Paleo or no Paleo there lies the question.

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I have a few of my friends that want to start to do paleo, but they said that a lot of people are telling them that Paleo is bad for your health and bad to lose weight as well.
What do you guys think:
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Replies

  • DeguelloTex
    DeguelloTex Posts: 6,652 Member
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    I think if it's something you want to do, you might try it.

    It's utterly unnecessary.
  • _John_
    _John_ Posts: 8,641 Member
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    I think if it's something you want to do, you might try it.

    It's utterly unnecessary.

    my feelings exactly. The emphasis of whole food is good, but some of the "reasoning" is just laughable.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,401 MFP Moderator
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    Tried it for 9 months and the only thing I learned is that when I restrict foods, I tend to crave them more. I really don't like plans with a lot of rules. I rather just focus on getting 80-90% of my calories from whole sources (fruits, veggies, meats, fish, dairy, whole grains) and throw in some treats.

    Besides, Paleo restricts a lot of good nutrient dense foods which is mind blowing like beans and nuts.
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
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    Heamous wrote: »
    I have a few of my friends that want to start to do paleo, but they said that a lot of people are telling them that Paleo is bad for your health and bad to lose weight as well.
    What do you guys think:
    I can't fathom how it would be worse for your health than the western pattern (AKA SAD) diet.
    If you want to try it, try it.
    It's not necessary in any way for weight loss.
  • bluefish86
    bluefish86 Posts: 842 Member
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    Heamous wrote: »
    I have a few of my friends that want to start to do paleo, but they said that a lot of people are telling them that Paleo is bad for your health and bad to lose weight as well.
    What do you guys think:

    Paleo is not for everyone, but I don't think I've ever heard someone say it's bad for your health...
  • Soopatt
    Soopatt Posts: 563 Member
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    You need a calorie deficit. What you comprise that of is up to you. If you eat too much meat or too much anything you won't lose a gram.

    I eat protein heavy on occasion and carb heavy on other occasions. I do whatever I need to do to stay under calories (most of the time).
  • Need2Exerc1se
    Need2Exerc1se Posts: 13,575 Member
    edited October 2015
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    As long as you are still getting proper nutrition and don't have any medical reason not to try it (I'd suggest checking with your physician if you have any active medical diagnoses) I can't see why it would be bad for your health.

    But, it is a very restrictive diet. I would suggest giving due consideration to how sustainable you think the diet would be for you. Will you be able to stick to it until you reach goal? Do you plan to follow it after you reach your goal? If not, what is your plan for maintaining the loss? I think the answers to questions like these should guide your decision.
  • tennisdude2004
    tennisdude2004 Posts: 5,609 Member
    edited October 2015
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    Heamous wrote: »
    I have a few of my friends that want to start to do paleo, but they said that a lot of people are telling them that Paleo is bad for your health and bad to lose weight as well.
    What do you guys think:

    It is not bad for your health and if eating the diet in a calorie deficit will be as successful for weight lose as any other diet.

    If they are interested and they are free thinking adults they should give it a try.

    It will either suit them or it won't.
  • hamlet1222
    hamlet1222 Posts: 459 Member
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    What I don't like about paleo is the basic principle that it's based on, in that what paleolithic man ate must be our ideal diet. I see multiple problems with this.

    1. Exactly which paleolithic peoples are we supposed to follow? Humans were spread out across most of the planet, eating what they could find in their area - and this would differ a lot from region to region. There would have been some regions where starchy roots/tubers were a staple food.

    2. Paleolithic people weren't concerned about age related illnesses, they just needed to get the energy to survive each day at a time, if something they ate was going to give them cancer in 30 years so what?

    3. The agricultural revolution happened around 10,000 years ago, that has given us hundreds of generations since where people who couldn't digest cereals would have died out (I wonder if gluten intolerant people are the last remnants of this?).

    4. Paleolithic humans would have been far more active than the average office worker. If you're going to match the diet, why not the activity level too?

