Paleo / Primal Blueprint type diets (2 Viewers)

[ntz08]

http://io9.com/why-the-paleo-diet-and-lifestyle-are-not-based-in-scien-493239551

 

[Chaos Commish]

http://io9.com/why-the-paleo-diet-and-lifestyle-are-not-based-in-scien-493239551

Addressed at length pages ago.

 

[culdeus]

http://io9.com/why-the-paleo-diet-and-lifestyle-are-not-based-in-scien-493239551

Addressed at length pages ago.

I think he is posting a different article. I don't recall that one specifically.

 

[Maurile Tremblay]

http://io9.com/why-the-paleo-diet-and-lifestyle-are-not-based-in-scien-493239551

Addressed at length pages ago.

I think he is posting a different article. I don't recall that one specifically.

Yeah, ntz08 posted an excerpt from the introduction of the book, which I hadn't seen before.

I'd like to read the book; I'm just not going to have time for a while.

Based on what I have read (including the excerpt that ntz08 posted), I'm not sure what Zuk's main point is. She's not telling people to eat candy and donuts, I presume. She has made the case that some people are more or less adapted to consuming dairy. (Not a new revelation, but some in the paleo community may still need to hear it.) Is she also arguing that some people are pretty well adapted to eating grains, including modern wheat? Or is she merely arguing that evolutionary theory doesn't rule the possibility out? The first would be a lot more interesting than the second.

The paleo diet means so many things to so many different people: there is the Cordain version, the Neanderthin version, the Sisson version, the Jaminet version, the low-carb version, and so on. Some versions exclude dairy, some don't. Some exclude all grains, some don't. Some exclude legumes, some don't.

So I sympathize with Zuk if it seems like she's aiming at a moving target. At the same time, though, whenever I read an excerpt or article by her, I can't really tell what she's trying to aim at. It seems like she's aiming at the theoretical underpinnings of the diet rather than at its practical advice; but the theoretical underpinnings she's taking aim at appear in many cases to be straw men. She criticizes the assumption, for example, "that we evolved until we reached a particular point and now are unlikely to change for the rest of history." But who believes that?

I guess I need to read the book to find out if she's got anything to add to the discussion about which specific foods (or general categories of foods) we're well adapted to, which ones we aren't, and which are a matter of individual variation.

 

[Chaos Commish]

http://io9.com/why-the-paleo-diet-and-lifestyle-are-not-based-in-scien-493239551

Addressed at length pages ago.

I think he is posting a different article. I don't recall that one specifically.

Yeah, ntz08 posted an excerpt from the introduction of the book, which I hadn't seen before.

I'd like to read the book; I'm just not going to have time for a while.

Based on what I have read (including the excerpt that ntz08 posted), I'm not sure what Zuk's main point is. She's not telling people to eat candy and donuts, I presume. She has made the case that some people are more or less adapted to consuming dairy. (Not a new revelation, but some in the paleo community may still need to hear it.) Is she also arguing that some people are pretty well adapted to eating grains, including modern wheat? Or is she merely arguing that evolutionary theory doesn't rule the possibility out? The first would be a lot more interesting than the second.

The paleo diet means so many things to so many different people: there is the Cordain version, the Neanderthin version, the Sisson version, the Jaminet version, the low-carb version, and so on. Some versions exclude dairy, some don't. Some exclude all grains, some don't. Some exclude legumes, some don't.

So I sympathize with Zuk if it seems like she's aiming at a moving target. At the same time, though, whenever I read an excerpt or article by her, I can't really tell what she's trying to aim at. It seems like she's aiming at the theoretical underpinnings of the diet rather than at its practical advice; but the theoretical underpinnings she's taking aim at appear in many cases to be straw men. She criticizes the assumption, for example, "that we evolved until we reached a particular point and now are unlikely to change for the rest of history." But who believes that?

I guess I need to read the book to find out if she's got anything to add to the discussion about which specific foods (or general categories of foods) we're well adapted to, which ones we aren't, and which are a matter of individual variation.

Well, here's a short article by Zuk that gives her basic approach to the topic, which is conjuring simplified straw men in which to punch holes. I liked your 'Breaking up with Paleo' link because she'd carefully addressed nuances in her decisions. We should all relate to if not agree with many of the choices and paths she followed. Even if not, it was respectful to something that's helped hordes get healthy while moving in a different direction.

Zuk sets respect aside in her title -- fantasy. Then come the straw men, which sort of turns the fantasy thing back at her. I'd love to hear her debate Cordain or Taubes, who I think are the basic (soft) targets of her book. Her expertise isn't that impressive. This approach to the book was probably little more than the most marketable vehicle for her better researched thoughts on sex, her specialty.

Even though I've drifted to small quantities of properly soaked legumes, fermented or sprouted grains, no fear of corn and rice, and maybe moved the primal 80% to 70, I struggle to sympathize with Zuk because she barely acknowledges the moving target you described and dismisses benefits too easily. She's at UC Riverside where there's some zealous cutting edge paleo-agricultural work in progress. I've done some related business at UCR and know much better qualified biologists for tackling the topic.

Not sure if this has been posted, but it covers Zuk, pro and mostly con, from a bigger brain than mine. PDF

I'd like to just put an end to this vein of the thread.

 

[Maurile Tremblay]

Not sure if this has been posted, but it covers Zuk, pro and mostly con, from a bigger brain than mine. PDF

You may have given the wrong link there. (That points to the same article as the first link in your post.)

In any case, here's my argument that the basic concept of the paleo diet (perhaps more appropriately called something like an ancestral diet) is correct.

1. Some foods have better effects on human health than other foods do.

2. The foods that are relatively poor for humans fall into two categories: (a) foods that are inherently lacking in nutritional value, and (b) foods that are toxic to humans or foods whose nutrients are not made available by human digestion. In the first category is, for example, Coca-Cola. There's no such thing as a mammal becoming well-adapted to survive on Coca-Cola, because it just doesn't have any of the vitamins and minerals and other substances that can sustain a mammalian body. In the second category is, for example, grass. It's full of nutrients that are available to cows, but human digestion can't capture those nutrients.

3. Let's ignore foods in the first category because they don't really exist in nature. Anything in nature that lacks any micronutrients will not be yummy, and will not be considered food. (I can't think of any exceptions.)

4. Foods in the second category are foods that humans are not well adapted to. Either we haven't sufficiently evolved a defense against their toxins, or we haven't sufficiently evolved an ability to make use of their nutrients. In both cases, it is very likely that other animals have — but not humans.

5. In general, humans — like all other animals — will be better adapted to eating the foods that our ancestors have long eaten, and less well adapted to eating foods that our ancestors have not long eaten. There may be exceptions: some novel foods may be even better for us than some traditional foods. But for the most part, any food that is nutritionally poor for humans has probably not been a staple of the human diet for the last million years. It follows that any food that has been a staple of the human diet for the last million years will not be nutritionally poor for humans.

