"Paleo diet" - 70% fat???

I don't understand the need for people to bash what everyone else does as far as 'dieting' goes to reach their goals. Everyone does what works for them so why not JUST accept that?

And yea. I eat Paleo.

I don't understand the need for people to bash what everyone else does as far as 'dieting' goes to reach their goals. Everyone does what works for them so why not JUST accept that?

And yea. I eat Paleo.

Well said.

Not everyone processes carbs well and many have a very bad reaction to gluten. But since we're "told" you need to eat 40/40/20 we are supposed to follow like blind sheep, correct? I don't think so. I'm going to trust the opinions/advice of Taubes/Sisson/Wolf over Oprah Winfrey every day of the week.

I don't understand the need for people to bash what everyone else does as far as 'dieting' goes to reach their goals. Everyone does what works for them so why not JUST accept that?

And yea. I eat Paleo.

Well said.

Not everyone processes carbs well and many have a very bad reaction to gluten. But since we're "told" you need to eat 40/40/20 we are supposed to follow like blind sheep, correct? I don't think so. I'm going to trust the opinions/advice of Taubes/Sisson/Wolf over Oprah Winfrey every day of the week.

Personally, I'll stick with peer reviewed science based medicine over all the above. I would gnaw off my arm before listening to Oprah who gives a platform to every homeopathic anti-vax quack diet nutter in the U.S.

The question is "Is Atkins/Paleo a healthy way to lose weight?" According to most doctors and the CDC and other government agencies it isn't really all that good for you. Now I know that those doctors are on the government pay roll and they only want to see Americans get fatter so the pay checks from the grain lobbyists keep rolling in, but they also advocate a way to lose weight that works. I clearly don't understand why they would do this when they want us all to get fatter, but there it is. Eat clean, healthy foods, in moderation. Don't cut anything out completely so you get full nutrition, and add exercise to your daily life.

This method has worked for hundreds of thousands of people too. They've lost just as much weight and been just as successful as those on the Atkins/Paleo diet and they gain it all back when they stop eating that way too. The difference is that there is no reason they have to stop. No doctor is going to tell someone they aren't getting enough twinkies in their diet, or that all those fresh veggies, and health carbs, has caused their kidney's to stop functioning properly. And nobody's going to say man that exercise you've been doing has really raised your cholesterol and you need to stop right now.

The bottom line is that there are many many ways to lose weight. Some are healthier than others, some are dangerous, and some are flat out stupid. I don't think Paleo is the most unhealthy, or the stupidest, or even really all that dangerous, but it's also not the best. It does give people a jump so they can lose weight and improve their health, so IMO it's really not that horrible. It's just not that great either.

I agree with a lot of this post.

This is an interesting thread. I have enjoyed the debates about "real doctors" and appendices. Despite the hot debate, I feel compelled to join the fray with a few points of my own:

1. As a "real doctor", I feel compelled to assure the community that I have no interest in people getting fatter. As an ER specialist, I see way too many people dying from complications of obesity, the condition makes caring for patients much harder, and in fact I have taken a special interest in it going away

2. The medical community is slowly realizing that low carb/sugarless diets are best for diabetes. I rarely recommend an Atkins-Paleo type diet to anyone, but it is an excellent lifestyle change for a diabetic.
http://www.atkins.com/science/sciencearticleslibrary/Category2/Diabetes.aspx

3. I think there are lots of good ways to be healthy and lose weight. Most of them include eating a balanced diet with plenty of protein, fruits, and vegetables. Many grain-based foods are processed and in avoiding them you can avoid a lot of processed food. You can also avoid them by only eating whole grains such as oats and brown rice.

4. There is a rising concern with gluten intolerance and its link to autoimmune disease and cancer. I myself have experienced great health benefits with eliminating it from my diet, and think there are a lot of undiagnosed gluten intolerant people out there that benefit from Paleo in this way. http://denver.yourhub.com/Littleton/Stories/Archive/Health-Fitness/Diet/Story~390017.aspx

5. We are recogonizing more and more that sugar consumption, especially the processed kind, is much worse for us than fat ever was. The insulin response and effect on the body can be profound. I honestly think at the end of the daqy with depends on your individual genetic makeup and hormonal responses http://www.rheumatic.org/sugar.htm http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20047137

6. A lot of people also have dairy intolerance due to difficulties digesting lactose and/or casein, and will find a lot less bloating and easier weight loss without it.

