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What is the Paleo Diet? How it works and how it can help you lose weight

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What is the Paleo Diet? How it works and how it can help you lose weight

"What is the paleo diet?" is such a popular question we get asked that we thought it was about time to answer it...

"What is the paleo diet?" we hear you cry! Well, if you're looking to lose weight, it could be the solution for you. Especially as its about getting back to basics when it comes to food, so it's really easy to follow.

Here's everything you need to know about the paleo diet before you give it a try...

WHAT IS THE PALEO DIET?

The paleo diet is pretty easy to follow. “The paleo diet is designed to resemble the diet of hunter gatherers in the Palaeolithic era from 2.5 million to 10,000 or so years ago," says dietitian, Dr Carrie Ruxton, from The Health & Food Supplements Information Service.

So it's time to forget any ready meals or artificial foods. "A paleo diet typically includes lean meats, fish, fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds – foods that in the past could be obtained by hunting and gathering," says Dr Ruxton. "Depending on the part of the world, some hunter gatherers may have eaten high quantities of meat and few plant foods whilst others ate more plant foods.”

HOW DOES THE PALEO DIET WORK?

“The aim of a paleo diet is to return to a way of eating that is more like what early humans ate," says Dr Ruxton. "The diet's reasoning is that the human body is genetically mismatched to the modern diet that emerged with farming practices. Farming changed what people ate and established dairy, grains and legumes as additional staples in the human diet. This relatively late and rapid change in diet, according to the hypothesis, outpaced the body's ability to adapt. This mismatch is believed to be a contributing factor to the prevalence of obesity, diabetes and heart disease today.”

WHAT DO YOU EAT EACH DAY ON THE PALEO DIET?

Here's the good news – you won't feel hungry on the paleo diet.

“Recommendations vary for paleo diets with some diet plans stricter than others," says Dr Ruxton. "In general, paleo diet recommends fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds, lean meats (especially grass fed and wild game), fish, especially oily fish, oils from plants such as olive oil. The diet recommends avoidance of grains, such as wheat, oats and barley, legumes such as beans, peas and lentils, dairy products, sugar, potatoes and highly processed foods (in both snacks and meals).”

COULD THE PALEO DIET WORK FOR YOU?

In a word, yes. “It could help you to lose weight," says Dr Ruxton. "A number of randomised clinical trials have compared the paleo diet to other eating plans, such as the Mediterranean Diet. Overall, these trials suggest that a paleo diet may provide some benefits when compared with diets of fruits, vegetables, lean meats, whole grains, legumes and low-fat dairy products."

And it's not just good for your waistline. "These benefits may include more weight loss, better appetite management and improved glucose tolerance," says Dr Ruxton. "However, longer trials with large groups of people randomly assigned to different diets are needed to understand the long-term, overall health benefits and possible risks of a paleo diet.”

IS THE PALEO DIET BAD?

Not really. In the diet world, it's actually really healthy.

“A paleo diet is rich in vegetables, fruits and nuts – all elements of a healthy diet," says Dr Ruxton. "The main difference between the paleo diet and some other diets is the absence of whole grains and legumes, which are considered good sources of fibre, vitamins and other nutrients. Also absent from the diet are dairy products, which are good sources of protein and calcium. These foods not only are considered healthy but also are generally more affordable and accessible than such foods as wild game, grass-fed animals and nuts. For some people, a paleo diet may be too expensive.”

HOW MUCH WEIGHT COULD YOU LOSE ON THE PALEO DIET?

“A study in 70 women found that following the paleo diet for six months resulted in 14 pounds (6.5 kg) of fat loss, on average, and a significant reduction in central abdominal fat," says Dr Ruxton. "Another review of 11 studies concluded that the diet may aid weight loss, noting that participants lost an average of nearly eight pounds (3.5 kg) in trials lasting anywhere between two months and two years.”

IS THE PALEO DIET WORTH A TRY?

Yes, it's definitely worth a try in the short term. “The paleo diet has been linked with weight loss," says Dr Ruxton. "Weight loss is likely as food groups are cut out and calorie intake is likely to be reduced because of that. However, it is restrictive to follow particularly in the longer term. Given its avoidance of many healthy foods, there is a risk of fibre, vitamin and mineral shortfalls (e.g., calcium in dairy foods, fibre and B vitamins in legumes and wholegrains). Anyone following this diet should be recommended to take a multivitamin/multimineral supplement.”

WHAT DOES THE PALEO DIET COST AND DO YOU HAVE TO SIGN UP?

Here's both good and bad news. "There is no need to ‘sign up’ to anything to follow this diet. Various Apps are available some of which are free, some of which have a charge,” says Dr Ruxton. However, you may find you have to spend more as you'll be buying good quality groceries. Although this is an investment in your health.

https://www.womanandhome.com/health...ou-lose-weight/

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"A paleo diet typically includes lean meats, fish, fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds – foods that in the past could be obtained by hunting and gathering," says Dr Ruxton.

I doubt that Paleo hunters trimmed fat off of their meats. Fat would have been their main source of energy.

