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Paleo diet

^ You'll find, after a few weeks, that your appetite drops slightly and your cost will go down for food. I'm eating, on average, twice a day lately and I can say that it's very enjoyable.

Lots of canned wild salmon, whole fat albacore tuna, spinach, eating a green pepper like an apple and plenty of nuts!
 
For what it's worth:

I eat paleo, with an emphasis on wildcaught fish (every day), avocados, green vegetables, and intermittent fasting. I have cut out all sugar, grains, starches. I eat dairy and legumes very occasionally. No land animal meat. Very low carb (around 50-75g a day).

Since committing myself to this lifestyle, my rheumatoid arthritis inflammation has calmed down (not completely but it's noticeably better), I am *way* more mentally clear, emotionally stable, open-hearted and mature. I used to have pretty bad anxiety and depression that I can't say I've experienced while sticking to this diet. The moment I eat something with sugar or grains in it, the anxiety returns, and my joints flare up with inflammation.

I did not read about the paleo diet and then take on its principles. I arrived naturally at this diet by observing which foods make me feel good, and which ones make me feel bad. Then one day, I came across the paleo diet on the internet and was like "Hey! This is what I already do! There's a *name* for my diet! Finally!" Open to any questions about reducing inflammation via diet alteration. I have a lot of personal experience in the area. YMMV, of course.

YMMV. Paleo is not for everyone, just as raw veganism is not for everyone. You can throw studies around all ya want, but it really boils down to what works for you. What you need to do is not be convinced of anything; you just should be open to changing your diet, if only experimentally, to see how you feel. Self-observation is key.
 
^ Great post, especially agree with the last paragraph. One thing that really annoys me about the paleo 'community' or whatever (and really most communities based around a specific diet) is how hell-bent they are on proving that it is THE diet for EVERYONE, and grains are to blame for all of human society's problems. Everyone is different, and I think you are going to get a lot further listening to your own body over what a bunch of people on a message board have to say... and I have learned this the hard way through way too much time wasted on fad diets and countless hours researching online... I say as I write a post about nutrition on a message board ;)
 
max_ said:
i've just put myself on low carb diet and after 3 days i can only say that i love this. actually i'm just avoiding grains and legumes. it is kind of expensive so i'm not sure how log will it last. i am eating milk cheese fruits and eggs for breakfast. my lunch is apple banana and eggs. for dinner i've been having leafy greens meat and a fruit. I find that i get so much full from one boiled egg than i would do from 2 granola bars. I am enjoying this and although i crave some wheat i have no problem avoiding it.
i like this dietary approach way more than eating low fat. low fat just sucks and keeps you hungry all day long.
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expensive? after eating THAT?! HOW?! that's less fod than I need and I don't work hard - to be fair, you need to learn about food combining too - fruit mixed with eggs? damn boy, your gut must hate you. fruit should not generally be mixxed with ANYTHING. Maybe a bit of yoghurt(fresh) or a tiny amount of grains. I mean tiny. Also Milkk - this is the same as fruit - shouldn't mix it with other things, it makes it too difficult to digest, and it should be warm or hot, if you do mix it with stuff like cereal or grains.
 
Simply_Live said:
I'm just going to jump in for a quick bit and ask a question:

Have you tried it? If not, then why even bother arguing?

If so, how did it work for you?

Let's not argue so much with studies as with experience. We can argue all day back and forth with studies, I'm seeing.
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I am not going to reply to all of Atara's mis-information because of this post, I have not tried this way of eating personally so cannot contribute personal experience.

And YES Atara I did realise dairy is prohibited in this diet I was AGREEING with this omission for good health. Honestly you assume I want to argue against EVERYthing just to be contrarian or something! I see areas where this is a nutritionally beneficial way to eat, and areas that are not so great. If anyone is actually interested in learning more about nutrition I would like to point out the politics of meat and dairy as something to be taken into consideration when interpreting various studies.

