follow a similar dietary approach, just like every other species, regardless of what that approach is. Why would the human species be the only species where a different approach is followed for every individual member?

I am posing this question, because a common theme on this board seems to be that everybody has to find the diet that works for them in particular.

I am curious about any perspectives.

Part of the issue goes with what Grindin mentioned. People are likely to be comfortable with different energies for their different lifestyles, and because not everyone needs to be up and chasing after their food, being optimally fit isn't really important.

Another point is that people get used to the diet that they grew up on, and when another diet becomes available, they're likely to stick to their old diet out of habit. Their bodies are also used to the diet they've been eating, so when attempting a new diet, their body is likely to react to it differently than someone coming from a different diet.

And we add chemicals and stuff to everything, so going on a "special diet" may cause you to avoid artificial foods that really shouldn't be entering your digestive system.

But you've also made the assumption that we know that animals out in the wild are getting the "best diet" for them. It would also be more accurate to question the diets of omnivores since we tend to eat both animals and plants. Also, if you give chickens chicken intestines they'll fight over the stuff. Just because the animal eats it doesn't mean the animal is making "healthy food choices".

/theory