What science says about Blood Type Diet for Heart Disease

Medical doctors and health experts have varying opinions on the blood type diet for heart disease.

Supporters of the diet claim that some blood types are more at risk for heart disease than others due to genetic factors relating to blood types. They also claim that certain blood types should avoid specific foods that are not suitable for them because these foods can increase cholesterol and triglyceride levels, increasing the risk of heart disease.

The opponents of the diet claim that scientific evidence does not support the blood type diet. Research has found that there is no link between the blood type diet and improved cardiovascular health. Thus, the diet does not affect cardiovascular health. Opponents of the diet believe that the diet might improve a person’s health, but this is because it encourages people to follow a healthy lifestyle and exercise regularly. It has nothing to do with certain blood types eating specific foods since all of the blood types metabolize foods in the same way.

Opinion in favor of Blood Type Diet for Heart Disease

Peter D’Adamo, the creator of the blood type diet, claims that there is a link between blood type and heart disease. Blood type A and AB individuals have an increased risk of heart disease because they have more clotting factors in their blood. Multiple scientific studies indicate an association between blood type and heart disease. In 2012, a study entitled, “ABO Blood Group and Risk of Coronary Heart Disease in Two Prospective Cohort Studies, ” showed that blood type O individuals were less at risk for coronary heart disease than blood type A, B, and AB individuals.

D’Adamo also claims that different blood types metabolize oils and fats differently. If each type restricts the foods that elevate fat, triglyceride, and cholesterol levels, they can lower the risk of heart disease or even prevent it.

In his comments to recent studies that have shown that the blood type diet is based on a false hypothesis, D’Adamo claims that the systematic review conducted in 2014 does not prove that the hypothesis behind the blood type diet is incorrect. He says, the study only included 13.7% of foods incorporated in the blood type diet and failed to include food values such as beverages or teas that are a part of the blood type diet, so the study failed to “model the blood type diet.”

Skeptical views on the benefit of Blood Type Diet for Heart Disease

Many medical experts believe that, although there is a link between an individual’s blood type and heart disease, there is insufficient scientific evidence to support the hypothesis that the blood type diet, or eating particular foods according to our blood type, has any effect on an individual with heart disease. 

In 2014, a study entitled, “ABO Genotype, ‘Blood-Type’ Diet and Cardiometabolic Risk Factors,” examined if the blood type diet affected cardiovascular disease. It found that although people who took part in the diet had lower triglyceride levels, the decrease in cardiovascular-related symptoms was not related to blood type. 

Opponents of the blood type diet believe that the blood type diet is beneficial because it recommends healthy eating habits, not because it advised people to eat specific foods according to blood type. Everyone should eat organic fruits and vegetables and avoid processed meats, high sugar foods, and refined carbohydrates regardless of blood type. Hence, the diet’s opponents believe that it is not specific for one blood type but affects all blood types in the same manner.

According to Dr. Ahmed El-Sohemy, one of the authors of the 2014 study, “The way an individual responds to any one of these diets has absolutely nothing to do with their blood type and has everything to do with their ability to stick to a sensible vegetarian or low-carbohydrate diet.”

And, more recently,  in a 2018 study entitled, “ABO Genotype Does Not Modify the Association between the ‘Blood-Type’ Diet and Biomarkers of Cardiometabolic Disease in Overweight Adults,” Dr. El-Sohemy and others found that, although people did lose weight during the experiments, it was due to other factors and not their compliance with the blood type diet. Therefore, they found no correlation between the blood type diet and the reduction of the risk factors relating to heart disease in overweight adults.