Look at where the funding has come from for these studies, consider the reliability of the source, validity of method, are there peer reviews? are there independently funded studies investigating the same things and repeatedly presenting conflicting results to those funded by major corporations promoting their own products/profits? Are there any other conflicts of interests? Critical thinking is a valuable skill. There's a lot of mis-information around, and it's pretty easy to find yourself in the middle of it, It happens to me plenty of times and I can assure you it happens to everyone. Not everyone will have the interest or time to research a particular topic thoroughly. All of this is food for thought, I do not enjoy arguing at all really, if I'm going to communicate with people I'ld rather it was smiles and glitter hugs. I just bring these things up so others may look into it themselves if they're interested. Sometimes we can learn from eachother <3
 
i feel better with high protein/low carbs and a lot of fresh fruits and vegetables, but i don't care enough enough about the specifics to really say i'm on any sort of diet.
 
double ewe said:
i feel better with high protein/low carbs and a lot of fresh fruits and vegetables, but i don't care enough enough about the specifics to really say i'm on any sort of diet.
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This is pretty much the way I fuel myself too. I read up on paleo books a bit and modified my diet and felt better but in the end I get 95% of the benefits just making sure I eat plenty of meat, fruit and vegetables. The one time when low carb doesn't seem to work for me is when I exercise I always work very hard and I found I do better with a bunch of simple sugars pre and post workout. But I am fairly lean already and have ever had to worry about losing weight rather the opposite so that might not be the case for others.
 
I don't eat the paleo-diet all the time. I use it as a cleansing and regenerative practice that I do maybe once or twice a year, usually in the hot weather. I eat big plates of raw or lightly steamed vegetables of many different kinds, smaller servings of fruit, unpasteurized milk, organic/free-range/non-medicated meat, and organ meats once a week. It also usually accompanies a somewhat more intense workout routine that involves more cardio.

While it would be great to eat this way all the time, I think modern demands on the human body call for some diet variation. Our ancient counterparts were not as intensely active as we are now. They would do work all the time but it was part of their daily existence and it was communally divided. The modern world is way more stressful on individuals by comparison; and I don't have a farm so I don't always have access to A grade food.

I have read research comparing jaw sizes over time within cultures that went from a paleo-diet lifestyle to the more modern lifestyle. Children who make the transition from the paleo to modern diet tend to have more narrow jaws, tooth crowding, and just unhealthy teeth. Women on a modern diet pass the deficiencies down to their children during pregnancy and breastfeeding too, so there is a generational effect.

Terry Whals is a western MD who suffered from MS, and after medications failed her the paleo-diet gave her life again:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KLjgBLwH3Wc

You can watch her talk about it there.
 
Foreigner said:
While it would be great to eat this way all the time, I think modern demands on the human body call for some diet variation. Our ancient counterparts were not as intensely active as we are now. They would do work all the time but it was part of their daily existence and it was communally divided. The modern world is way more stressful on individuals by comparison; and I don't have a farm so I don't always have access to A grade food.
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I agree with this fully and though I'd love to eat non-medicated meats and vegetables all the time, especially fresh foods, there's no way I personally can do it. Just do the best you can, right?
 
I eat this way after being a whole food vegan for a while. I felt good then (any switch from SAD to whole foods will feel better, I'm sure) but I feel better and full for longer now. Fatigue has always been an issue for me, not anymore.

Have any of you seen Fat Head? It's on instant Netflix, a very interesting documentary about this type of diet.
 
Simply_Live said:
I agree with this fully and though I'd love to eat non-medicated meats and vegetables all the time, especially fresh foods, there's no way I personally can do it. Just do the best you can, right?
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Yeah that stuff is expensive and I can't always do it, which is why I would rather do it a couple times a year. I know that sounds lazy but it has more to do with economics. It sucks that real food costs more money than junk these days.

EDIT: Two things I eat weekly which are cheap and jam-packed with high quality nutrition are bone broths (including marrow) and calf liver. Beef marrow bones are about $5 (US) per pound and calf liver is $5 for 4 ounces, which is twice the recommended weekly intake.
 
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My husband and I are going to try the paleo diet in January. We have been easing out of dairy and carbs this month. I didn't buy any bread, pasta, milk, nor cheese this week. I am keeping fat free half n half and greek yogurt in my diet. I am not going hard core. The thought of cooking with ghee or rendered animal fats goes against how I have been eating for 20 years but I am willing to try something different.
 
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