6. I think, in that last sentence, we've just stated the basic principle of the paleo diet, and I don't think any reasonable evolutionary biologist can disagree with the correctness of that basic principle.

7. To be sure, there is still a lot to flesh out, and the devil is always in the details. What foods have been staples in the human diet for the last million years? Maybe not too many that are still around. Of the foods that we have introduced into our diet only ten thousand years ago, which have we become sufficiently adapted to and which are we still relatively poorly adapted to? (Or which have required no specific adaptations because they were already well suited for us when first introduced?) Of the foods we have introduced into our diet only a hundred years ago, which are good for us and which are bad?

8. I would appreciate any insight into the questions raised in #7 from Marlene Zuk or anyone else able to contribute to the discussion. It is possible that today's more restrictive paleo gurus have it all wrong about grains, dairy, and legumes. If so, it would be great if Zuk or anyone else can point out why (and indeed, some have already done good work in that direction, and some of the paleo gurus have revised their views in response). Zuk, for example, has described the recent evolution of lactose tolerance in some humans. That's certainly relevant to the discussion. It doesn't mean that milk is great for everybody, but it does suggest that it's unproblematic for some people — and that a sweeping indictment of it (a la Cordain) may be misguided. Excellent. Let's have more of that, please. More work on the details: what foods are we and what foods aren't we well adatped to? But to attack the basic principle of the paleo diet (not a straw man replica of it), denying that the reason some foods are bad for us is that we're not well adapted to them, seems like a losing endeavor.

 

[Chaos Commish]

Not sure if this has been posted, but it covers Zuk, pro and mostly con, from a bigger brain than mine. PDF

You may have given the wrong link there. (That points to the same article as the first link in your post.)

Yep sorry. I looked for the pdf briefly, but couldn't find it. I'll look again when not so distracted.

Also

 

[Maurile Tremblay]

7. To be sure, there is still a lot to flesh out, and the devil is always in the details. What foods have been staples in the human diet for the last million years? Maybe not too many that are still around. Of the foods that we have introduced into our diet only ten thousand years ago, which have we become sufficiently adapted to and which are we still relatively poorly adapted to? (Or which have required no specific adaptations because they were already well suited for us when first introduced?) Of the foods we have introduced into our diet only a hundred years ago, which are good for us and which are bad?

8. I would appreciate any insight into the questions raised in #7 from Marlene Zuk or anyone else able to contribute to the discussion. It is possible that today's more restrictive paleo gurus have it all wrong about grains, dairy, and legumes. If so, it would be great if Zuk or anyone else can point out why (and indeed, some have already done good work in that direction, and some of the paleo gurus have revised their views in response). Zuk, for example, has described the recent evolution of lactose tolerance in some humans. That's certainly relevant to the discussion. It doesn't mean that milk is great for everybody, but it does suggest that it's unproblematic for some people — and that a sweeping indictment of it (a la Cordain) may be misguided. Excellent. Let's have more of that, please. More work on the details: what foods are we and what foods aren't we well adatped to? But to attack the basic principle of the paleo diet (not a straw man replica of it), denying that the reason some foods are bad for us is that we're not well adapted to them, seems like a losing endeavor.

Stephan Guyenet makes the point I was trying to make:

I'll note here that the idea of a gene-environment mismatch is the foundation of the ancestral health concept. Although it has become fashionable in some academic circles to criticize the ancestral health/Paleo community for "idealizing the past", being unscientific, etc., in reality this fundamental concept is widely accepted and cited in the biomedical literature.... Few researchers would disagree that a gene-environment mismatch is at the root of the modern obesity epidemic, and therefore that it is valuable to understand where our species came from in our effort to combat obesity. Although some of the critiques of the ancestral health community are legitimate, they often reek of academic snobbery and ingroup identity reinforcement. The fundamental concept is sound and already widely accepted, so why not cooperate and try to refine it instead of ostentatiously rejecting the community attempting to advance it?

 

[Chaos Commish]

7. To be sure, there is still a lot to flesh out, and the devil is always in the details. What foods have been staples in the human diet for the last million years? Maybe not too many that are still around. Of the foods that we have introduced into our diet only ten thousand years ago, which have we become sufficiently adapted to and which are we still relatively poorly adapted to? (Or which have required no specific adaptations because they were already well suited for us when first introduced?) Of the foods we have introduced into our diet only a hundred years ago, which are good for us and which are bad?

8. I would appreciate any insight into the questions raised in #7 from Marlene Zuk or anyone else able to contribute to the discussion. It is possible that today's more restrictive paleo gurus have it all wrong about grains, dairy, and legumes. If so, it would be great if Zuk or anyone else can point out why (and indeed, some have already done good work in that direction, and some of the paleo gurus have revised their views in response). Zuk, for example, has described the recent evolution of lactose tolerance in some humans. That's certainly relevant to the discussion. It doesn't mean that milk is great for everybody, but it does suggest that it's unproblematic for some people — and that a sweeping indictment of it (a la Cordain) may be misguided. Excellent. Let's have more of that, please. More work on the details: what foods are we and what foods aren't we well adatped to? But to attack the basic principle of the paleo diet (not a straw man replica of it), denying that the reason some foods are bad for us is that we're not well adapted to them, seems like a losing endeavor.

Stephan Guyenet makes the point I was trying to make:

I'll note here that the idea of a gene-environment mismatch is the foundation of the ancestral health concept. Although it has become fashionable in some academic circles to criticize the ancestral health/Paleo community for "idealizing the past", being unscientific, etc., in reality this fundamental concept is widely accepted and cited in the biomedical literature.... Few researchers would disagree that a gene-environment mismatch is at the root of the modern obesity epidemic, and therefore that it is valuable to understand where our species came from in our effort to combat obesity. Although some of the critiques of the ancestral health community are legitimate, they often reek of academic snobbery and ingroup identity reinforcement. The fundamental concept is sound and already widely accepted, so why not cooperate and try to refine it instead of ostentatiously rejecting the community attempting to advance it?

"Mismatch" jogged my memory. PDF

In sum, Zuk has written a wide-ranging, accessible, and stimulating book, but one

that mainly triumphs in dispatching paleo-hucksters, anonymous bloggers, and scholarly
straw men. In failing to acknowledge the successes of the mismatch perspective, Zuk has
reached the wrong conclusion: The mismatch perspective has not been a failure; it has been
tremendously fruitful. Yes, we must strive to do a better job employing this perspective,
but, given the state of today’s world, we cannot afford to back down from the challenge.

 

[culdeus]

The 5:2 diet is really picking up steam. Should put this one off the radar of people wanting to make a quick book buck.

 

[Maurile Tremblay]

"Mismatch" jogged my memory. PDF

Excellent article. Thanks.

