The Paleo Diet Moves From The Gym To The Doctor's Office

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  • MMoriarty2012
    MMoriarty2012 Posts: 31
    I do agree that there are some "very passionate followers", who I suspect would do well on any reasonable plan, given their focus and discipline. IMHO.
  • Acg67
    Acg67 Posts: 12,142 Member
    I think evolutionary arguments regarding food are stupid because you can bet that if the cave man had high nutrient density food he didn't have to work for, he sure as hell would eat it. It's not like there were all of today's options and they chose only XY and Z. I also hate when people say what we were "meant" to eat. We were. Meant to be able to eat whatever was available. We've since invented or found new things, but just because they are evolutionarily new doesn't mean they are necessarily bad. Multivitamins are new, does that mean they are bad? Fish oil supplements?

    I think that the reason restrictive diets work for weight loss and health is that they keep you from eating the donut your coworker brought in offering 300 cals and no satiety. I'm more of a moderation girl. I don't think there is anything wrong with paleo or primal, I just don't think it's especially right either.
    its not really a restrictive diet, you can eat as much as you like. I don't see any reason why it would work better or worse weight loss wise when compared to calorie restriction. I think its more for overall health than weight loss.

    Oh didn't realize it was a magical diet that you can eat however much you like (except for the evil evil grains, legumes and dairy) and lose weight.
  • mymission92
    mymission92 Posts: 97
    I personally don't see how it has enough calories in the diet to maintain a healthy weight. Of course for weight loss it's a different story. But for me (I only eat chicken and tend to eat more fish, eggs etc) don't see how I'd possably get enough calories, I tried this diet or 'lifestyle' and couldn't get more than 800 a day, 1000 was a struggle.
    Also I don't see why natural yoghurt and some dairy products would need to be eliminated and thing like sweet potatos, quinona.
    Also they're are plenty of people who eat most foods in moderation and are perfectly healthy (as long as they get enough veg, fruits and protein)
  • victoria4321
    victoria4321 Posts: 1,719 Member

    Oh didn't realize it was a magical diet that you can eat however much you like (except for the evil evil grains, legumes and dairy) and lose weight.
    I meant that anyone can follow it whether they're trying to eat less or not. Its not restrictive as in they're trying to reduce calories. Diet being just what they eat, not necessarily a weight loss plan. You could lose weigbt eating twinkies if you want but its not necessarily the healthiest method.
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,147 Member
    What our paleo brothers and sister actually ate 50,000+ yrs ago on a daily basis would probably make most people sick to their stomachs and thanks the gods for a hamburger with the works. The reality is, nobody actually knows what they ate. Cordian in his original paleo diet dissed saturated fat and said use canola and said diet pop was ok..........everyone's got a theory based on their biases.
  • MoreBean13
    MoreBean13 Posts: 8,701 Member
    Its funny how this is catching on for medicine like 2 years after it exploded in the diet world, and many of the original paleo supporters have moved on, or still practice some modified version that makes it less restrictive.
  • WhitneyAnnabelle
    WhitneyAnnabelle Posts: 724 Member
    Until people following a Paleolithic diet start taking into account periods of starvation related to seasons, natural disasters, war, etc., I will always have a hard time reconciling this diet with my anthropologically-oriented mind

    As douchey as that sounds.
  • Pinky67
    Pinky67 Posts: 108 Member
    Until people following a Paleolithic diet start taking into account periods of starvation related to seasons, natural disasters, war, etc., I will always have a hard time reconciling this diet with my anthropologically-oriented mind

    As douchey as that sounds.

    ^^^This is true
  • Pinky67
    Pinky67 Posts: 108 Member
    I'm all for healthy, natural eating...but it seems the doctors forgot to mention that the cavemen had a life expectancy of about 18-20 years...so it was sort of irrelavant what they ate as far as long term health effects....

    ^^^This is very true!!! Can't dispute this fact!!!
  • melbaby925
    melbaby925 Posts: 613

    Paleo dieters are strange to me. Amazing to make an entire lifestyle revolving around conjecture and assumptions. We know next to nothing about cavemen or if they even existed (yes, that is still up for debate!).

    ^^^ I read this and Scientology popped into my head!

    I don't know that I buy into the caveman concept of the whole thing, but due to food allergies/intolerances/celiac issues, I've had to cut grains & beans completely. I've also been dealing with insulin resistance, so sugar and dairy have also gone by the wayside. So I consider myself accidentally primal. I've since become a big fan of Mark's Daily Apple as I've being done research on this topic and my new way of eating. I feel better than I ever have, and problems I thought were just inherited or my normal way of life are gone. So I'm a believer of this way of eating. For me. I don't think that Drs should just blanket prescribe this as a solution for everyone.

    I also think it's going to be interesting going forward, because the war on sugar is just getting ramped up. High Fructose Corn Syrup was just the beginning and now we see politicians getting involved with their stupid large drink ban suggestions and taxing drink ideas. This Dr. bandwagon is another step in the process.
  • _Bob_
    _Bob_ Posts: 1,487 Member
    thanks for posting it. I've been considering it for a long time. my only problem sticking with it is my wife sneaking in some awesome rice dinners.
  • msjersey73
    msjersey73 Posts: 182 Member
    Sorry I'm posting from my phone so its acting up a bit. A friend sent me that article and I thought it was interesting so I wanted to share. What do you guys think about drs prescribing this diet? Good or bad idea?

