The Paleo Diet, Is It Your Best Choice in 2015?

Every January millions of us step on the bathroom scale and reality hits. We’ve thoroughly enjoyed the holidays and eating everything that we have resisted all year. For most of us, we go from feast to famine and we dust off our gym membership and head back to the “exercise torture chamber.” The worst part is that we have the post- holiday blues, and where in the world did our energy go? We think, maybe it’s time to try that Paleo Diet we’ve been hearing about.

So What Really Is the Paleo Diet?

The Paleo Diet, or Paleolithic Diet, is based on how it is believed our cavemen ancestors ate. The emphasis is on meat and fish that is not saturated with growth-stimulating antibiotics and hormones and fresh fruit and vegetables. The diet excludes dairy products, processed sugars, grains, trans fats and industrialized Omega-6 fats. Herein lies the objections of many dieticians and nutritionists. They claim that any diet that excludes certain food groups is not balanced. They also claim that there is no scientific proof that the Paleo Diet leads to a longer and healthier life.

Jennifer Andrus, a New York City nutritionist, says of the Paleo diet:

“It eliminates dairy, legumes and some other foods that can be a healthy part of one’s diet…I think processed food deserves the criticism, but probably not because we haven’t evolved; more likely because we eat too much of it and most of it is nutritionally void.”

The Paleo Diet and Recent Research

Most processed foods and packaged foods contain trans fats. Trans fats are man-made oils that cause inflammation. Scientific research has unearthed the fact that inflammation is behind many of our serious health problems such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes, arthritis, ADD/ADHD, strokes, migraines, thyroid issues, the list goes on and on. The Paleo Diet is a diet that avoids foods that cause inflammation. When we change our diet to a diet that is anti-inflammatory, such as the Paleo Diet, we can see immediate and dramatic health improvements. Another benefit of an anti-inflammatory diet is that people tend to lose weight.

Mark Sisson, a leading expert on anti-inflammatory diets and the Paleo Diet, says:

“Certainly use plants, vegetables as the main basis of the Paleo eating strategy. And then great sources of protein: so meat, fish, fowl, eggs, and so on, and then healthy fats.”

So, what does he mean by “healthy fats?” Aren’t all fats, especially saturated fats, bad for you? No. That is another thing that extensive recent research is unveiling.

Here is a list of the healthy fats that are encouraged by the Paleo Diet and thousands of doctors who have stayed current with the recent dietary research:

Avocadoes

Nuts and seeds

Olive oil

Fish oil

Coconut oil

Saturated fat in beef and pork

Dr. Eric Westman, of the Duke Lifestyle Medicine Clinic, is one of those doctors who has changed his opinion due to the research results. He now says:

“In fact, saturated fat, the fat that we’ve been taught not to eat, raises your good cholesterol best of all the foods you can eat.”

So should you feel comfortable about using the Paleo Diet this year? Yes, but remember that balance in a diet is all important. Chris Kresser, author of the book, Your Personal Paleo Code, says:

“Some people like to abide by the 80/20 rule; if 80% of your diet is perfect, there’s wiggle room for the rest.”