 

[The Hank]

Long story short: I have Crohn's Disease - it has been in check for most of my life but I have had some flareups* recently during a family vacation and it looks like the Mrs. and I are going to be doing this Paleo diet thing for 30 days to see if it helps with the flareups*.

I dont think it'll make a difference, as I think some of the problems I've been having are not Crohn's related, but I digress. Briefly reading through, it appears as though I'm not the only one who has looked at this to regulate digestive health. Looking at what's allowed and what is outlawed, I think that my wife is going to have a harder time with this than I will (she loves baked goods/cereal/etc.), and that is amplified x 1000 because we are pregnant.

Has anyone noticed any positive results from doing this sort of thing with a digestive ailment (I apologize if its been noted throughout the thread, but I didnt want to sift through 18 pages)

*According to the Mrs. she thinks its the Crohn's,, I disagree and think it was a stomach virus/food poisioning combined with some existing fistula issues

 

[cosjobs]

Long story short: I have Crohn's Disease - it has been in check for most of my life but I have had some flareups* recently during a family vacation and it looks like the Mrs. and I are going to be doing this Paleo diet thing for 30 days to see if it helps with the flareups*.

I dont think it'll make a difference, as I think some of the problems I've been having are not Crohn's related, but I digress. Briefly reading through, it appears as though I'm not the only one who has looked at this to regulate digestive health. Looking at what's allowed and what is outlawed, I think that my wife is going to have a harder time with this than I will (she loves baked goods/cereal/etc.), and that is amplified x 1000 because we are pregnant.

Has anyone noticed any positive results from doing this sort of thing with a digestive ailment (I apologize if its been noted throughout the thread, but I didnt want to sift through 18 pages)

*According to the Mrs. she thinks its the Crohn's,, I disagree and think it was a stomach virus/food poisioning combined with some existing fistula issues

Paul Jaminet wrote quite a bit about this. This is pasted from his website, where you can find much more info.

A healthy gut is a multi-species society: it is the cooperative product of the human body with trillions of bacterial cells from a thousand or more species.

An unhealthy gut is, more often than not, the product of a breakdown in this collaboration. Often, it is triggered by displacement of cooperative, commensal species of bacteria by pathogenic bacteria, fungi, viruses, and protozoa. This is why a long course of antibiotics, killing commensal bacteria, is often the prelude to bowel ailments.

It is difficult for the immune system to defeat gut infections without the help of commensal bacteria. Think about what the immune system has to deal with. The ulcers in ulcerative colitis are essentially the equivalent of infected skin abscesses, but in the colon. Here is a description of a bowel lesion in Crohn’s disease:

Now imagine an infected skin abscess, but with feces spread over it three times a day, or stomach acid and digestive enzymes. How quickly would you expect it to heal?

Ileal lesions in Crohn’s disease (CD) patients are colonized by pathogenic adherent-invasive Escherichia coli (AIEC) able to invade and to replicate within intestinal epithelial cells. [1]

Commensal “probiotic” bacteria are like a mercenary army fighting on behalf of the digestive tract. By occupying the interior lining of the digestive tract, they deprive pathogens of a “home base” that is sheltered from immune attack. If commensal bacteria dominate the gut, the immune system can usually quickly defeat infections.

This suggests that introduction of probiotic bacteria to the gut should be therapeutic for bowel disease.

Probiotic Supplements Are InadequateMost supermarket probiotics contain Lactobacillus or Bifidobacterium species. These species are specialized for digesting milk; they populate the guts of infants as they start breastfeeding, and are used by the dairy industry to ferment cheeses and yogurt.

These supplements are very effective at fighting acute diarrhea from most food-borne infections. A fistful of probiotic capsules taken every hour will usually quickly supplant the pathogens and end diarrhea.

However, against more severe bowel diseases caused by chronic infections and featuring damaged intestinal mucosa, these species are usually not helpful. One issue is that they provide only a tiny part of a healthful adult microbiome. A recent study surveyed the bacterial species in the human gut, and found these species to be most abundant [2]:


Figure: Abundant gut bacterial species
As this figure shows, Bacteroides spp. are the most common commensal bacteria, with Bacteroides uniformis alone providing almost 10% of all bacterial genes in the gut. Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium do not appear among the 57 most abundant species.

This study showed, by the way, that patients with irritable bowel syndrome have 25% fewer types of bacterial gene in their gut than healthy people, and that the composition of bacterial genes in feces clearly distinguishes ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s disease, and healthy patients. In other words, in the bowel diseases a few pathogenic species have colonized the gut and entirely denuded it of about 25% of the commensal species that normally populate the gut. This finding supports the idea that restoring those missing species might be therapeutic for IBS.

Bacterial Replacement Therapies WorkSo if IBS patients are missing 25% of the thousand or so species that should populate the gut, or 250 species, and if common probiotics provide only 8 or so species and not the ones that are missing, how are the missing species to be restored?

The answer is simple but icky. Recall that half the dry weight of stool consists of bacteria. A healthy person daily provides a sample of billions of bacteria from every one of the thousand species in his gut. They are in his stool.

So a “fecal transplant” of a healthy person’s stool into the gut of another person will replenish the missing species.

Scientists have known for a long time that this was likely to be an effective therapy, but it is only now entering clinical practice. The New York Times recently made a stir by telling this story:

Fecal transplants can be done without a doctor’s help: someone else’s stool can be swallowed or inserted in the rectum. If taking feces orally, swallow a great deal of water afterward to help wash the bacteria through the stomach and its acid barrier.

In 2008, Dr. Khoruts, a gastroenterologist at the University of Minnesota, took on a patient suffering from a vicious gut infection of Clostridium difficile. She was crippled by constant diarrhea, which had left her in a wheelchair wearing diapers. Dr. Khoruts treated her with an assortment of antibiotics, but nothing could stop the bacteria. His patient was wasting away, losing 60 pounds over the course of eight months. “She was just dwindling down the drain, and she probably would have died,” Dr. Khoruts said.

Dr. Khoruts decided his patient needed a transplant. But he didn’t give her a piece of someone else’s intestines, or a stomach, or any other organ. Instead, he gave her some of her husband’s bacteria.

Dr. Khoruts mixed a small sample of her husband’s stool with saline solution and delivered it into her colon. Writing in the Journal of Clinical Gastroenterology last month, Dr. Khoruts and his colleagues reported that her diarrhea vanished in a day. Her Clostridium difficile infection disappeared as well and has not returned since.

The procedure — known as bacteriotherapy or fecal transplantation — had been carried out a few times over the past few decades. But Dr. Khoruts and his colleagues were able to do something previous doctors could not: they took a genetic survey of the bacteria in her intestines before and after the transplant.

Before the transplant, they found, her gut flora was in a desperate state. “The normal bacteria just didn’t exist in her,” said Dr. Khoruts. “She was colonized by all sorts of misfits.”

