The Paleo Diet is the newest diet craze out there. It consists of eating whole foods like organic fruit, vegetables, and meat while avoiding grains, beans, and dairy. Is it just a flash in the pan? I don't think so. Once I learned more about the Paleo Diet, I realized I had been eating it for quite some time. It is the healthiest, most rational diet I have ever come across.
The purpose of the Paleo Diet is to take eaters back to the natural diet of our ancestors before grains, added sugar, artificial preservatives and sweeteners, pesticides, genetically-modified organisms were loaded into or onto our foods, and gluten and dairy intolerances were nonexistent.
The Paleo Diet eliminates all refined and processed foods due to the chemical additives and often poor nutritional content. It is a whole foods diet. The significant rise in use of processed foods, which are loaded with fat, salt, and sugar, are a huge reason behind the rise in obesity and disease in this country. Eliminating processed foods will have a huge impact on your diet. However, there are other areas to consider as well.
This diet also eliminates grains and beans/legumes. This may be surprising to some people. The reason is that both have what's called phytic acid, which keeps your body from digesting and utilizing all of the nutrients in the food. They, along with dairy, also contain dangerous lectins, which are often responsible for additional digestion issues. While convenient, the human digestive system is not designed for grains and legumes, and is not efficient in using nutrients from these sources.
Dairy is the only area of the Paleo Diet without strict guidelines. Some people consume it while others don't. Those who don't consume it, avoid it because we are not designed to drink milk beyond infancy, and certainly not from other species. Human adults continue to drink milk because we can and because the powerful dairy lobby has convinced us that it is good for us. My research suggests otherwise, but that is the subject for another article.
The main staples in the Paleo diet are organic fruits and vegetables, including sweet potatoes along with wild-caught fish, pasture-raised eggs, and organic meats and poultry. Vegetables are extremely low in calories, so to avoid low energy, I suggest getting a significant amount of your carbohydrate needs from fruit.
Many believe the Paleo Diet is something similar to the Atkins' Diet, because Paleo is often referred to as The Caveman Diet. Paleo is not an all-meat or low-carb diet unless you apply the guidelines improperly. It is recommended that every meal has both protein and carbs from fruit and vegetables. I recommend a 40/40/20 breakdown of macronutrients, although some will recommend that fat intake can go above 20% to as much as a third of your caloric needs. If the additional calories are coming from nuts and seeds, it is probably not bad, but I would try the 20% limit first.
I recommend trying the Paleo Diet or at least learning more about it with the hopes you will eventually consider trying it. The diet is clean, nutritious, and will give you an energy boost while helping you lose weight or maintain a healthy weight.
The purpose of the Paleo Diet is to take eaters back to the natural diet of our ancestors before grains, added sugar, artificial preservatives and sweeteners, pesticides, genetically-modified organisms were loaded into or onto our foods, and gluten and dairy intolerances were nonexistent.
The Paleo Diet eliminates all refined and processed foods due to the chemical additives and often poor nutritional content. It is a whole foods diet. The significant rise in use of processed foods, which are loaded with fat, salt, and sugar, are a huge reason behind the rise in obesity and disease in this country. Eliminating processed foods will have a huge impact on your diet. However, there are other areas to consider as well.
This diet also eliminates grains and beans/legumes. This may be surprising to some people. The reason is that both have what's called phytic acid, which keeps your body from digesting and utilizing all of the nutrients in the food. They, along with dairy, also contain dangerous lectins, which are often responsible for additional digestion issues. While convenient, the human digestive system is not designed for grains and legumes, and is not efficient in using nutrients from these sources.
Dairy is the only area of the Paleo Diet without strict guidelines. Some people consume it while others don't. Those who don't consume it, avoid it because we are not designed to drink milk beyond infancy, and certainly not from other species. Human adults continue to drink milk because we can and because the powerful dairy lobby has convinced us that it is good for us. My research suggests otherwise, but that is the subject for another article.
The main staples in the Paleo diet are organic fruits and vegetables, including sweet potatoes along with wild-caught fish, pasture-raised eggs, and organic meats and poultry. Vegetables are extremely low in calories, so to avoid low energy, I suggest getting a significant amount of your carbohydrate needs from fruit.
Many believe the Paleo Diet is something similar to the Atkins' Diet, because Paleo is often referred to as The Caveman Diet. Paleo is not an all-meat or low-carb diet unless you apply the guidelines improperly. It is recommended that every meal has both protein and carbs from fruit and vegetables. I recommend a 40/40/20 breakdown of macronutrients, although some will recommend that fat intake can go above 20% to as much as a third of your caloric needs. If the additional calories are coming from nuts and seeds, it is probably not bad, but I would try the 20% limit first.
I recommend trying the Paleo Diet or at least learning more about it with the hopes you will eventually consider trying it. The diet is clean, nutritious, and will give you an energy boost while helping you lose weight or maintain a healthy weight.
About the Author:
Please check out my website to learn more at Food Labels or my blog at dangerous food additives
No comments :
Post a Comment