The Paleolithic Diet Effect

I had every intention of writing multiple blog posts over spring break. Then I realized that all of those assignments and projects that I had been putting off for two months? Yeah, those were all due. So yeah, I spent the majority of my spring break writing papers, critiquing my own counseling sessions, and continued writing the paper that I plan to have published (looks like in the next couple of weeks!!!!!). Not to mention that I also bought 20 new classic novels...just when you think you already own all of the classic novels, Barnes & Noble shows you just how incorrect you are. What did I buy? The Plague by Albert Camus, Edgar Allen Poe stuff, Return of the Native by Thomas Hardy, Main Street by Sinclair Lewis, Daniel Deronda by George Eliot, Nostromo by Joseph Conrad, Adam Bede by George Eliot, Silas Marner by George Eliot, The Old Curiosity Shop by Charles Dickens, Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens, Nicholas Nickleby by Charles Dickens, Women in Love by DH Lawrence, and the Secret Agent by Joseph Conrad. Then, of course, I went to another book store (I blame my dad for this one) and bought more.

So in summary, my spring break took a solid chunk not only out of my free time, but also out of my wallet. However, I found a little bit of time today to discuss another one of the popular diets seen in the media today: the paleo diet. The paleo diet is based on the idea that humans should be eating the way our hunter-gatherer ancestors did. According to the diet creators, all of our modern food is bad for our bodies, our gut, our minds, etc and should not be consumed. Therefore, if we eat the way our hunter-gatherer ancestors did, we can avoid these 'toxic' chemicals. The diet focuses on a higher protein, low carb, high fiber, high 'healthy fats', high potassium, low sodium, balance of dietary acids, high intake of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and phytochemicals (stuff that we aren't really sure why they help, but we know they help).

At face value, this sounds like a fairly reasonable diet. The main focuses on this diet are very similar to those we focus on in the DASH and Mediterranean diets, which are backed by a lot of science and research. However, once you add in the 'hunter-gatherer' portion of the diet, life gets a bit more complicated. On thepaleodiet.com, which is the official website, they have a list of foods you can and can't eat.

Foods the paleo diet allows: grass produced meat (I'm assuming they mean grass-fed, but maybe they have some magic grass somewhere), fish and seafood, fruits and vegetables, eggs, nuts and seeds, and healthful oils (walnut, flaxseed, olive). They even add coconut to the list of healthful oils, but I am not going to add it because I personally do not think its health benefits (if any) compare to the others they listed. Though it does taste delightful. The paleo diet also allows alcohol...which I will discuss further in the post. 

When you hear the list of things you can eat on the paleo diet, you probably think it's not too bad. But you haven't seen the list of things you can't eat on the diet yet: grains, legumes (including peanuts), dairy, refined sugar, potatoes, processed foods, salt, and refined vegetables oils (yes, all of the delicious stuff, I know). 

Because so many foods are left out, there are a couple of nutrient issues that arise with the paleo diet. First, with the absence of dairy, there is little to no calcium in the diet. Many people might point out that vegetables have a lot of calcium, which is true, but we've discussed before how the calcium in dairy is much more absorptive than the calcium in vegetables. Therefore, someone may look to be eating all of the calcium they need from vegetables, but absorption rates are at low at 20% in vegetables. I have mentioned before that peak bone mass occurs about age 25 in most individuals. Unless you eat the proper amount of calcium for the rest of your life, it's all downhill from age 25 for your bones. The risk of osteoporosis dramatically increases in those who do not consume the proper amount of calcium. 

Other nutrients of concern are magnesium, folate, and iron. If you are a woman of childbearing years, or are in a relationship with a woman of childbearing years, you probably see an issue here. Folate and iron are incredibly important for the general population, but are even more important for women that can become pregnant. Therefore, women that could become pregnant or are trying to become pregnant should be increasingly careful if they are trying to adopt the paleo diet into their lives. It is though that over half of all women are already deficient in iron in the first place, so decreasing the amount of iron that is available to them through food makes it even harder to reach the recommended intake. 