    Still, if you like the menu and works for you then fine, to each their own.
  • rankinsect
    rankinsect Posts: 2,238 Member
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    Are you going to stick to this for a lifetime? My advice is never give up anything for a diet that you can't or won't give up forever.

    Losing weight is actually the easier part. Keeping it off is harder. You need to build up good habits now or you'll regain when the diet ends.
  • hamlet1222
    hamlet1222 Posts: 459 Member
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    rankinsect wrote: »
    Are you going to stick to this for a lifetime? My advice is never give up anything for a diet that you can't or won't give up forever.

    Losing weight is actually the easier part. Keeping it off is harder. You need to build up good habits now or you'll regain when the diet ends.

    Spot on! I feel more and more that the best diet is just eating the foods you like, but keeping the calorie intake at the maintenance level for the weight you want to be.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,988 Member
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    I'm all for not eating grains if one truly needs to not eat grains, but not eating grains because our ancestors did not is not a rationale that holds up.

    Thirty thousand-year-old evidence of plant food processing

    For Evolving Brains, a ‘Paleo’ Diet of Carbs

    The Importance of Dietary Carbohydrate in Human Evolution
  • dubird
    dubird Posts: 1,849 Member
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    rankinsect wrote: »
    Are you going to stick to this for a lifetime? My advice is never give up anything for a diet that you can't or won't give up forever.

    Losing weight is actually the easier part. Keeping it off is harder. You need to build up good habits now or you'll regain when the diet ends.

    QFT. Any change to your diet you make now needs to be one you can live with the rest of your life. It's perfectly fine to try things, but there is no magic food or diet that will make you lose weight. All the fad diets out there worked for someone, and if you feel it might work for you and you'll be getting the nutrition you need from it, then try it. But if you try and find you don't like it and can't imagine living with it the rest of your life, it's not for you.

    If you're looking for some direction to try, my suggestion is to focus on slowly lowering the amount of calories you eat by adjust the amount of food you eat. It helps to swap out some servings of 'junk' food (high calorie, low nutrition foods) with better nutrition choices, but you don't have to cut out all the things you like. Just learn what an actual portion of those foods is and work them into your day if you want them.
  • _Waffle_
    _Waffle_ Posts: 13,049 Member
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    psulemon wrote: »
    Tried it for 9 months and the only thing I learned is that when I restrict foods, I tend to crave them more. I really don't like plans with a lot of rules. I rather just focus on getting 80-90% of my calories from whole sources (fruits, veggies, meats, fish, dairy, whole grains) and throw in some treats.

    Besides, Paleo restricts a lot of good nutrient dense foods which is mind blowing like beans and nuts.

    Exactly. If you're struggling with food, adding more rules won't make your struggle easier. It will make it even more difficult.
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
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    hamlet1222 wrote: »
    What I don't like about paleo is the basic principle that it's based on, in that what paleolithic man ate must be our ideal diet. I see multiple problems with this.

    1. Exactly which paleolithic peoples are we supposed to follow? Humans were spread out across most of the planet, eating what they could find in their area - and this would differ a lot from region to region. There would have been some regions where starchy roots/tubers were a staple food.

    2. Paleolithic people weren't concerned about age related illnesses, they just needed to get the energy to survive each day at a time, if something they ate was going to give them cancer in 30 years so what?

    3. The agricultural revolution happened around 10,000 years ago, that has given us hundreds of generations since where people who couldn't digest cereals would have died out (I wonder if gluten intolerant people are the last remnants of this?).

    4. Paleolithic humans would have been far more active than the average office worker. If you're going to match the diet, why not the activity level too?

    Still, if you like the menu and works for you then fine, to each their own.
    All of this, of course, is somewhat moot, as the paleo approach to eating defines each.
  • DeguelloTex
    DeguelloTex Posts: 6,652 Member
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    hamlet1222 wrote: »
    What I don't like about paleo is the basic principle that it's based on, in that what paleolithic man ate must be our ideal diet. I see multiple problems with this.

    1. Exactly which paleolithic peoples are we supposed to follow? Humans were spread out across most of the planet, eating what they could find in their area - and this would differ a lot from region to region. There would have been some regions where starchy roots/tubers were a staple food.

