What does the Paleo Diet consist of?

What is the Paleo Diet or Paleo Diet?

The paleodiet is a diet that is based on foods our paleolithic ancestors would eat (the period spanning from 2.5 million years to 10,000 BC), hence its name.

Among them we find: lean meat, fish, eggs, shellfish, fruit, vegetables, nuts and seeds; with some variant depending on whether a more or less strict diet is followed, but they are foods that could be obtained from hunting and gathering at the time.

On the contrary, those foods that began to be cultivated or obtained with the new agricultural and livestock techniques from 10,000 BC are avoided. like cereals, legumes and dairy; in addition to products of our current society such as.

What is it based on?

The Paleolithic diet is based on the belief that we are better adapted to the foods that were consumed in the paleolithic, since evolutionary genetic changes are slow, unlike the dietary changes that have occurred in recent centuries. Modern humans are physiologically more adapted to the diet of their ancestors, since it has been consumed during 99% of human evolution, than to the modern diet that only represents 1%.

This type of diet based on cereals, legumes and dairy products of the last 10,000 years is attributed the increase and prevalence of obesity, diabetes, heart and digestive diseases, etc. It should be noted that the paleo diet is always linked to it, since Palaeolithic men were hunter-gatherers, so they were very physically active.

What benefits are attributed to it?

• More effective weight loss.
• Loss of abdominal girth.
• Better glucose control.
• Improved lipid profile.
• Lowers blood pressure.
• Improves cardiovascular risk of people with metabolic syndrome.
• Lower risk of colorectal adenomas.
• Offers a greater feeling of satiety.

What risk / cons are attributed to it?

• Possible calcium deficit.
• The long-term results of following the diet (more than two years) have not been analyzed.
• The longest study of the paleo diet (two years) does not give better results than a traditional weight loss diet, such as the Mediterranean or the diabetes diet.
• It can have low adherence, since those who are used to consuming carbohydrates may not be able to never consume cereals or legumes.
• Diet more expensive than others of similar nutritional value.
• It should not be performed by children, pregnant women or people with kidney problems, due to the possible consequences it could cause on growth, the fetus or kidney function.

What does science say?

Several randomized clinical trials compared the paleo diet with the diabetes diet (rich in fruits, vegetables, lean meats, whole grains, legumes, and low-fat dairy products) and it can be seen that a paleo diet can offer the benefits mentioned above.

Despite this, the number of controlled clinical trials comparing the Paleolithic diet with accepted diets, such as diets for diabetics or the Mediterranean diet, they are limited. Long-term studies are needed, with large groups of people, chosen at random to assess the long-term benefits and the possible risks that may arise.

Some researchers also argue that the hypothesis on which the paleo diet is based is too simplistic, since the evolution is much more complex, the dietary variations that may have occurred as a function of geography, climate or availability of food that may also have conditioned the change in diet.

Other archaeological research also claims that whole grains could have been consumed more than 30,000 years ago, long before the start of agriculture. In addition, the great evolutionary change, such as the increase in brain or the ability to break down starch, occurred after the Neolithic period.

What do you eat and what don't you eat on the paleo diet?

The paleo diet encourages eating all those foods that an ancestor of the Paleolithic could eat, and avoiding all those that could not. There are more or less strict or "pure" diets, where limit food to a greater or lesser extentWhat is clear is that any modern processed food will be totally excluded, since in the Paleolithic they did not exist.

In the following pyramid we show you which main foods you can eat and which you cannot:

The less strict paleo diets they allow the tubers, like the potato or the sweet potato, others none of them; some just sweet potatoes, some allow honey, others not, or small doses of alcohol, while others are prohibited ... The options may vary, depending on whether you follow a more or less "pure" style.

An example of a menu can be:

• Breakfast: scrambled eggs with garlic.
• Meal: salad with radishes, oak leaf, tomato, avocado, walnuts, sesame seeds and onion. Organic beef steak with mushrooms. Peach.
• Dinner: steamed broccoli sauteed with red pepper and almonds. Grilled salmon. Plantain.
• Snacks: fresh fruit such as apples, banana, avocado, strawberries, peaches ..., vegetables such as carrots, tomatoes, cucumber ... dried fruits like walnuts, hazelnuts, almonds ...
• Drink: Water
• Dressing: EVOO.

conclusion

A paleo diet can help lose weight and improve body composition, in addition to other health benefits. It is one more option within the diets that are considered and, although more scientific evidence is necessary, especially in long-term studies, it is not harmful to follow it, as long as you are not one of the excluded groups mentioned and that you are supervised for one to perform it properly, without forgetting to practice adequate physical exercise.

CALCULATE YOUR PRICE

• The Paleolithic diet is based on thinking that we are better adapted to the foods that were consumed in the Paleolithic, since evolutionary genetic changes are slow, contrary to the dietary changes that have occurred in recent centuries.
• The benefits attributed to it are: more effective weight loss, loss of abdominal perimeter, better glucose control, improved lipid profile, decreased blood pressure, improved cardiovascular risk in people with metabolic syndrome, lower risk of colorectal adenomas , and a greater feeling of satiety, among others.
• The paleo diet is always linked to the practice of exercise, since Palaeolithic men were hunter-gatherers, so they were very physically active.

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