If you look deeper into the foods that can and cannot be eaten on the paleo diet, you will notice something: it is very hard to get the proper amount of calories in per day. Because of this, the paleo diet is great for weight loss. In fact, their website boasts of being able to shed 20-30 pounds in 1-2 weeks. It also discusses fat burning foods (which don't exist) and how these help make your tummy flatter and healthier. Extreme weight loss such as this is not healthy, and the body will exhibit some negative consequences because of it. Though the founders of the paleo diet do have some degrees that have a little bit to do with nutrition (like exercise physiologists that have an emphasis in nutrition), there is no dietitian on the list of founders. 

The lack of dietitian is one thing, but what boggles my mind even more is this one simple fact: how do we know exactly what our hunter-gatherer ancestors ate and didn't eat? They could have eaten grains for all we know. They probably also came across legumes at one point and decided to try those. And I am pretty positive that they did not know how to extract oil from walnuts, flaxseeds, and olives because that is a long process that requires technology that is a bit more advanced. Not to mention that alcohol (particularly red wine) is allowed on the paleo diet. I guess people will do whatever they can to keep their alcohol?  I personally don't drink, but I know I would do whatever I could to keep my Nutella in my diet. But once again, we don't really know what they ate. And we never will know. 

The paleo website also tries to sell you products, quick fix weight loss products, and has advertisements for a number of different diets (like the apple cider vinegar diet). I followed a link to a website that has some paleo meal plans, and the meal plans included things that though they are healthy, are not allowed on the paleo diet. Which only confused me. I think we should change the name to "Not Really Paleo, but Also Not Really Balanced" diet. But that's just my thought. 

And though I just got a bit sassy and ripped this diet apart, I do have to admit that there is some evidence to back this diet up. Research is finding that the paleo diet can help those with metabolic syndrome, which is evident through hypertension, type 2 diabetes, and high cholesterol. However, these issues are typically resolved through eating a healthy and balanced diet (not necessarily a paleo diet) and a weight loss of 7-10% of the person's body weight. It is hard to tease out whether the person's issues resolved because of the paleo diet alone. In my personal opinion, eating a healthy diet will resolve these issues without having to restrict which foods you eat. Not to mention that a less-than-ideal 20-30 pound weight loss in two weeks will not occur. 

In case this hasn't been clear, I will always be a supporter of a diet that doesn't restrict any foods. There are many reasons I think this way, but the main reason is this: life is already stressful, so there is no point in adding stress to your life by cutting out food groups. I could never be on the paleo diet because it would stress me out; but there are many people that are on this diet and love it. And there are many people on this diet and, coupled with supplementation and monitoring by a licensed medical professional, are doing just fine. 

I hope this post shed a little bit of light on the popular paleo diet! My goal is to get rid of all the fluff surrounding these popular diets and to expose what the scientific research says. That way all of us can make informed decisions when it comes to the food we nourish our bodies with. 

Have a great week!!!



I know I am jumping on the bandwagon a little bit late, but I wanted to give you some ideas for some avocado toast! For those of you who don't know what this is, it is pretty self explanatory: you mash up some avocados and spread it on your toast. Sounds weird, but it's actually quite delicious and nutritious! A group of my classmates did a presentation on this a couple of days ago, and it's been on my mind since. Which is why I bought a ton of avocados at the store for no other reason than I like them--I don't even know how I'm going to use them in my meal plans this week. 

A wide variety of toppings, in addition to the avocado, also taste great. The toppings in the pictured I provided for you are pesto and Parmesan, but there are many more you can try:

-your favorite sliced fruit
-your favorite sliced vegetables
-beans
-different cheeses (I personally think blue cheese would be delightful, but shredded cheddar is also yummy)
-nuts and seeds,
-boiled, scrambled, or fried eggs (fried is my favorite)
-salsa
-probably anything else because avocados are the single-handed greatest gift to the toast world (besides my mommy's spiced-peach jam, which is often held for ransom at family events)

Let me know of any other toppings you enjoy on your avocado toast!