    2. Paleolithic people weren't concerned about age related illnesses, they just needed to get the energy to survive each day at a time, if something they ate was going to give them cancer in 30 years so what?

    3. The agricultural revolution happened around 10,000 years ago, that has given us hundreds of generations since where people who couldn't digest cereals would have died out (I wonder if gluten intolerant people are the last remnants of this?).

    4. Paleolithic humans would have been far more active than the average office worker. If you're going to match the diet, why not the activity level too?

    Still, if you like the menu and works for you then fine, to each their own.
    All of this, of course, is somewhat moot, as the paleo approach to eating defines each.
    As if.

  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
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    hamlet1222 wrote: »
    What I don't like about paleo is the basic principle that it's based on, in that what paleolithic man ate must be our ideal diet. I see multiple problems with this.

    1. Exactly which paleolithic peoples are we supposed to follow? Humans were spread out across most of the planet, eating what they could find in their area - and this would differ a lot from region to region. There would have been some regions where starchy roots/tubers were a staple food.

    2. Paleolithic people weren't concerned about age related illnesses, they just needed to get the energy to survive each day at a time, if something they ate was going to give them cancer in 30 years so what?

    3. The agricultural revolution happened around 10,000 years ago, that has given us hundreds of generations since where people who couldn't digest cereals would have died out (I wonder if gluten intolerant people are the last remnants of this?).

    4. Paleolithic humans would have been far more active than the average office worker. If you're going to match the diet, why not the activity level too?

    Still, if you like the menu and works for you then fine, to each their own.
    All of this, of course, is somewhat moot, as the paleo approach to eating defines each.
    As if.

    excellent answer, as always.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,988 Member
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    hamlet1222 wrote: »
    What I don't like about paleo is the basic principle that it's based on, in that what paleolithic man ate must be our ideal diet. I see multiple problems with this.

    1. Exactly which paleolithic peoples are we supposed to follow? Humans were spread out across most of the planet, eating what they could find in their area - and this would differ a lot from region to region. There would have been some regions where starchy roots/tubers were a staple food.

    2. Paleolithic people weren't concerned about age related illnesses, they just needed to get the energy to survive each day at a time, if something they ate was going to give them cancer in 30 years so what?

    3. The agricultural revolution happened around 10,000 years ago, that has given us hundreds of generations since where people who couldn't digest cereals would have died out (I wonder if gluten intolerant people are the last remnants of this?).

    4. Paleolithic humans would have been far more active than the average office worker. If you're going to match the diet, why not the activity level too?

    Still, if you like the menu and works for you then fine, to each their own.
    All of this, of course, is somewhat moot, as the paleo approach to eating defines each.

    What does it say about # 4?

    4. Paleolithic humans would have been far more active than the average office worker. If you're going to match the diet, why not the activity level too?
  • mattyc772014
    mattyc772014 Posts: 3,543 Member
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    My personal friends that are eating Paleo diet always go back to stuffing their faces with bread, grain etc....Just an observation. I find it funny when we go out to dinner and they hog the bread basket. To each their own. I think a little bit of all foods makes it easier.
  • PeachyCarol
    PeachyCarol Posts: 8,029 Member
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    I'm not fond of restricting foods for the sake of restricting them. The rationale behind the Paleo diet isn't based on anything vaguely resembling a real Paleo diet.

    That being said, there's nothing inherently unhealthy about the food, the main thing about any diet used for weight loss will be creating a calorie deficit.

    OP, if you want to go Paleo to create your calorie deficit, go for it. There's no harm in it, but there's really no need to do it either.

    I've done Paleo in the past. I've done lots of different named diets in the past. I've found it far easier to just ... eat. I like a wide variety of nutritious foods and needlessly restricting grains or beans or dairy just made me miserable. Eating them in portions which fit within my calorie goals makes me happy and makes losing weight feel effortless. I don't feel like I'm "on" a diet. My diet is what I eat. How much of it I eat controls my weight.