You may have read that it's important to eat certain foods based on your blood type. Depending on whether your blood type is O, A, B or AB, proponents of the blood type diet say there are foods to eat and foods to avoid for optimal health and a longer life. Can eating certain foods based on blood type really help you live longer? The blood type diet was first introduced in 1996 by a naturopathic physician, Peter D'Adamo who alleges that even the spices you put on your food could contribute to better health and should be individualized for your specific blood type. The theory is that certain foods and even the type of exercise you do should be individualized. For instance, if you have type O blood you should eat plenty of meat and fish protein, vegetables and fruits but stay away from legumes - at least so the dietary guidelines say. Recommendations for weight loss include avoiding dairy, corn and wheat and filling up on red meat, broccoli, spinach and olive oil. Type A ind
Addiction researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis say alcoholism puts people at risk for obesity, also noting the association between the two has become more pronounced in recent years. The report that appears in the Archives of General Psychiatry was conducted by Richard A. Grucza, MD and colleagues who say individuals with a family history of alcoholism have an elevated obesity risk. In addition, that risk seems to be growing. The association is especially strong for women. Food and Alcohol Addiction Occur in Same Area of the Brain Grucza says it might be that food and alcohol addiction occur in the same area of the brain stimulated by foods that weren’t always available. He explains “Much of what we eat nowadays contains more calories than the food we ate in the 1970s and 1980s, but it also contains the sorts of calories — particularly a combination of sugar, salt and fat — that appeal to what are commonly called the reward centers in the brain.”