Two weeks after the transplant, the scientists analyzed the microbes again. Her husband’s microbes had taken over. “That community was able to function and cure her disease in a matter of days,” said Janet Jansson, a microbial ecologist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and a co-author of the paper. “I didn’t expect it to work. The project blew me away.” [3]

Dogs and young children sometimes swallow feces. It is unpleasant to consider, but desperate diseases call for desperate measures. Perhaps one day, healthy stools will be available in pleasant-tasting capsules, and sold on supermarket shelves. Not yet.

Attacking Pathogenic BiofilmsMost bacterial species will build fortresses for themselves, called biofilms. These are polysaccharide and protein meshworks that, like bone, become mineralized with calcium and other minerals. These mineralized meshworks are built on bodily surfaces, like the gut lining, and protect bacteria from the immune system, antibiotics, and other bacterial species.

Pathogenic species known to generate biofilms include Legionella pneumophila, S. aureus, Listeria monocytogenes, Campylobacter spp., E. coli O157:H7, Salmonella typhimurium, Vibrio cholerae, and Helicobacter pylori. [4]

Biofilms favor the species that constructed them. So, once pathogens have constructed biofilms, it is hard for commensal species to displace them.

Therapies that dissolve pathogenic biofilms can improve the likelihood of success of probiotic and fecal transplant therapies. Strategies include enzyme supplements, chelation therapies, and avoidance of biofilm-promoting minerals like calcium. Specifically:

• Polysaccharide and protease digesting enzymes. Human digestive enzymes generally do not digest biofilm polysaccharides, but bacterial enzymes that can are available as supplements. Potentially helpful enzymes include hemicellulase, cellulase, glucoamylase, chitosanase, and beta-glucanase. Non-human protease enzymes, such as nattokinase and papain, might also help. [5]
• Chelation therapy. Since biofilms collect metals, compounds that “chelate” or bind metals will tend to gather in biofilms. Some chelators – notably EDTA – are toxic to bacteria. So EDTA supplementation tends to poison the biofilm, driving bacteria out of their fortress-shelter. This prevents them from maintaining it and makes the biofilm more vulnerable to digestion by enzymes and commensal bacteria. It also tends to reduce the population of pathogenic bacteria.
• Mineral avoidance. The supply of minerals, especially calcium, iron, and magnesium, can be a rate-limiting factor in biofilm formation. Removal of calcium can cause destruction of biofilms. [6] We recommend limiting calcium intake while bowel disease is being fought, since the body can meet its own calcium needs for an extended period by pulling from the reservoir in bone. Upon recovery, bone calcium can be replenished with supplements. Iron is another mineral which promotes biofilms and might be beneficially restricted. We do not recommend restricting magnesium.

Some commercial products are available which can help implement these strategies. For instance, Klaire Labs’ InterFase (http://www.klaire.com/images/InterFase_Update_Article.pdf) is a popular enzyme supplement which helps digest biofilms, and a version containing EDTA is available (InterFase Plus).

Attacking Biofilms With Berries, Herbs, Spices, Vinegar, and WheyPlants manufacture a rich array of anti-microbial compounds for defense against bacteria.

There is reason to believe that traditional herbs and spices, which entered the human diet during the Paleolithic and have been passed down through the generations for tens of thousands of years, were selected by our hunter-gatherer ancestors as much for their ability to promote gut health as for their taste. Dr. Art Ayers notes that:

A few other remedies can weaken biofilms:

Plants are adept at producing a wide array of chemicals with refined abilities to block bacterial functions. So when researchers sought chemicals to solve the problem of pathogens forming biofilms, it was natural to test plant extracts for inhibiting compounds. In a recent article [7], D.A. Vattem et al. added extracts from dietary berries, herbs and spices to bacterial pathogens, including the toxin producingEscherichia coli (EC) O157:H7, and checked for the ability to produce a chemical that signals the formation of a biofilm. The effective phytochemicals inhibited the bacteria from recognizing a critical density of bacteria, i.e. quorum sensing, and responding with the production of the biofilm-triggering chemical.

Blueberry, raspberry, cranberry, blackberry and strawberry extracts were effective as quorum sensing inhibitors (QSIs). Common herbs such as oregano, basil, rosemary and thyme were also effective. Turmeric, ginger and kale were also tested and found to contain QSIs. [8]

• Acetic acid in vinegar can solubilize the calcium, iron, and magnesium in biofilms, removing these minerals and weakening the biofilm; citric acid binds calcium and can disrupt biofilms. [9]
• Lactoferrin, a molecule in milk whey, binds iron and inhibits biofilm formation and growth. [10]
• N-acetylcysteine can destroy or inhibit biofilms. [11]

ConclusionFecal transplants are the best probiotic. Tactics to disrupt pathogenic biofilms can assist probiotics in bringing about re-colonization of the digestive tract by commensal bacteria.

Along with a non-toxic diet (discussed in Part II) and nutritional support for the immune system and gut (discussed in Part III), these steps to improve gut flora make up a natural program for recovery from bowel disease.

UPDATE: Please read the cautions by two health professionals, annie and Jesse, about potential dangers of self-treatment with fecal transplants and EDTA. It is always better to pursue these therapies with a doctor’s assistance and monitoring.

 

[Maurile Tremblay]

Excellent.

http://perfecthealthdiet.com/2013/06/a-new-venture-perfect-health-retreat/

 

[Chaos Commish]

Excellent.

http://perfecthealthdiet.com/2013/06/a-new-venture-perfect-health-retreat/

 

[regularguy]

Excellent.

http://perfecthealthdiet.com/2013/06/a-new-venture-perfect-health-retreat/

 

[kutta]

Long story short: I have Crohn's Disease - it has been in check for most of my life but I have had some flareups* recently during a family vacation and it looks like the Mrs. and I are going to be doing this Paleo diet thing for 30 days to see if it helps with the flareups*.

I dont think it'll make a difference, as I think some of the problems I've been having are not Crohn's related, but I digress. Briefly reading through, it appears as though I'm not the only one who has looked at this to regulate digestive health. Looking at what's allowed and what is outlawed, I think that my wife is going to have a harder time with this than I will (she loves baked goods/cereal/etc.), and that is amplified x 1000 because we are pregnant.

Has anyone noticed any positive results from doing this sort of thing with a digestive ailment (I apologize if its been noted throughout the thread, but I didnt want to sift through 18 pages)

*According to the Mrs. she thinks its the Crohn's,, I disagree and think it was a stomach virus/food poisioning combined with some existing fistula issues

I don't have Crohn's disease, and I don't do full-on Paleo, but I definitely have a wheat sensitivity. I used to have horrible heartburn all the time. I would take 3-4 Tums every night, almost no matter what I ate. I finally traced it to breads and decided to give up all wheat, which I have done. I periodically switch back to eating wheat for a couple days to see what happens, and sure enough, the heartburn comes right back.

