Blood Type O on the Non-Secretor Diet

The Blood Type Diet claims to help you lose weight and achieve good health by eating foods that are right for your blood type. Your diet plan is further individualized based on whether you are a secretor or a non-secretor. Non-secretors with blood type O are advised to eat certain foods and avoid others.

Blood Type Diet

The primary purpose of the Blood Type Diet, created by Peter D'Adamo, is to help you choose nutritious foods according to the type of blood you have 1. D'Adamo suggests that individuals with type O blood consume a high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet and limit dairy foods. Doing so, D'Adamo claims, may help you lose weight and improve your overall health.

Non-Secretor

People can be classified as either a secretor or a non-secretor. Your secretor status is based on a separate gene than the one that determines your blood type. Secretors secrete their blood type antigens into their bodily fluids, such as digestive mucus and saliva. If you are a non-secretor, your blood type is not present in your bodily fluids. According to D'Adamo in "Eat Right 4 Your Type," being a non-secretor has certain health disadvantages, including an increased risk of immune disorders, urinary tract infections and stomach ulcers 1. Following the blood type O diet might help reduce your risk of these and other health conditions for which your non-secretor status may put you at risk.

Recommendations

It is suggested that individuals with blood type O eat lean meat and fish and limit their intake of dairy foods and carbohydrates. Type O individuals should also eat plenty of fruits and vegetables. Non-secretors may not have as many beneficial bacteria in their gut, which helps kill harmful bacteria before it can make you sick. D'Adamo notes that non-secretors are more likely to suffer from immune diseases, particularly those caused by infectious bacteria. Add probiotic-rich foods to your diet to help increase the beneficial bacteria in your bowels. Yogurt, sauerkraut, miso and fermented foods are all nutritious sources. Foods rich in iodine, such as:

• seaweed
  
• shrimp
  
• fish
  
• enriched bread products
  
• are also important

As a type O non-secretor, you may be more likely to experience thyroid problems, and iodine is crucial for proper thyroid function.

Considerations

Do not rely solely on the Blood Type Diet, or the recommendations for type O and non-secretor individuals, to help you lose weight and improve your health. There is little research supporting the effectiveness of the diet. You should feel free, however, to eat the foods recommended for your blood type as they are nutritious and will provide numerous benefits. If you are worried about your risk of disease as a non-secretor, ask your doctor about dietary and lifestyle changes that may reduce your risk.