The fourth instalment of our nutrition blog series sees us talking about the Paleo or ‘Paleolithic’ diet. It’s a diet that grew in popularity through the early 2000’s, reaching a peak around 2012 or so. It was synonymous with CrossFit in the early days and that spun out into a wider ‘ancestral health’ movement.
It’s still popular and when done right is a very effective diet, so in the article we’ll delve a little deeper into the Paleo diet, what it is, why it’s popular, who should follow it and what the research says…
What is the Paleo Diet?
The paleo diet is an umbrella term for an eating approach that removes all processed foods. Essentially the rules are you follow a diet that the paleolithic man would have eaten. He wouldn't have access to much in the way of grains, starches (rice and potatoes), processed sugars, legumes and pasteurised dairy, so these are all out.
Typically that leaves you with meat, fish, eggs, berries and seasonal fruit and vegetables, healthy fats and raw dairy. From a drinks point of view, you’d be left with water and perhaps coconut and nut milks - caffeine, alcohol and sugary drinks would all be out.
Food quality is important too, so on the paleo diet you should stick to organic fruit and vegetables, grass fed meat, line caught fish and free range eggs. The idea is to align your eating with as natural an approach as possible. Eating unprocessed foods, in season and with little in the way of additional sauces beyond stock made from bones and vegetables is the paleo diet in a nutshell.
Paleo can be confusing…
A lot of people wrongly assume that paleo automatically means ‘low carb’, when in fact you can still eat a lot of carbs on the paleo diet.
The term paleo is more in reference to the kinds of foods you eat, not the macro split itself. In a food quality sense, it has more to do with veganism than a lot of other diets in that there are a lot of foods that are off limits because of their origin. Followers of the paleo diet aren’t just about eating as much meat as possible - it’s about eating well-raised, high welfare, grass fed meat because it has a better nutrient profile.
It’s actually possible to be a vegetarian on the paleo diet, with your protein coming from eggs, nuts, seeds and clever combining of vegetables to ensure you get a complete amino acid profile in your diet. It’s not as easy, but it’s certainly possible.
Why follow a paleo diet?
Proponents of the diet suggest that because you’ll be eating a more natural diet your body will respond accordingly, reducing inflammation, boosting immunity, reducing risk factors of cancer, cardiovascular disease, neural degeneration and the like. It stands to reason that if your diet is full of nutrient dense foods and you’re no longer consuming unhealthy, high sugar foods then you’ll be healthier.
A lot of the claims are evidence-backed too. In this 2009 study the Paleo diet was shown to improve markers of cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. A study published in 2012 suggests that a paleo diet may improve digestive hormone profiles, helping to regulate hunger and appetite more effectively and control obesity in some patients.
When it comes to weight loss, no one diet is particularly better than any other - it’s a calories in versus calories out equation, but what paleo does have in its favour is it’s a diet that promotes an all-round version of health and is naturally low in the kind of foods that make you gain weight. Paleo won’t make you lose weight faster than another diet, but it may make you healthier than others.
If you are from a family with significant numbers of sufferers of diabetes, cancers, heart diseases and neurodegenerative diseases, I’d seriously consider following something like the paleo diet. Even if you’re not 100% strict, using it as a template and reducing dairy, grain and sugar intake probably wouldn’t be a bad idea.
Why is paleo so popular?
The paleo diet is popular because it’s one of the more enjoyable ways to eat and it helps you to get off sugar more easily, because it’s simply not an option. It’s almost like following an abstinence-based recovery from drugs!
A lot of early followers of the diet used this as a challenge - they did the 30 days of ‘clean’ eating, which meant for 30 days they essentially followed a paleo diet, removing all sugars, booze, coffee, tea, grains etc. A lot of people lost a lot of weight, felt great and carried on with it forever. The 28 and 30 day challenges are still popular on social media because they’re short enough to be doable, but long enough for most people to see some fantastic results.
On the paleo diet you’re not counting calories or weighing out foods - you’re eating good quality food and avoiding certain food groups. There’s also the feel-good boost of removing junk food. You’ll feel great pretty quickly when you’re not drinking alcohol and caffeine, eating processed sugars, grains and dairy. The immediate feel good is motivating for many and they’re likely to stick to it afterwards.
Who shouldn’t follow paleo?
The reality is that paleo isn’t for everyone. Some people can tolerate carbs very well and therefore there’s no need to avoid them. Additionally there’s people who are fine with dairy, can control their sugar cravings and don’t struggle with inflammation. If that’s you, carry on as you are - there’s no need to change what you’re doing! If you’re fit, lean and doing well with what you’re currently eating, stick with it!
Is paleo for you?
What the research shows is that there are benefits to the paleo diet. It may not be the answer to every nutrition question, but there’s no doubting that a diet high in vitamins, minerals, fibre, protein and good fats, whilst low in sugar, allergens, alcohol and caffeine is a good starting point.
Even if you’re not strict paleo to the letter (that’s when it’s restrictive - eating out can be a massive problem!), it’s a good starting point for a diet.
If you’d like some help following the paleo diet, contact us on 07921465108 or email us at admacfitness@gmail.com. We look forward to hearing from you!
Other blogs in our nutrition series…
All About Intermittent Fasting for Weight Loss…