I've been off wheat for about six months now. I feel amazing. I have much more energy that I had before, and I've lost 20 lbs. (225 to 205). I don't know if I will ever eat wheat again, and knowing what it does to me, I really don't miss it much at all.

 

[cosjobs]

Excellent.

http://perfecthealthdiet.com/2013/06/a-new-venture-perfect-health-retreat/

Thanks guys.

Site is now up.

www.albertoaks.com

Questions, comments and forum posts much appreciated.

 

[Abraham]

Question: do you have any recipes you'd share that I could try at home? Not looking for the whole book, and I know eating one or two meals differently isn't likely to offer any results. But I am curious as to whether or not (1) the food tastes good and (2) if it tastes good without Cos cooking it.

 

[culdeus]

Onto pure almond milk with no sugar at all. Still do greek yogurt. I think after cutting down sugar so much the transition is really not bad. When I tried this before it tasted like chalk, but now anything with even a little sugar in it tastes so sweet to me that almond milk is nothing.

Milk was the low hanging fruit for cutting a little more sugar out. Also cutting down/eliminating booze where I can. I never really drank all that much, but trying to cut just a little more.

 

[SacramentoBob]

Unsweetened almond milk is great. Never had a problem with the taste. Greek yogurt is disgusting and probably just some dumb marketing fad.

 

[culdeus]

Unsweetened almond milk is great. Never had a problem with the taste. Greek yogurt is disgusting and probably just some dumb marketing fad.

Love me some greek yogurt. Higher protein content and aids digestion.

 

[Statcruncher]

My first attempt at Greek yogurt did not go well. I found adding a small amount of local honey makes it work.

 

[culdeus]

Just another repackaging of Atkins. Atkins: "Cut processed sugars and carbs out of your diet and change your insulin response blah blah" Paleo: "Don't eat anything that cavemen didn't eat" Both are for all intents in the execution of it identical. Both in their core cut out processed garbage. Arguing over whether the date people started taking grains to a food mill is rather pointless.

There are significant differences among Primal/Paleo diets and Atkins (and even differences between the Primal/Paleo diets themselves). For instance, fruits are at the base of the "Primal Pyramid" along with vegetables. Fruits are restricted on Atkins, where the goal is simply to limit carbohydrate consumption. The Primal diet emphasizes receiving adequate carbohydrates from foods that otherwise high in vital micronutrients and anti-oxidants. Primal plans also don't view all restricted carbs as alike. Wheat presents more problems than sugar, which probably presents more problems than corn. This is due to our reactions to gluten and phytates and other substances in grains. Primal plans argue that whole-grain bread is paradoxically likely worse for you than white bread (and certainly worse for you than sourdough). It's not just about cutting out processed grains.

Well 2.5 years later I've still worked towards the goal of cutting more and more grains out in favor of fruits/veg. It's worked out fairly well, but it's not some sort of life changing event. For my wife it's a constant struggle though. She craves grains at every meal so it's really hard to do meal planning. Previously, most of our meals were "one pot" type meals that could be served over a few days. I tried to split the meals up into components and got pushback for that.

I'm still a little skeptical that grains are the devil and should be avoided. At least for most people. The argument that does hold water is that grains are for the most part devoid of nutrition of any value so you should select veg/fruit instead to fill the carb macro.

Sometimes I feel also like I lean too heavy towards supplements like whey now to get protien and calories.

 

[culdeus]

Onto pure almond milk with no sugar at all. Still do greek yogurt. I think after cutting down sugar so much the transition is really not bad. When I tried this before it tasted like chalk, but now anything with even a little sugar in it tastes so sweet to me that almond milk is nothing.

Milk was the low hanging fruit for cutting a little more sugar out. Also cutting down/eliminating booze where I can. I never really drank all that much, but trying to cut just a little more.

yeah, and I figure out I am not an alcoholic. Only drinking 2 days a week now. Again, this hasn't been some huge epiphany or anything. Still feel relatively like I did before.

 

[Mister CIA]

For the past month I got carried away with wheat and my freakin' asthma, which had been almost non-existent for the past year or two, came roaring back. The link between my asthma and wheat is quite clear to me. Back onto the primal wagon I go, except for the occasional pizza fling.

 

[Spanky267]

Never really paid much attention to this thread before today. But getting to a point where I really need to change my eating habits in an effort to lose weight and stave off any more health issues. Have you guys had alot of success with weight loss on a paelo/primal diet? Realistically I need to drop at least 100lbs if not more. No energy at all and constantly in pain. I have to put these things to an end. I work 45-50hrs a week and then volunteer another 20-30 hours a week. How do you guys manage when you are away from home for extended periods of time. Can you manage to remain on course with the diet when you have to make off the shelf choices?

Thanks

 

[Random]

Never really paid much attention to this thread before today. But getting to a point where I really need to change my eating habits in an effort to lose weight and stave off any more health issues. Have you guys had alot of success with weight loss on a paelo/primal diet? Realistically I need to drop at least 100lbs if not more. No energy at all and constantly in pain. I have to put these things to an end. I work 45-50hrs a week and then volunteer another 20-30 hours a week. How do you guys manage when you are away from home for extended periods of time. Can you manage to remain on course with the diet when you have to make off the shelf choices?

Thanks

Are you talking about eating out or packing/bringing your lunch/dinner?

 

[Spanky267]

Never really paid much attention to this thread before today. But getting to a point where I really need to change my eating habits in an effort to lose weight and stave off any more health issues. Have you guys had alot of success with weight loss on a paelo/primal diet? Realistically I need to drop at least 100lbs if not more. No energy at all and constantly in pain. I have to put these things to an end. I work 45-50hrs a week and then volunteer another 20-30 hours a week. How do you guys manage when you are away from home for extended periods of time. Can you manage to remain on course with the diet when you have to make off the shelf choices?

Thanks

Are you talking about eating out or packing/bringing your lunch/dinner?

I mean either scenario. I can pack my lunch and bring it to work. No issues there. But I volunteer 3-6 nights a week and most of the time I go straight from work to the football field. Those nights I dont get home until 9 or 10pm. The only options there are typical concession stand foods. So I know that stuff is out of the question. I could wait until I get home to eat but is that a good idea? Do you need to eat your last meal X number of hours before bed?

Thanks I am a total noob at this stuff. Probably why I am where I am at this point. But I am tired of being tired and I no longer wish to be controlled by food and cravings.

 

[culdeus]

Never really paid much attention to this thread before today. But getting to a point where I really need to change my eating habits in an effort to lose weight and stave off any more health issues. Have you guys had alot of success with weight loss on a paelo/primal diet? Realistically I need to drop at least 100lbs if not more. No energy at all and constantly in pain. I have to put these things to an end. I work 45-50hrs a week and then volunteer another 20-30 hours a week. How do you guys manage when you are away from home for extended periods of time. Can you manage to remain on course with the diet when you have to make off the shelf choices?

