8+ Reasons the Paleo Diet Should be Extinct

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bug1114
bug1114 Posts: 268 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I stumbled across this article today, and it peaked my general interest about the Paleo Diet. Until today, I'd never really looked into it. I have, however, seen many people asking about it on the forums. That being said, I'm sharing the link for those who are interested. If you read through the entire thing (it's long), I would also suggest reading the comments and rebuttals at the end of the article. I don't think this diet is something I will try, but maybe this will help those who have been on the fence about it make a decision one way or the other.


http://www.laststopfatloss.com/the-paleo-diet

Replies

  • PaleoPath4Lyfe
    PaleoPath4Lyfe Posts: 3,161 Member
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    Everything he states as anything else can be easily refuted.

    The Paleo LIFESTYLE is one that is a template for people to find the optimum NATURAL foods that is best for one's body.
  • bug1114
    bug1114 Posts: 268 Member
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    Everything he states as anything else can be easily refuted.

    The Paleo LIFESTYLE is one that is a template for people to find the optimum NATURAL foods that is best for one's body.

    You read all of that in four minutes? Impressive :)


    Anyway, that's why I suggested reading the comments at the end, many people did refute things he said. I think the article along with the comments from others at the end gives a great picture for BOTH sides of the argument. :flowerforyou:
  • PaleoPath4Lyfe
    PaleoPath4Lyfe Posts: 3,161 Member
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    Everything he states as anything else can be easily refuted.

    The Paleo LIFESTYLE is one that is a template for people to find the optimum NATURAL foods that is best for one's body.

    You read all of that in four minutes? Impressive :)


    Anyway, that's why I suggested reading the comments at the end, many people did refute things he said. I think the article along with the comments from others at the end gives a great picture for BOTH sides of the argument. :flowerforyou:

    Actually, yes I am a speed reader and have been all of my life.

    I didn't read the comments.

    I just don't understand the problem that people have with going back to an all natural way of eating. It is not hard, boring or depriving in the least.

    Even clean eaters get flack from the eat everything in moderation crowd.

    We weren't meant to eat boxed, packaged, frozen fake foods and getting back to clean eating, growing your own food and alternative cleaning methods are more in tune with the earth.

    I feel the positive energies since changing my lifestyle.
  • peace_pigeon
    peace_pigeon Posts: 120 Member
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    I agree with a lot of what he said in the article. That said, I have been eating a somewhat modified paleo diet for over a year and feel amazing. I wouldn't ever try and convince anyone else that it is the perfect way of eating, but I am healthy, strong, managing an autoimmune disease pretty well and at (ok, a bit below) my ideal weight. I eat veggies, lean meats, fruit and try to keep away from too many refined sugars. I have cream in my coffee, but rarely have any other dairy (love my almond milk!). I rarely have anything containing grain. I will steal sweet potato fries off of any plate close enough to reach, but won't order them for myself, lol. I will never say that anything is completely off limits, but I know what makes me feel my best and try to stick with that.

    I switched to this way of eating after being a vegetarian for 25 years. I can't tell you how much better I feel- so much of what I was eating was highly processed, so that proabably contributed to my not feeling so great. Even my bloodwork is better now.

    Another aside- in the article the author mentions that his *paleo* friend was scarfing bacon, lol. That wouldn't really fit into a "paleo" way of eating because it is not exactaly lean, and it is processed with preservitives (nitrites, I think?).
  • desert_rhino
    desert_rhino Posts: 104 Member
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    I just don't understand the problem that people have with going back to an all natural way of eating. It is not hard, boring or depriving in the least.

    Even clean eaters get flack from the eat everything in moderation crowd.

    We weren't meant to eat boxed, packaged, frozen fake foods and getting back to clean eating, growing your own food and alternative cleaning methods are more in tune with the earth.

    I feel the positive energies since changing my lifestyle.