7. The human body is resilient. It will learn to adapt and thrive on any sort of energy input. They key is to find the best sources for YOUR body. I have found my body functions best with plenty of veggies and protein, low dairy, and a moderate amount of gluten-free carbs. My husband does best on plenty of fruits and carbs and a moderate amount of protein. I don't lecture him on eating my way (well, except for encouraging more veggies)....

In short, I don't know what the argument is over. Everyone's body is different, and science has failed to provide definitive proof we all need to eat the same. So congratulations to those who have found a lifestyle that works for them, and good luck to those still searching.

thank you!!!! hit the nail on the head!!

bump

The question is "Is Atkins/Paleo a healthy way to lose weight?" According to most doctors and the CDC and other government agencies it isn't really all that good for you. Now I know that those doctors are on the government pay roll and they only want to see Americans get fatter so the pay checks from the grain lobbyists keep rolling in, but they also advocate a way to lose weight that works. I clearly don't understand why they would do this when they want us all to get fatter, but there it is. Eat clean, healthy foods, in moderation. Don't cut anything out completely so you get full nutrition, and add exercise to your daily life.

This method has worked for hundreds of thousands of people too. They've lost just as much weight and been just as successful as those on the Atkins/Paleo diet and they gain it all back when they stop eating that way too. The difference is that there is no reason they have to stop. No doctor is going to tell someone they aren't getting enough twinkies in their diet, or that all those fresh veggies, and health carbs, has caused their kidney's to stop functioning properly. And nobody's going to say man that exercise you've been doing has really raised your cholesterol and you need to stop right now.

The bottom line is that there are many many ways to lose weight. Some are healthier than others, some are dangerous, and some are flat out stupid. I don't think Paleo is the most unhealthy, or the stupidest, or even really all that dangerous, but it's also not the best. It does give people a jump so they can lose weight and improve their health, so IMO it's really not that horrible. It's just not that great either.

I agree with a lot of this post.

This is an interesting thread. I have enjoyed the debates about "real doctors" and appendices. Despite the hot debate, I feel compelled to join the fray with a few points of my own:

1. As a "real doctor", I feel compelled to assure the community that I have no interest in people getting fatter. As an ER specialist, I see way too many people dying from complications of obesity, the condition makes caring for patients much harder, and in fact I have taken a special interest in it going away

2. The medical community is slowly realizing that low carb/sugarless diets are best for diabetes. I rarely recommend an Atkins-Paleo type diet to anyone, but it is an excellent lifestyle change for a diabetic.
http://www.atkins.com/science/sciencearticleslibrary/Category2/Diabetes.aspx

3. I think there are lots of good ways to be healthy and lose weight. Most of them include eating a balanced diet with plenty of protein, fruits, and vegetables. Many grain-based foods are processed and in avoiding them you can avoid a lot of processed food. You can also avoid them by only eating whole grains such as oats and brown rice.

4. There is a rising concern with gluten intolerance and its link to autoimmune disease and cancer. I myself have experienced great health benefits with eliminating it from my diet, and think there are a lot of undiagnosed gluten intolerant people out there that benefit from Paleo in this way. http://denver.yourhub.com/Littleton/Stories/Archive/Health-Fitness/Diet/Story~390017.aspx

5. We are recogonizing more and more that sugar consumption, especially the processed kind, is much worse for us than fat ever was. The insulin response and effect on the body can be profound. I honestly think at the end of the daqy with depends on your individual genetic makeup and hormonal responses http://www.rheumatic.org/sugar.htm http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20047137

6. A lot of people also have dairy intolerance due to difficulties digesting lactose and/or casein, and will find a lot less bloating and easier weight loss without it.

7. The human body is resilient. It will learn to adapt and thrive on any sort of energy input. They key is to find the best sources for YOUR body. I have found my body functions best with plenty of veggies and protein, low dairy, and a moderate amount of gluten-free carbs. My husband does best on plenty of fruits and carbs and a moderate amount of protein. I don't lecture him on eating my way (well, except for encouraging more veggies)....

In short, I don't know what the argument is over. Everyone's body is different, and science has failed to provide definitive proof we all need to eat the same. So congratulations to those who have found a lifestyle that works for them, and good luck to those still searching.

Thank you! Exactly what I was thinking. I feel like people are arguing because they just want others to believe what THEY believe is the RIGHT choice. It may be, and it may not be. Do what works for YOU.