Thanks

Are you talking about eating out or packing/bringing your lunch/dinner?

I mean either scenario. I can pack my lunch and bring it to work. No issues there. But I volunteer 3-6 nights a week and most of the time I go straight from work to the football field. Those nights I dont get home until 9 or 10pm. The only options there are typical concession stand foods. So I know that stuff is out of the question. I could wait until I get home to eat but is that a good idea? Do you need to eat your last meal X number of hours before bed?

Thanks I am a total noob at this stuff. Probably why I am where I am at this point. But I am tired of being tired and I no longer wish to be controlled by food and cravings.

You might consider a meal replacement shake on the way to your volunteer gig and then eat a decent dinner afterwards if taking a full blown dinner isn't available.

Most people lose 1-1.5# a week switching from a SAD to LCD or even more going LCKD normally this is because they eat so many empty calories in carbs that just simply cutting that out is 3-4000 cals a week right there.

 

[Random]

Never really paid much attention to this thread before today. But getting to a point where I really need to change my eating habits in an effort to lose weight and stave off any more health issues. Have you guys had alot of success with weight loss on a paelo/primal diet? Realistically I need to drop at least 100lbs if not more. No energy at all and constantly in pain. I have to put these things to an end. I work 45-50hrs a week and then volunteer another 20-30 hours a week. How do you guys manage when you are away from home for extended periods of time. Can you manage to remain on course with the diet when you have to make off the shelf choices?

Thanks

Are you talking about eating out or packing/bringing your lunch/dinner?

I mean either scenario. I can pack my lunch and bring it to work. No issues there. But I volunteer 3-6 nights a week and most of the time I go straight from work to the football field. Those nights I dont get home until 9 or 10pm. The only options there are typical concession stand foods. So I know that stuff is out of the question. I could wait until I get home to eat but is that a good idea? Do you need to eat your last meal X number of hours before bed?

Thanks I am a total noob at this stuff. Probably why I am where I am at this point. But I am tired of being tired and I no longer wish to be controlled by food and cravings.

In a pinch, I'm not sure there's anything wrong with a fast food salad (skip the dressing - maybe keep some olive oil handy). Also, from the store things like nuts (macadamia, almonds), canned salmon, olives, trail mix, an apple, beef jerky (get good stuff, check the label), etc, can get you by to your next meal.

That said, on this "diet" (I hate using that word) you should not be controlled by hunger. Its really no big deal to go 8+ hrs between meals. Just eat a good breakfast (eggs, bacon, yogurt, fruit, bulletproof coffee), and eat when you get a chance the rest of the day. Good luck.

 

[CletiusMaximus]

We've got a new Paleo food truck in town now that makes it easier on days I don't pack a lunch. Urbancavemantruck.com

Got the chicken curry today.

 

[James Daulton]

Never really paid much attention to this thread before today. But getting to a point where I really need to change my eating habits in an effort to lose weight and stave off any more health issues. Have you guys had alot of success with weight loss on a paelo/primal diet? Realistically I need to drop at least 100lbs if not more. No energy at all and constantly in pain. I have to put these things to an end. I work 45-50hrs a week and then volunteer another 20-30 hours a week. How do you guys manage when you are away from home for extended periods of time. Can you manage to remain on course with the diet when you have to make off the shelf choices?

Thanks

Are you talking about eating out or packing/bringing your lunch/dinner?

I mean either scenario. I can pack my lunch and bring it to work. No issues there. But I volunteer 3-6 nights a week and most of the time I go straight from work to the football field. Those nights I dont get home until 9 or 10pm. The only options there are typical concession stand foods. So I know that stuff is out of the question. I could wait until I get home to eat but is that a good idea? Do you need to eat your last meal X number of hours before bed?

Thanks I am a total noob at this stuff. Probably why I am where I am at this point. But I am tired of being tired and I no longer wish to be controlled by food and cravings.

Pack lunch, after work before volunteering protein bar and some fruit. Have food at home already made so you just have to heat it up.

 

[Spanky267]

Never really paid much attention to this thread before today. But getting to a point where I really need to change my eating habits in an effort to lose weight and stave off any more health issues. Have you guys had alot of success with weight loss on a paelo/primal diet? Realistically I need to drop at least 100lbs if not more. No energy at all and constantly in pain. I have to put these things to an end. I work 45-50hrs a week and then volunteer another 20-30 hours a week. How do you guys manage when you are away from home for extended periods of time. Can you manage to remain on course with the diet when you have to make off the shelf choices?

Thanks

Are you talking about eating out or packing/bringing your lunch/dinner?

I mean either scenario. I can pack my lunch and bring it to work. No issues there. But I volunteer 3-6 nights a week and most of the time I go straight from work to the football field. Those nights I dont get home until 9 or 10pm. The only options there are typical concession stand foods. So I know that stuff is out of the question. I could wait until I get home to eat but is that a good idea? Do you need to eat your last meal X number of hours before bed?

Thanks I am a total noob at this stuff. Probably why I am where I am at this point. But I am tired of being tired and I no longer wish to be controlled by food and cravings.

Pack lunch, after work before volunteering protein bar and some fruit. Have food at home already made so you just have to heat it up.

This is what I will be doing. Packing lunch. Mostly salads with some protein, rotisserie chicken(skin off). Breakfast is a challenge for me. But I had a banana and water this morning(I dont drink coffee)

I'll be going home after work/before volunteering several nights a week now. So I will most likely grab some fruit to have on the ride to the field and stay away from the concession stand during practice.

Its going to be a work in progress for me and there will be alot of one step forward, two steps back moments for me until I set really good habits and they become entrenched.

I have a real soft spot for clementines, should I stay away from Citrus?

 

[culdeus]

Never really paid much attention to this thread before today. But getting to a point where I really need to change my eating habits in an effort to lose weight and stave off any more health issues. Have you guys had alot of success with weight loss on a paelo/primal diet? Realistically I need to drop at least 100lbs if not more. No energy at all and constantly in pain. I have to put these things to an end. I work 45-50hrs a week and then volunteer another 20-30 hours a week. How do you guys manage when you are away from home for extended periods of time. Can you manage to remain on course with the diet when you have to make off the shelf choices?

Thanks

Are you talking about eating out or packing/bringing your lunch/dinner?

I mean either scenario. I can pack my lunch and bring it to work. No issues there. But I volunteer 3-6 nights a week and most of the time I go straight from work to the football field. Those nights I dont get home until 9 or 10pm. The only options there are typical concession stand foods. So I know that stuff is out of the question. I could wait until I get home to eat but is that a good idea? Do you need to eat your last meal X number of hours before bed?

Thanks I am a total noob at this stuff. Probably why I am where I am at this point. But I am tired of being tired and I no longer wish to be controlled by food and cravings.

Pack lunch, after work before volunteering protein bar and some fruit. Have food at home already made so you just have to heat it up.

This is what I will be doing. Packing lunch. Mostly salads with some protein, rotisserie chicken(skin off). Breakfast is a challenge for me. But I had a banana and water this morning(I dont drink coffee)

I'll be going home after work/before volunteering several nights a week now. So I will most likely grab some fruit to have on the ride to the field and stay away from the concession stand during practice.

Its going to be a work in progress for me and there will be alot of one step forward, two steps back moments for me until I set really good habits and they become entrenched.

I have a real soft spot for clementines, should I stay away from Citrus?

Slow down a bit here. If you want to do the whole primal/paleo thing you may want to read up on the blueprint first.

For now just know

Step 1) Remove added sugar. All of it.

Step 2) Remove most grains, especially wheat gluten ones by 80% if not 100% for at least a few weeks.

Try to replace those calories with vegetable sources first, lean protein sources second, and fruit third.

But read a little deeper into the main subject matter first. marksdailyapple etc. etc.

 

[Spanky267]

Never really paid much attention to this thread before today. But getting to a point where I really need to change my eating habits in an effort to lose weight and stave off any more health issues. Have you guys had alot of success with weight loss on a paelo/primal diet? Realistically I need to drop at least 100lbs if not more. No energy at all and constantly in pain. I have to put these things to an end. I work 45-50hrs a week and then volunteer another 20-30 hours a week. How do you guys manage when you are away from home for extended periods of time. Can you manage to remain on course with the diet when you have to make off the shelf choices?

Thanks

Are you talking about eating out or packing/bringing your lunch/dinner?

I mean either scenario. I can pack my lunch and bring it to work. No issues there. But I volunteer 3-6 nights a week and most of the time I go straight from work to the football field. Those nights I dont get home until 9 or 10pm. The only options there are typical concession stand foods. So I know that stuff is out of the question. I could wait until I get home to eat but is that a good idea? Do you need to eat your last meal X number of hours before bed?

Thanks I am a total noob at this stuff. Probably why I am where I am at this point. But I am tired of being tired and I no longer wish to be controlled by food and cravings.

Pack lunch, after work before volunteering protein bar and some fruit. Have food at home already made so you just have to heat it up.

This is what I will be doing. Packing lunch. Mostly salads with some protein, rotisserie chicken(skin off). Breakfast is a challenge for me. But I had a banana and water this morning(I dont drink coffee)

I'll be going home after work/before volunteering several nights a week now. So I will most likely grab some fruit to have on the ride to the field and stay away from the concession stand during practice.

Its going to be a work in progress for me and there will be alot of one step forward, two steps back moments for me until I set really good habits and they become entrenched.

I have a real soft spot for clementines, should I stay away from Citrus?

Slow down a bit here. If you want to do the whole primal/paleo thing you may want to read up on the blueprint first.

For now just know

Step 1) Remove added sugar. All of it.

Step 2) Remove most grains, especially wheat gluten ones by 80% if not 100% for at least a few weeks.

Try to replace those calories with vegetable sources first, lean protein sources second, and fruit third.

But read a little deeper into the main subject matter first. marksdailyapple etc. etc.

Will do. I am not going whole hog here. Its going to be weeks before I remove all of the terrible things I eat. Removing added sugar should be pretty easy. First thing off the list are the soda's I drank religiously. It should be easy for me to add in more veg as there are few vegetables that I do not like. Getting rid of wheat gluten will be tough but I am fairly confident that I'll be able to reduce it dramatically when the time comes.

But if I add some good things in while I take the bad out it should be helpful. My biggest struggle is actually preparing meals. My wife, kids and I are constantly on the go. So I am going to have to getting in the habit of doing food prep on Sunday to get me through Monday and Tuesday and Wednesday. Then prep again to get through Thursday & Friday. We arent home at all on Saturday so I am going to have to make smart decisions while we are away from home.

I really appreciate all of the input so far. This is going to be a long and winding road for me. I've never really taken great care of myself even when I was involved in sports. Always something else to do or somewhere to be. But its time to take the first steps.

 

[facook]

Never really paid much attention to this thread before today. But getting to a point where I really need to change my eating habits in an effort to lose weight and stave off any more health issues. Have you guys had alot of success with weight loss on a paelo/primal diet? Realistically I need to drop at least 100lbs if not more. No energy at all and constantly in pain. I have to put these things to an end. I work 45-50hrs a week and then volunteer another 20-30 hours a week. How do you guys manage when you are away from home for extended periods of time. Can you manage to remain on course with the diet when you have to make off the shelf choices?

Thanks

Are you talking about eating out or packing/bringing your lunch/dinner?

I mean either scenario. I can pack my lunch and bring it to work. No issues there. But I volunteer 3-6 nights a week and most of the time I go straight from work to the football field. Those nights I dont get home until 9 or 10pm. The only options there are typical concession stand foods. So I know that stuff is out of the question. I could wait until I get home to eat but is that a good idea? Do you need to eat your last meal X number of hours before bed?

Thanks I am a total noob at this stuff. Probably why I am where I am at this point. But I am tired of being tired and I no longer wish to be controlled by food and cravings.

Pack lunch, after work before volunteering protein bar and some fruit. Have food at home already made so you just have to heat it up.

This is what I will be doing. Packing lunch. Mostly salads with some protein, rotisserie chicken(skin off). Breakfast is a challenge for me. But I had a banana and water this morning(I dont drink coffee)

I'll be going home after work/before volunteering several nights a week now. So I will most likely grab some fruit to have on the ride to the field and stay away from the concession stand during practice.

Its going to be a work in progress for me and there will be alot of one step forward, two steps back moments for me until I set really good habits and they become entrenched.

I have a real soft spot for clementines, should I stay away from Citrus?

Slow down a bit here. If you want to do the whole primal/paleo thing you may want to read up on the blueprint first.

For now just know

Step 1) Remove added sugar. All of it.

Step 2) Remove most grains, especially wheat gluten ones by 80% if not 100% for at least a few weeks.

Try to replace those calories with vegetable sources first, lean protein sources second, and fruit third.

But read a little deeper into the main subject matter first. marksdailyapple etc. etc.

Will do. I am not going whole hog here. Its going to be weeks before I remove all of the terrible things I eat. Removing added sugar should be pretty easy. First thing off the list are the soda's I drank religiously. It should be easy for me to add in more veg as there are few vegetables that I do not like. Getting rid of wheat gluten will be tough but I am fairly confident that I'll be able to reduce it dramatically when the time comes.

But if I add some good things in while I take the bad out it should be helpful. My biggest struggle is actually preparing meals. My wife, kids and I are constantly on the go. So I am going to have to getting in the habit of doing food prep on Sunday to get me through Monday and Tuesday and Wednesday. Then prep again to get through Thursday & Friday. We arent home at all on Saturday so I am going to have to make smart decisions while we are away from home.

