Product Description

Proposes that a person's blood type can both influence health and explain individuals' reactions to foods, and presents four different plans, based on blood type, for diet, exercise, and good health.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #301 in Books
• Published on: 1996-01-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 392 pages

Amazon.com Review
If you've ever wondered why the latest fad diet doesn't work for you... well, there are lots of reasons, mostly the fact that it's a fad diet. But it could also be that you're the wrong blood type for the kinds of foods the diet recommends. Peter D'Adamo makes a persuasive argument that your blood type is an evolutionary marker that tells you which foods you'll process best, and which will be useless calories. He covers the entire range for each of the four blood types, from entrées to condiments and seasonings, and also makes type-specific exercise and lifestyle recommendations.

From Publishers Weekly
Cheri Erdman (Nothing to Lose: Sane Living in a Larger Body) offers emotional support to large women with Live Large! Ideas, Affirmations, and Actions for Sane Living in a Larger Body, a collection of 140 meditations promoting a positive image and a celebration of one's size. Each page begins with a "Big Idea" (for empowerment) then "Fleshes It Out" (with an affirmation) and a "Size-Wise Action" (a specific task). Erdman, a psychotherapist, offers support and encouragement for women struggling to find a way to live with the bodies they have. (Harper San Francisco, $11 160p ISBN 0-06-251345-1; Jan.)
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From AudioFile
A naturopathic physician, Dr. D'Adamo is following in his father's footsteps. His dad tried to verify the connection between blood type and propensity to certain diseases and other health conditions. They propose that there is a certain diet and set of medications that can benefit people of particular blood types. Polly Adams, an odd choice to read a book written by a male, sounds like a radio disc jockey or a voice-over actress. Smooth and polished, with no trace of an accent, she handles the medical terms well. Although not exciting, this is pleasant general listening. A.G.H. (c) AudioFile, Portland, Maine

Customer Reviews

Worst pseudoscience ever
The author is a naturopath who claims he can heal people through diets designed to fit 4 blood types (A, B, 0, AB). If this were the thesis of this book, I would simply accept the author's word for it. Many non-conventional doctors use different media and methods to convey their healing abilities and, while the real nature of their systems baffles scientific analysis, fact is that they can heal. Unfortunately the author reached great success by stitching a delirious "scientific" theory around his thesis. I'll be expressing only few major critiques.

1) The evidence he presents to support his thesis is 100% circumstantial. About a third of the book sounds like this : "John, who was suffering for this and that, came to my office. After putting him on the right diet, his symptoms reverted or regressed". Circumstantial evidence can be used as a starting point but it cannot be used to prove a theory, nonetheless the author sells his theories as if they were the Gospel
2) D'Adamo states that group 0 is the blood group of hunters-gatherers. The group A are the farmers and the group B are the nomads. Well, this is not true. Go in the data bank and look for yourself. As an example, you'll notice that very many hunters-gatherers (Inuit and Ainu among others) have a lower group 0 incidence than peoples who have been farmers for millennia. The only major hunter-gatherer population fitting his scenario is the American Indian (both North and South). Amerindians were bottlenecked during their migration from Kamchatka to Alaska. Obviously, concepts like "genetic drift" are alien to the author.
3) Nowhere in the scientific literature could one find any of his "studies" he claimed were being wrapped up at the time of publication
4) The auhtor's knowledge of the biochemistry of lectins, albeit seemingly sound to most people, is primitive and incomplete. He is not just trying to keep it simple: he dismisses or ignores everything that may hinder his "truth".
5) For D'Adamo's theory to be valid, food lectins must remain functionally intact through the stomach, the intestine and, in many cases, the cooking process. Moreover they should remain invisible to the immune system. This is frankly hard to believe. The author states that lectins do in fact survive digestion (no prove or literature is presented on this) and completely ignores the host immune reaction.
Again, I am not questioning that D'Adamo may have the ability to heal people, however the "scientific" foundation on which this entire book is based is beyond weak: it is simply delirious.

Awesome for those seeking such a diet
I really enjoy this book because it's a natural way for me to keep weight off without having to try a crazy crash diet or exclude foods that I enjoy. Moderation is the key!

Different
I didn't think that blood type would affect how my body metabolized the food I eat until I read this book. It makes perfect sense. I reccomend everyone that has the time read this book because it will open up your eyes to why you feel bad after eating certian things and better after others.