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Thank you! Exactly what I was thinking. I feel like people are arguing because they just want others to believe what THEY believe is the RIGHT choice. It may be, and it may not be. Do what works for YOU.
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I think what would be really nice is to be willing to be a part of the HUMAN experiment. If you are a low fat/cal person and would like to know more about the low carb/High Fat/Protein way of eating. Try it for a month. IF it doesn't work for you. Then learn from that and go on. I can guarantee that most of us on the LC/HF/P way of eating have tried the LF/Lcal way of eating and have failed miserably and that is why we have chosen a different path. I know I tried it and it was miserable! I was starving all day long. All I thought about was, "What can I eat now? When do I get to eat next?" I was encouraged by WW to buy all their pre-packaged foods and snacks to help me to stay on plan. All they did was make me hungrier. I lost weight...a bit. I was miserable! I hated how it made me feel. I hated how it made me hungry. I hated that my blood tests said I was still unhealthy.
I started the journey to find a way to eat that helped me to lose weight and begin my journey to health and fitness. I asked my family practice doctor to run all the labs and to give me some advice. He pointed me to Atkins. He wanted me to let him follow my progress. As I stated before, my latest labs are all in the optimal ranges for the first time in decades.

I have recently discovered the Paleo etc. diet and found it was what I had been doing but that it had a name! I had given up gluten and dairy and had huge health benefits from it. I was still eating other grains but notice they do not agree with me. By eliminating all grains along with the gluten and dairy, I feel great, eat tons of greens, lean protein, some nuts and seeds and fruit once a day. Steadily loosing. Have requested the books from the library but for now existing on blogs and Facebook groups. www.marksdailyapple.com is a good one.

I notice on MFP that my fat and protein goes over their recommended but my calories stay under.

You can adjust the percentages to reflect your goals by customizing in the Settings; I've set mine for 25% Carbs, 40% Fat and 35% Protein. MFP then adjusts the daily goal in grams on your food tracker.

Actually this can't be done through Settings. You need to go to Goals, Change Goals, Custom - you can change ratios there. :flowerforyou:

Also, anyone who would like their eyes opened about the FDA and CDC watch Food Inc. You will never shop the same again

I've seen various incarnations of this paleo thread here and in other places on line, and, it's always bothered me that the grain has been demonized as unhealthy and unnatural.

Some upthread pointed out that "our bodies don't know what to do with grains", apparently because people started eating them after we evolved. When conditions have been supportive to preserve evidence of fibrous foods (unlike animals bones, they break down much easier) there is evidence that in some place hunter gatherers did crush and even bake wild grain, even in the Paleolithic era.

Source: http://anthropology.si.edu/archaeobio/Ohalo II Nature.pdf

If you think about, grain includes fiber, vitamins and trace minerals, small amounts of protein and fat, and is similar in composition to other food that our primate forbears ate such as seeds and nuts. If we couldn't adapt to eat it, then, we wouldn't still be eating it. Grain is the cornerstone of human civilization. While Paleo era hunter gatherers supposedly had a lot of leisure time, it wasn't until people moved on to agriculture and began domesticating wild grasses and harvesting and grinding grain that we had large groups of people living together, then cities, culture, mathematics and sciences, the written word etc. If that's evidence of "our bodies not knowing what to do with grain" sign me up.

Another argument was made that we don't need to eat grain, which implies that we shouldn't. Well, there are a lot of things we don't need to eat. I don't eat meat and I'm not dead yet! It doesn't mean that other people can't include meat as part of a healthful diet. Cultural/ethnic diets vary so greatly from one to another and yet people manage to nourish themselves.

But I think what baffles me the most about about this thread and the paleo diet in general, is how accepting people are of information that really should be given critical thought. People cite blogs, their naturopaths, books, other people. In reality, paleo dieting is a hypothesis; there is very limited longitudinal evidence of the touted health benefits of this diet in medical literature (controlled, randomized studies.) Advocates for this diet often couch their arguments in metabolic/endrocrinology theory, and anthropology, and their own anecdotes, but there aren't very many citations in pubmed about application (large groups of peopel on the diet). I read a couple of studies and there didn't even seem to a consensus about what the diet actually was.

You probably can do fine on a paleo diet if that's your thing, but that isn't to say you can't do fine on a vegan diet or South Beach, or pretty much anything else. Some people actually do well on low fat diets. Go with what works for you! But healthy skepticism never hurts.