Following the diet best suited to your blood type can improve your health
DR PRANNIE Rhatigan is probably best known for Irish Seaweed Kitchen, her successful book on the health benefits of Irish seaweeds. If you live in Co Sligo, you might also meet her in her job as senior medical officer in the Department of Public Health Medicine.
However, the Sligo-born medical doctor also has a great interest in the work of American naturopathic physician Dr Peter D’Adamo, who developed the blood-type diet.
Put simply, the diet argues that since your blood group influences your physiology on a cellular level, it also impacts on how you digest your food, respond to stress and deal with infections of various kinds.
Rhatigan came across the work of D’Adamo about 11 years ago when she was seriously ill with ulcerative colitis.
“I was waiting to have a colectomy and when I went on the diet for my blood type, I regained my health very quickly,” she says.
“My recovery surprised everyone, most of all myself. As a medic I was very sceptical of this approach.”
Since then, Rhatigan has researched D'Adamo's work and read his best-selling books which include Eat Right 4 Your Type and Live Right 4 Your Type. She will give public talks on the blood-type diet and D'Adamo's more recent work on epigenetics at the Rude Health Show at the RDS, Ballsbridge, Dublin, on Saturday and Sunday.
“My goal is to help people empower themselves with knowledge of lifestyle and diet that will allow them to achieve the best possible health,” says Rhatigan.
According to the blood-type diet, those with blood group A are unable to digest meat protein easily and should avoid red meat and dairy and concentrate on vegetarian foods, while those with blood group O need to have a high protein diet with plenty of fish and meat (see right4EU.com and prannie.com).
The theory is that if you follow the diet best suited to your blood type, you will feel more energetic, get relief from chronic health conditions, lose weight and reduce stress.
D’Adamo has developed his theory further to include more detail on your predisposition for weight loss/gain and for specific diseases according to your blood type. He has a strong online presence (dadamo.com), which includes exercise and diet plans, food supplements and lots more tailored to individual needs.
KNOW YOUR TYPE THE MAIN BLOOD GROUPS
In 1900, the Austrian bacteriologist and immunologist, Karl Landsteiner, showed that human red blood cells fell into four groups which he called A, B, AB and O.
The significance of each blood group is that it has antibodies which are reactive to other blood groups. So, Group A blood has antibodies against Group B blood cells. Group B blood has antibodies against Group A. Group O contains antibodies against Group A and Group B. And Group AB doesn’t have antibodies against other blood types.
Your blood group is checked if you become a blood donor or if you have a surgical procedure. A woman’s blood group is also checked in early pregnancy.
In many cases, people are not aware of their blood group.
Dr Prannie Rhatigan will give two talks at the Rude Health Show. Epigenetics: How your Genes, your Environment and Family History Combine to Influence your Health Profilewill take place on Saturday at 1pm. Health, Blood Type and Food: The Basicswill be on Sunday at 5pm. She will also give a demonstration on Irish seaweed cookery on Sunday at 1.30pm. See rudehealth.ie