    The author makes very good points. Amylase repeat increases and lactase shut-off mutations alone should be enough to drive the nail in the coffin of this very marginal diet's "justification" that humans haven't had time to evolve to eat an agrarian diet.

    Good for some people? Sure. (particularly those with food sensitivities like gluten intolerance)

    Good for everyone? Nope. (especially because it can't be maintained across the entire population without eliminating probably 80-90% of all living humans... there are only so many calories to go around, and making meat costs far more sunlight and nutrients than making grains)

    Besides, read the part again where the author talks about what typical hunter-gatherer societies eat NOW. He makes excellent points here, too. "Paleo" is just a word that has been attached to a particular diet, because it sounds cool. If it works for you, awesome. It's not going to work for everyone, just like extreme calorie restriction won't work for everyone, Atkins won't, WW won't, SoBe won't, etc...

    (and nothing turns off a fence-sitter like zealotry, just a bit of free advice... living the good life based on your decisions will ALWAYS carry more weight than proselytizing a particular path through this life...)
  • Bailey543
    Bailey543 Posts: 375
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    How about if you don't agree with the Paleo Lifestyle, don't do it???? And no, I do not follow the Paleo lifestyle, but I don't care if people do. To each his own... What works for one, may not work for others.
  • spngebobmyhero
    spngebobmyhero Posts: 823 Member
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    interesting read, most of which I don't agree with due to research I've done, but good to read anyways
  • sapalee
    sapalee Posts: 409 Member
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    Interesting read, nice to see counter arguments. People are always going to find the research to support their beliefs, on both sides.

    I'm one of those that had apparently unknown sensitivities and now feel great.

    But I never would have thought to try or been encouraged to try this template without the "diet" being out there.

    So I'm grateful for it and for giving it a try, even if some want to call it a fad, I'll call it a lifestyle that works for me.
  • tracypk
    tracypk Posts: 233 Member
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    I had no idea what a Paleo diet was. It seems to me that the author of the article was just trying to put out there that an extreme way to practice the Paleo diet is probably not healthy. That's what I got out of it. Based on the replies it doesn't seem like anyone that says they are following the diet does anything too unhealthy. If it works for you great! Anyone can take a good idea and turn it into something extreme so that others are turned off by it.
  • tidmutt
    tidmutt Posts: 317
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    There are variations of Paleo. Primal for example. Primal allows for dairy if you tolerate it (aren't lactose intolerant), and even recognizes that rice, potato can be fine in moderation. It's a good template from which to start. Eat a wide variety of foods, minimally processed, high in healthy fats and then adjust to your individual needs. The caveman thing needs to be dropped to be honest.

    Even the author of the article seems to agree on the above points.
  • Pebble321
    Pebble321 Posts: 6,554 Member
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    The thing I usually have a problem with is not so a much a particular diet, but the evangelical approach taken by some followers - of ANY diet, not just paelo. People get caught up in something that is working for them, and think that everyone else has to do the same thing or suffer the consequences. It just doesn't work that way - even "cavemen" (many of whom didn't live in caves) ate varying diets depending on what was available in their environment. More meat, less meat, more fish, whale blubber, lots of plants, few plants - it varied depending on where people lived.

    I like some of the concepts of paleo (dropping processed stuff seems like a great idea to me) but I think the term has been so over-used and mis-used that's it practically meaningless now. But, as the author of that article said, if reading about "paleo" eating leads people to eat better and feel healthier, that can only be a good thing.
  • barbaradilisio
    barbaradilisio Posts: 39
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    I just started eating a more Paleo diet and have done a lot of research on it. It's nice to read different opinions. I feel like there are a lot of different interpretations of this diet. Some people say it's ok to eat sweet potatoes and drink coffee, some say no way. Some people eat dairy, some don't. A common theme I'm seeing is that most people say "just eat what you feel like your body can handle". Yes, there are some people that take that evangelical approach, but for the most part, I feel like people that eat Paleo understand there is going to be some flexibility.

    I'm only on day 3 and I'm still trying to figure out what works best for me.

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