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In general, paleo diet recommends fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds, lean meats (especially grass fed and wild game), fish, especially oily fish, oils from plants such as olive oil.

Same thought as Dodger about the fat. In addition, hunter gatherers would have no practical means to process oils out of plants. Think for instance huge heavy stone olive oil presses agrarian people used. Not a mobile device, therefore nomadic people had to depend on fat of animals, not processed (even primitively by today's standards) plant oils for fat. Much healthier IMO. People currently get way too much linoleic acid (omega 6) from processed plant oils for good health.

And it is so much easier to just eat the olives.

We will never get a sensible food policy as long as people are scared of MEAT.

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Originally Posted by WereBear

We will never get a sensible food policy as long as people are scared of MEAT.

Yes, and the predominantly saturated fat that rides along with the meat.

The meat in the market today is a far cry from the wild caught meats. Eating grass creates a different day profile than corn and soybean, especially as those two are mainly GMO.

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Originally Posted by Ms Arielle

The meat in the market today is a far cry from the wild caught meats. Eating grass creates a different day profile than corn and soybean, especially as those two are mainly GMO.

How true! I recently learned this is especially so for single-stomached animals like pigs and chickens, that their bodies are loaded with bad fats from corn feed (even if it's organic same problem fats). Ruminants like beef, sheep and goat are able to convert the unhealthy excess omega 6 fats into healthier stuff but I'm afraid that bacon fat I used to enjoy might be more akin to drinking bottles of soy and corn oil. :(

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Originally Posted by Zei

Yes, especially since I've come to regard pork rinds as a staple :lol: Not just for crunchy things, but also as the base for my gf goodies, like my griddle muffins.

Like all of us, I do the best I can. Don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good.

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Originally Posted by WereBear

Like all of us, I do the best I can. Don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good.

Good point. That's my mantra as well. We can always caveat things to the nth degree, but at the end of the day, good food must be available. How do we define available? It's easily purchased or acquired, it is reasonably priced, and it provides nutrient density over other foods. If I can only purchase beef that was grain fed, I do not hesitate. To argue that it's inferior to grass fed becomes moot when people can't acquire beef due to price or availability or both. In a perfect world, we'd all have grass-fed meats at reasonable prices. Haven't encountered that world yet. This is one of the points that Dr. Westman makes to people who can benefit by consumption of nutrient dense foods, but are hesitant due to the meat not being from grass-fed, free range animals.

I have to concur with WereBear and Rob - I don't panic over the difference in fats between grain-fed and grass-fed/organic meats. I have no doubt that the latter is superior, but I find it somewhat alarmist to say that they're "loaded" with bad fats. The polyunsaturates are only one part of the total fat content. I've seen some Twitter discussion on that issue recently and I respectfully think they're scaring people unnecessarily. If you've already cleaned up most of your diet by ditching junk, you're already 90% better off than you were. If your only source of those polyunsaturates is some roasted chicken or a pork chop or some deli meat, that's probably no big deal for most of us - an exception being perhaps someone who's dealing with a really persistent issue that just won't respond to the usual interventions. I say this a lot, but "compliance trumps everything else." Do what you can with the resources you have to create a diet you can stick with.

I render the fats from (cheap) chicken, pork and beef. They behave like they're supposed to. I've kept them in the fridge for an embarrassingly long time, and they still taste wonderful. This probably wouldn't happen if there was too much unstable polyunsaturate content. They'd go rancid. :idea: It took me a YEAR to finish off my last batch of beef tallow.

From Sacred Cow .

But you'll find many of our conclusions are at odds with deeply held beliefs in the ancestral health community. Perhaps the most glaring: although grass-fed meat may be superior from a sustainability perspective, current research indicates that it is only marginally different from conventionally raised meat when it comes to health and nutrition.

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However, you may find you have to spend more as you'll be buying good quality groceries. Although this is an investment in your health.

This was a mental barrier I still have to remind myself to get over. Right now, with bizarre shortages, lost job, and resulting financial stress, I still have to remind myself that buying a package of meat is going to satisfy me in a way that no other kind of food will. That if they don't have the chicken that tastes good, don't buy the chicken that tastes bad just because it is my cheapest choice.

Feeling bad levies its own costs.

It is an adjustment for many. I often think of the long-term costs of poor health due to consumption of unhealthy food to contrast spending more for healthy, whole food. Given the positive changes a healthy lifestyle produces, avoiding expensive health care costs, living with low energy, and feeling generally unwell are major factors compared to the quality of life healthy eating practices bestow on all who take this stuff seriously.

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Originally Posted by Zei

Yup. :lol:

Profs at University talked about hogs becoming the fat they ate. A hog laying in the sun after eating a soft fat diet, became lop sided as the lard moved !! The point was to be careful about feeding hogs fats that are soft at body temps.

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Originally Posted by GRB5111

I often think of the long-term costs of poor health due to consumption of unhealthy food to contrast spending more for healthy, whole food.

DH and I have decided it's pay more now, or pay much more, later! :lol: