Lots of folks ask some form of this question. In reply, here's the column I promised on "food combining" ~

There are a number of diet-for-health books advocating some form of food combining, or "food separation." Very briefly, this idea is based upon the observation that when digestion is swift, health (including normalization of weight) will follow – so foods which digest well together are combined, and separated from those requiring a different digestive environment. Food items are categorized by their fat, carbohydrate and/or protein content (fruit has its own headings); meals are planned according to compatible foods; certain time periods are left between meals to separate incompatible foods from each other; and obtaining the freshest possible whole foods is encouraged, with a reduction or elimination of most processed foods – especially sugars.

Like any system, this one can be reduced to bare-bones principles (don’t combine grain with flesh foods; start the day with fruit, alone), but true food separation as practiced by its successful adherents is more complex. The purist’s approach is to eat only one food item at any meal, allowing at least three hours between meals. They’ve got it easy. ;-> For everyone else, it looks like this:

A. Fats – including all oils and nuts, and cheeses with 50% or higher fat content.

B. Proteins – flesh foods and eggs, including cheeses with less than 50% fat content.

C. Fruits – except apples, bananas, breadfruit, cheramoya, melons and plaintain.

D. Starches – all grains and sugars, potatoes (other than sweet potatoes), true yams, and including apples, bananas, breadfruit, cheramoya and plaintain.

E. All vegetables other than the ones noted above.

F. Melons.



Most questions revolve around "what about food X," and "how do I maintain my gallon-per-day water intake while observing the hours-between-meals schedule and the no-drinking-with-meals caveat?" I couldn’t begin to tell you. There are many variants, subsets and refinements of this basic structure put forth by their various proponents. All I can say is that for the purposes of results rather than learned analysis, this particular approach fills the bill. Common sense, flexibility and looking at the month’s, rather than the day’s, general dietary picture are essential for success with this rather demanding plan.

Peter hasn’t recommended using food separation because (1) practically speaking, it is discouragingly complex for most people to follow two "diets" at once; (2) the many foods which contain significant amounts of protein, starch and fat raise an equivalent number of vexed questions; (3) his diet plans limit by default the amount of grains for Os and Bs and meat for As; and (4) the blood type diets (based on what you eat rather than how much or when you eat it) have a medically documented 85% success rate on their own.

I have heard from several people who report benefits from regulating their ABO-compliant meals along food separation guidelines. Some feel that LR+FS is the Ultimate Healer, Foolproof Rejuvenator and Life Extender Extraordinaire. If you feel it’s worth a try, do it ~~ there’s nothing to lose, and it might be the key you've been looking for!