Eating for Your Blood Type: O+ & O-

          Food is a requirement as old as time. It is the reason why evolution took place and why there are so many living beings in the world today that are classified into categories as meat eating, fruit eating, plant eating, and, of course, those who eat a little of everything.
Over the years, it has been found that different types of blood groups have different acceptance levels with regard to the many different kinds of food in the world today.  Some food is good for us, while other foods are not easily digested by certain blood types. Your blood type is a likely reason why you can digest various types of food, while some types just don’t agree with you. There is a little skepticism to this theory, but on the whole, it is widely accepted that there is some meat to this matter. Blood types and food do go hand in hand.
Peter D’Adamo is a physician who specializes in naturopathy. According to him, blood type is what determines how and why people react to diets, supplements, medical treatments, and exercise in different ways. It’s a known fact that what works for one may not work for the other nine times out of ten.
Over the centuries, medical research has been looking for the “key that can unlock the door to the mysteries of health, disease, longevity, physical vitality, and emotional strength”, as quoted by Dr Peter D’Adamo. Dr D’Adamo and his extensive research into genetics, anthropology and medical history have led him to conclude that the individual’s blood type could be that key.

Blood type O POSITIVE and O NEGATIVE
According to experts, blood type O is the oldest blood group in human history. It has been traced to as far back as Cro-Magnon man, and its evolution can be dated to approximately 40,000 BC.  It is also believed that the maximum number of people in the world today have Type O blood.
People with O type blood have the hardiest digestive systems. Of course, it also depends on individual disposition and circumstance, but at a general level, they have hardy systems. These are considered good for digesting meat, poultry, and fish. One reason for this type of diet could be that in early times, edible plants were yet to be discovered, and meat and fish were the easiest game to hunt and eat.  The blood type diet is common to both rhesus negative and positive groups.

Eat Hearty, but Eat Healthy
Given this history, people with O blood group need animal protein to maintain good health, along with vegetables and fruits. However, the emphasis is on animal protein. Seafood and sea kelp is a good source of iodine which is a very essential requirement for O type people as these people tend to suffer  from a sluggish metabolism and low thyroid. A diet well supplemented with iodine rich foods are good for them.
Type O’s should clear their kitchen of anything that contains:

• white or wheat flour
• corn starch
• partially-hydrogenated oil
• coffee
• coconut
• dairy
• ham, pork and bacon
• vegetables soaked in vinegar e.g. pickles
• Legumes, beans, and grains
• Avocados
• Brazil nuts
• Oranges

Blood type O folks have stomachs that favor the production of hydrochloric acid in excess. It is this factor that makes their digestive systems fit for digesting so much animal protein. An excess of hydrochloric acid means people with O blood type must avoid coffee, as the combination will give them peptic ulcers. Green tea is far more beneficial.
O blood type people benefit from exercise – lots of it. Aerobics, jogging, power walking, and weight training is best for them. The more they work out, the better they will be health wise. Get moving, burn the fat, and sweat it out and get rid of stress and depression while you are at it too.

O Blood type vegetarians
Not everyone is a meat eater. Today a lot of people opt for vegetarian food for a myriad reasons like a religious requirement or some digestive issues or then those who simply cannot handle meat.
Some foods that vegetarians can eat safely are:

• Figs
• Walnuts
• Spelt flour, Ezekiel bread (from sprouted grains),
• Leafy green vegetables
• Rice, millet and quinoa
• Sweet potatoes
• Ginger tea
• Dandelion tea
• Sparkling water
• Seaweed
• Rice crackers
• Rice noodles
• Berries
• Stone fruits and seeded fruits like apples and pears.

But even if you are a vegetarian there are plenty of sources of protein for you which are beneficial given your blood type. Some protein rich foods that they can eat safely are:

• Low fat yogurt
• Peanut butter
• Broccoli
• Almonds
• Peanuts
• Cashews
• Cheese – farmer, feta, goat and mozzarella
• Rice, sesame, almond oat etc

Diet suggestion for O blood type people
There are a lot of views, thoughts and opinions on what is good for blood Type O and what is not. At the end of the day you have to decide what suits you and in what quantity. It’s possible that the item may be in the “okay to eat but…” list of food for O blood types BUT if it suits your individual health related issues then go for it.
The O blood type person can supplement the diet with lots of exercise and a sensible eating plan that will give him/her the required health strength and energy.

Ref links used:
http://www.dadamo.com/program.htm
www.runtheplanet.com
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_type_diet
http://www.buzzle.com/articles/blood-type-o-negative.html
http://www.ehow.com/how_6650581_eat-right-foods-blood-type.html
http://www.ehow.com/how_2162526_eat-type-o-blood.html
http://thenaturalhealthplace.com/Food.html