The "ancestors" we are talking about in here are the spear-throwing variety, not the Bible-touting kind. I think you are off by a couple hundred thousand years. Not a single person in this thread, nor in the Paleo community, is against eating pigs. Also, our ancestors couldn't possibly be "ignorant" to what was good for them, because our genome evolved based on exactly what they did for millions of years. By definition they have to be "right", because that is how our bodies are the way they are today.
The paleo diet overall seems to be great, but there is some aspect of it that is pseudo science to me. They talk about these foods with lectin creating "leaky gut", but there is no real indication of it being as ominous as it sounds. I couldn't find any solid research that says foods with lectin are bad for you when prepared properly. I'm trying to find one decent study that talks about the benefits or harms of lectin but everything I find seems to link to some sort of wellness blog that regurgitates the same questionable stuff. They always seems to include words like "may" and "could" and phrases like "needs more research". Then they talk about the inflammatory response and try to link lectin to autoimmune diseases. There are just so many leaps without any proof. There is so much more research out there to indicate that legumes and foods from nightshades are very healthy for people. The main problem in foods with lectins is when they are not cooked properly. When they are cooked properly they are simply not toxic from everything I can find. Additionally, the benefits of lectins in fighting cancer and infection seem to have been completely ignored by the paleo blog people. There are actually a few studies out there that talk about the benefits of lectins.
I've eaten legumes, nightshades, dairy all my life. Grains, processed foods, sugars, cheese burgers, coca cola, candy bars too, as a matter of fact. And I am in relative good health, even before starting to eat paleo about a month ago. I don't think anyone is suggesting you will become gravely ill from eating these things. My question is, how will my life be adversely affected by cutting them out? There are some questionable things about these foods. Foods that our ancestors seemed to have survived without for hundreds of thousands of years, and were fine for it. What will I be missing if I do the same? What I have learned throughout the years about "scientific proof" is that we know much too little about our world, and it is an awful arrogant line of thinking to deny anything that doesn't have 100% scientific proof. Maybe some things we just have not figured out yet.
I have never been on any diet in my life before this. I am neither overweight nor unhealthy(as far as I can tell). The reason why I went on the Paleo diet was because after reading about it, the premise simply made logical sense. As simple as that. With that said, any more suggestions on recipes? I need to go grocery shopping.
A billion plus people eat legumes as a protein staple in a vegetarian diet. Far bigger sample size than eating meat wholesale, a food considered more a luxury than staple for hundreds of thousands of years. For context, the mutation to process lactose came about hundreds of thousands of years ago as well. Societies change and adapt pretty fast, but highly doubtful cavemen were eating bronto burgers 5 days out of 7 either. More like the reverse if they were lucky. I'm happy for people on paleo because the results show, but dubious on the airs of scientific credibility it's trying to put on itself.
thx westcoasin and CX for your replies... this type of eating appeals to me, but like you guys have mentioned it seems only practical as a more loosely adhered-to lifestyle parameter rather than a strict change in diet. even choosing simple dishes like steak and veggies at a restaurant, i would always be leery of what was added in (ie. refined sugar in the marinade? canola oil (nearly all of it is GMO in north america) used to saute? butter (dairy) used to saute? are any of the vegetables themselves GMO?). another issue is all the chemical additives used in packaging meat and seafood, as well as pesticides all over most fruit and veggies. i'm also not sure how i could deal with the drastic reduction in carbs. i typically feel hungry without them and several cuisines would be difficult to keep eating, such as italian and chinese (pasta and rice). as far as cutting out legumes b/c of the lectin - it's my understand that this compound is actually found in most vegetables and fruits also, albeit in smaller proportion. keeping in mind Invisible Fan's point that entire people's survive on legumes as a staple of their diet without any noticable detriment, i don't think it'd be worth cutting them out without further research. dairy products i would be willing to cut out or reduce (but man will i miss my cheeses) after reading the China Study. anyways, i found this recipe online and asked my cook to follow it for dinner tonite: http://www.health-bent.com/beef/paleo-korean-barbecue-osso-buco it'll probably come out nice, but i don't know how i'll be able to eat it without rice!
This is a problem I've been having, feeling full. My solution has been eating larger portions of vegetables and adding in sweet potato/beets etc once in awhile to substitute for the carbs.
Yes, juicing is a healthy practice, but I prefer blending as it retains the fiber of the fruits and vegetables.
My first instinct would be no. It may be easier to get the nutrients in but why take all the fiber out? I guess it depends on what you are planning to juice. I'd be very wary of fruit; too many simple carbohydrates. I'd much prefer to snack on fresh veggies as they keep me feeling full and are low calorie. Throw a carrot and a bell pepper in a bag: hells yeah. Edit: Whoops, westcoast beat me to it. Fiber good. Stay regular, my friends.
ok. that's what i wanted to know. all the terms confuse me a little..between juicing..blending..smoothie..green..raw! I def want to keep the fiber and keep it more veggie based with maybe 1 serving of fruit added or something. What is this I hear about rotating your veggies out? I eat broccoli, cauliflower, bell pepper, mushrooms etc on a daily basis.
ok so the beef what quite good. good flavor and i could see myself eating this kind of food regularly. had it with braised spinach. but....in the past 3hrs since dinner i've been so ****ing hungry for carbs i keep going back to the kitchen....and already downed 2 cups of fruit & nut trail mix, a banana, and carrot sticks dipped in cinnamon :S
It is pretty hard if you go from consuming a lot of carbs especially in grains then switching to not having it. If you are just starting out it will take about a week to calm a lot of those cravings.
My first time posting here! I've been on clutchfans for a while now, but this thread i would like to share! Good video! There is also part 2 and part 3 but I thought part 1 was good enough! http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=uCFZoqmKf5M
this no carb thing is a bunch of bull****. if there's carbs in things God created..then eat it. There's no one BEST way to eat. what works for a sedentary office worker is not what works for a weightlifting athlete. It's ok to eat all these vegetables but as soon as I eat sweet potatoes, beans or rice I am going to die? Give me a fking break.
1. Sweet potatoes are completely Paleo friendly. I am making some right now. 2. No one is talking about death. Just diabetes, cardiovascular illness, obesity, and general un-wellness. 3. God also created the Double Bypass Heart Attack Burger. And I feel like if he created it, I should have the right to live off of it.
to #3..no he didn't. r****ded humans did. when I meant what God made..i meant UNPROCESSED man made versions of natural foods. Things like white bread, instant flavored oats, cereal etc. Lot of cultures eat high carb from natural sources no issues. Lot of cultures eat high fat (good fat) with no issues. But americans are so focused on cutting one of those nutrients out to perfect their diet. Oh nos! fat is bad! oh nos! carbs are even worse! how bout we all just stop eating sugar filled processed sh**? /rant
Almond/cashews/nuts and a lot of water (x10) man ... The hunger for sweets/carbs fade and dull after three weeks but general hunger still follows. If you're following cxbby's diet, sweet potatoes would be an awesome and nutritious complex carb.