I really appreciate all of the input so far. This is going to be a long and winding road for me. I've never really taken great care of myself even when I was involved in sports. Always something else to do or somewhere to be. But its time to take the first steps.

Leave the skin on the chicken. Eat enough animal fat and you'll be satiated more quickly and for a much longer period of time. If you're going primal/paleo you'll have to get over the stigma that animal fat is bad.

 

[culdeus]

I thought if on a serious cut then visible fat was to be removed? Either way I wouldn't worry about chicken skin of all things.

 

[-jb-]

Either way I wouldn't worry about chicken skin of all things.

Said that on a date once. Didn't turn out as well as I would have liked.

 

[Statcruncher]

I'm not an expert, but it is my understanding that most paleo/primal advocates only suggest lean meats when the origin of the meat is questionable. Fat from animals that have been pumped full of the wrong feed and antibiotics is not desirable to eat. If you're buying meat that is raised "correctly" then any natural fat is good.

That being said I can see someone who wants to reduce caloric intake trimming fat, but as mentioned ealier you'd be losing the satiety it provides as well.

 

[culdeus]

I'm not an expert, but it is my understanding that most paleo/primal advocates only suggest lean meats when the origin of the meat is questionable. Fat from animals that have been pumped full of the wrong feed and antibiotics is not desirable to eat. If you're buying meat that is raised "correctly" then any natural fat is good.

That being said I can see someone who wants to reduce caloric intake trimming fat, but as mentioned ealier you'd be losing the satiety it provides as well.

Agreed.

 

[cosjobs]

My two cents:

One of the biggest issues/problems with going through a major diet change is confusion. You are getting lots of bits of solid info here, but without a laid out plan, you could easily take all the bits and come up with a way to remain at your current weight.

Find one book/plan and follow it for a couple of months. I highly recommend a paleo-based, but when you are 100# overweight, its not that important. You should lose 20# the first month on virtually any diet out there if you follow it and stick to it. I personally believe Paleo si the way to go, but your most important thing right now is to begin to lose the weight.

I first started paleo with thebulletproofexecutive.com. He has a really easy to read and follow chart on what to eat and not eat. He also encourages intermittent fasting,which I think is really good in establishing new eating habits. I evolved to The Perfect Health Diet, which I find MUCH more nutritionally sound and healing,

Intermittent fasting is huge. Only eat during an eight hour window each day. You may have coffee, broth and a few leafy veggies in your broth. You may have cream or coconut oil in your coffee. If you do about any flavor of paleo during you eight hour eating window, you will lose weight and feel tons better.

My main point is choose one plan and commit to following for a period. Even a week or two is okay, but don't try to learn too much, too quick or you will get confused and that little fat man inside you will sabotage your goals.

 

[Spanky267]

My two cents:

One of the biggest issues/problems with going through a major diet change is confusion. You are getting lots of bits of solid info here, but without a laid out plan, you could easily take all the bits and come up with a way to remain at your current weight.

Find one book/plan and follow it for a couple of months. I highly recommend a paleo-based, but when you are 100# overweight, its not that important. You should lose 20# the first month on virtually any diet out there if you follow it and stick to it. I personally believe Paleo si the way to go, but your most important thing right now is to begin to lose the weight.

I first started paleo with thebulletproofexecutive.com. He has a really easy to read and follow chart on what to eat and not eat. He also encourages intermittent fasting,which I think is really good in establishing new eating habits. I evolved to The Perfect Health Diet, which I find MUCH more nutritionally sound and healing,

Intermittent fasting is huge. Only eat during an eight hour window each day. You may have coffee, broth and a few leafy veggies in your broth. You may have cream or coconut oil in your coffee. If you do about any flavor of paleo during you eight hour eating window, you will lose weight and feel tons better.

My main point is choose one plan and commit to following for a period. Even a week or two is okay, but don't try to learn too much, too quick or you will get confused and that little fat man inside you will sabotage your goals.

Thanks. I do intend to do some more extended reading on the subject. Right now I am really just trying to filter the absolute junk out of my diet. That will give me time to choose a plan, learn about it and begin implementing it.

 

[The Noid]

Trying to get the family out of the habit of a protien, vegetable and starch on their dinner plate by replacing the starch with another protien or non-starchy vegetable.

So far I've found three "sneaky" startch replacement sides:

- Lentils

- Mashed Cauliflour

- Zucchini "pasta"

Any ideas for others? I figure the paleo diets probably would have some good suggestions.

 

[Chaka]

Trying to get the family out of the habit of a protien, vegetable and starch on their dinner plate by replacing the starch with another protien or non-starchy vegetable.

So far I've found three "sneaky" startch replacement sides:

- Lentils

- Mashed Cauliflour

- Zucchini "pasta"

Any ideas for others? I figure the paleo diets probably would have some good suggestions.

If you're willing to eat lentils then sweet potatoes and yams are perfectly fine too IMO.

FWIW most tubers/root vegetables are A-OK in my book.

 

[tommyGunZ]

black dot for reference

 

[tommyGunZ]

Excellent.

http://perfecthealthdiet.com/2013/06/a-new-venture-perfect-health-retreat/

Thanks guys.

Site is now up.

www.albertoaks.com

Questions, comments and forum posts much appreciated.

Very, VERY cool cos.

 

[Maurile Tremblay]

Trying to get the family out of the habit of a protien, vegetable and starch on their dinner plate by replacing the starch with another protien or non-starchy vegetable.

So far I've found three "sneaky" startch replacement sides:

- Lentils

- Mashed Cauliflour

- Zucchini "pasta"

Any ideas for others? I figure the paleo diets probably would have some good suggestions.

For humans during the paleolithic era, starches were probably at least as important a part of the diet as meat was. It seems a little weird, therefore, to avoid starches on a paleo diet. (Avoiding bread or pasta I can understand because they're made from cereal grains. But what's wrong with potatoes?)

In any case, the answer to your question is: Bacon.

 

[Mister CIA]

Potatoes have become my go-to lately when I have the urge to gorge and satisfy all my carb cravings.

Slice two large russets into 1/4" slices, toss lightly with olive oil, dust with kosher salt and course ground pepper - throw'em in the oven at 425 for approximately 30-40 minutes, then chow down with a couple of serranos.

Makes for a very large meal that I'm guessing clocks in at around 400 calories. Tomorrow I'm going to add sliced tomatoes and Parmesan for the final five minutes.

 

[culdeus]

Very interesting recent study which shows that there is such a thing as selecting the right fats for fat loss. It's a rat study, but most of the anecdotal evidence is still showing these types of conclusions whereas hyperinsulima is starting to wane. That's just my feeling right now, this could change long term.

http://www.jbc.org/content/283/11/7196.long