    I believe it is a Great idea.
  • Skinny_Beans
    Skinny_Beans Posts: 405 Member
    I like the paleo diet as an influence for eating more legumes, veggies, and fruits, but I want dairy in my diet. I drink almond milk but feel cottage cheese, greek yogurt, cream cheese, and butter in moderation are good too.
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,147 Member
    I'm all for healthy, natural eating...but it seems the doctors forgot to mention that the cavemen had a life expectancy of about 18-20 years...so it was sort of irrelavant what they ate as far as long term health effects....

    ^^^This is very true!!! Can't dispute this fact!!!

    Actually it was closer to 40 and that's taking child mortality into account, not even going to go into health care. If a person lived past 5 yrs of age then generally they lived fairly old, well past 50 into their 60's and 70's.....today some countries have life expectancies in the 40.'s and 50's......basically your argument is a moot point for adopting a similar diet, which more than likely has nothing to do with the actually food.
  • bathsheba_c
    bathsheba_c Posts: 1,873 Member
    Of course people will see positive weight loss results if they cut out most of the sources of carbs and processed foods in their diets as these tend to be present in less healthy foods. But I'm a little skeptical of the whole paleo idea seeing as we don't really know what people ate back then. Heck, there's even a theory that wheat evolved so that we would stay in one place to farm it, which implies that people were eating it!
  • victoria4321
    victoria4321 Posts: 1,719 Member
    Until people following a Paleolithic diet start taking into account periods of starvation related to seasons, natural disasters, war, etc., I will always have a hard time reconciling this diet with my anthropologically-oriented mind

    As douchey as that sounds.

    ^^^This is true

    What about people who fast on a regular basis?
  • strongnotskinny121
    strongnotskinny121 Posts: 329 Member
    When you go off the bad foods you stop insulting the body.

    This is my favorite line! I feel so much better and have more energy since I have modeled my diet after the Paleo diet. It makes a lot of sense to me. I have trouble giving up cheese, and some grains, but mostly I eat meat, veggies, and fruit. :)
  • strongnotskinny121
    strongnotskinny121 Posts: 329 Member


    Oh didn't realize it was a magical diet that you can eat however much you like (except for the evil evil grains, legumes and dairy) and lose weight.

    According to the author of the Paleo Diet, it kind of is. You can only eat so much food and if what your eating is fresh fruits, veggies, and lean meat, you will lose weight. The claim is that you don't even have to really exercise, although it is encouraged. Your body will naturally hit its equilibrium.
  • wild_wild_life
    wild_wild_life Posts: 1,334 Member
    I think evolutionary arguments regarding food are stupid because you can bet that if the cave man had high nutrient density food he didn't have to work for, he sure as hell would eat it. It's not like there were all of today's options and they chose only XY and Z. I also hate when people say what we were "meant" to eat. We were. Meant to be able to eat whatever was available. We've since invented or found new things, but just because they are evolutionarily new doesn't mean they are necessarily bad. Multivitamins are new, does that mean they are bad? Fish oil supplements?

    I think that the reason restrictive diets work for weight loss and health is that they keep you from eating the donut your coworker brought in offering 300 cals and no satiety. I'm more of a moderation girl. I don't think there is anything wrong with paleo or primal, I just don't think it's especially right either.

    I don't eat paleo but I don't see how you can say the evolutionary arguments are stupid. The question is, what is the optimal human diet? The answer is what we were eating when our digestive system evolved. That is what our systems were designed for. Our entire bodies were designed for that lifestyle. Our modern diet is so drastically different from that and yet evolutionarily we have not changed. It only makes sense to me to get things more in line with how it was then. I admit the details are a little fuzzy and it differed culture by culture, but some things are known (ie this is pre-agriculture so no one ate poptarts).
  • MoreBean13
    MoreBean13 Posts: 8,701 Member
    I think evolutionary arguments regarding food are stupid because you can bet that if the cave man had high nutrient density food he didn't have to work for, he sure as hell would eat it. It's not like there were all of today's options and they chose only XY and Z. I also hate when people say what we were "meant" to eat. We were. Meant to be able to eat whatever was available. We've since invented or found new things, but just because they are evolutionarily new doesn't mean they are necessarily bad. Multivitamins are new, does that mean they are bad? Fish oil supplements?

    I think that the reason restrictive diets work for weight loss and health is that they keep you from eating the donut your coworker brought in offering 300 cals and no satiety. I'm more of a moderation girl. I don't think there is anything wrong with paleo or primal, I just don't think it's especially right either.

    I don't eat paleo but I don't see how you can say the evolutionary arguments are stupid. The question is, what is the optimal human diet? The answer is what we were eating when our digestive system evolved. That is what our systems were designed for. Our entire bodies were designed for that lifestyle. Our modern diet is so drastically different from that and yet evolutionarily we have not changed. It only makes sense to me to get things more in line with how it was then. I admit the details are a little fuzzy and it differed culture by culture, but some things are known (ie this is pre-agriculture so no one ate poptarts).

    I'm certainly not arguing for pop tarts, but digestive enzymes play a huge role in digestion- and they have changed with changing diets even if our anatomy hasn't.

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