A Paleo Lifestyle…Not Just A Diet – My New Book!
The Paleo diet is not just another diet. It is a lifestyle; a change in the way you eat, sleep, exercise and live. So many people only focus on what they can and cannot eat yet ignore other aspects of their lifestyle that can have an equally important role in long term health. Getting sufficient sunlight, interacting with a loving community and family, ensuring sufficient sleep, rest and the right type and amount of exercise are all important influencers on health and mood.
This is one of the reasons why I wrote The Paleo Healing Bible – which gives a great overview of the paleo lifestyle and the nutritional aspects of different foods included in the diet. If you are new to the paleo way of life or just want a review of the best foods to include then read this book
I prefer to call this way of life the Paleo Movement, because we know that a lot of ill health in the western world comes from the contemporary choices we make – not just the food we eat but how we spend our time. We were never designed to eat refined sugar, never designed to spend half our lives sitting down or live in isolation without community. The Paleo Movement addresses both lifestyle and dietary aspects to this. I also like to think of the paleo way of eating to be centred on wholefoods that focuses on nutritionally dense, natural foods.
The paleo or ’caveman’ diet as some people prefer to call it, centres on the types of foods most likely to be eaten by our prehistoric ancestors. It avoids grains, processed sugars and starches, dairy and legumes and instead focuses on lean protein, healthy fat, fresh fruits and vegetables. With a focus on unprocessed, nutrient rich foods the paleo diet is often adopted to improve overall health, combat chronic health conditions including autoimmune diseases, boost weight loss and enhance energy and resilience.
Within this framework there are variations in the diet. For example many people with autoimmune conditions find the paleo approach beneficial but may make certain variations by excluding a number of additional foods, which may promote immune activation and inflammation.
One of the reasons why the paleo diet can be so beneficial is that it excludes some of the most common allergen inflammatory foods that our bodies were not genetically designed to eat: in particular gluten grains. In fact grains were only introduced into our diet around 10,000 years ago with the advent of agriculture. In other words, throughout the main part of our evolutionary history, we ate no bread, bagels or pasta and therefore have not adapted well to consuming large quantities of them. The advent of grains and their consumption in our diet in particular has been linked to the growing epidemic of obesity, diabetes and inflammatory conditions. In addition the increase consumption of gluten containing products has also been linked to the rise in gluten related disorders.
WHAT DOES THE PALEO DIET INCLUDE?
The following are included in the paleo diet
Grass-fed red meats
Wild game
Grass fed / organic poultry
Eggs
Offal
Bone broth
Fish
Shellfish / seafood
Fresh fruits
Sea vegetables
Fresh vegetables
Starchy vegetables
Fermented foods (kefir, sauerkraut, kombucha etc)
Nuts
Seeds
Quality fats and oils (e.g lard, duck fat, olive, walnut, flaxseed, macadamia, avocado, coconut)
Honey, stevia, coconut sugar (moderation)
Herbs and spices
Water, herbal teas, green and black tea (moderation), green juices and smoothies, coconut water, Nut and seed milks
Alcohol, occasionally
Coffee, occasionally
WHAT THE PALEO DIET AVOIDS
Grains including gluten and non-gluten grains (wheat, spelt, rye, barley, oats, corn, quinoa, rice, amaranth, millet, buckwheat, teff, wild rice, sorghum)
Beans and Legumes (including peanuts and soy)
Dairy products
Processed fatty meats (e.g hot dogs)
Soft drinks, sodas, fruit juice
Sugars, syrups and artificial sweeteners
Processed foods / ready meals
Refined vegetable oils
Candy/ sweets
There are a number of potential benefits associated with following a paleo diet. Firstly the paleo diet may improve overall energy levels and nutritional status, due to a greater micronutrient content than a standard high carb / sugar diet. The greater focus on protein supports muscle building and repair, blood sugar balance and may promote healthy weight loss if needed. Protein is also important for a healthy immune system as well as nourishing skin, hair, joints and bones.
Various research papers support the notion that the Paleo diet was much richer in a range of micronutrients including antioxidants, vitamins and phytochemicals. A review published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition also suggests that reduced salt and a greater intake of vegetables keeps the body more alkaline. This may be beneficial for bone health as well as improving exercise performance by reducing the build up of lactic acid.
Additional benefits of the paleo diet include a focus on grass fed meats and fish. These contain a number of health-promoting fats, including omega-3 fatty acids and conjugated linoleic acid, or CLA known for their anti-inflammatory properties. These fats are vital for cognitive function, cell health and metabolism. Being rich in anti-inflammatory nutrients it has been found to be useful for certain inflammatory conditions including skin conditions and asthma.
But it’s often improvements in digestive health that is often most noticeable. Grains particularly those containing gluten (wheat, barley and rye) can be a common trigger for digestive symptoms. Simply removing grains and gluten from the diet may significantly improve how you think and feel.
The Paleo Lifestyle
The paleo approach is not just about diet but a whole lifestyle approach. The expression of our genes is not just influenced by what we eat but how we live our lives too. Exercise, sleep, stress reduction, socialising with others are all important aspects of the paleo lifestyle.
Most people’s lives are very sedentary yet our ancestors would have been moving through the day. Sometimes this would have been gentle exercise and at other time much more intense. Keeping active enables us to burn energy easily and support muscle mass. Aim to move regularly through the day and make time to include both gentle and higher intensity exercise. Get outdoors as much as you can too – this will boost your level of vitamin D and can be an effective way to relieve stress
The paleo lifestyle also acknowledges that we are social and spiritual beings. For optimal health and wellbeing it is important to spend time with friends and family who share common goals and values. Having a sense of community, a spiritual belonging and living with a sense of purpose are key aspects of a healthy fulfilling life.
Fancy getting a FREE copy of my new book? The Paleo Healing Bible? Simply tweet me @AdvNut or instagram me including #paleodietbook