Lately it seems that all the cool kids are going
paleo.
With today’s rapid advances of modern civilization,
taking a step back to reevaluate our eating patterns sounds like a great idea
to me. So when someone says they are
“going paleo” what they are doing is rejecting any and all foods that have come
about through the advent of agriculture.
This means no bread, beans, dairy, oil, alcohol, tea, or
coffee *gasp* because these foods must be processed from their original sources
before being consumed. The paleo diet is
essentially modeled after the food ways of our ancient ancestors of the Stone
Age. These guys ate various meats, eggs,
seafood, non-starchy vegetables, fruits, nuts, and seeds – things they could
kill with a spear and pick off a bush to eat raw. They lived a hunter-gatherer type lifestyle
in a time where farms had not yet been established! So they really had no way of making bread or
toting a cow with them as they roamed around in search of their next meal.
Now I’m thinking, “Why would anyone want to go paleo?!”
Well, followers of this diet have some pretty persuasive health claims
associated to having their plates piled with meat and veggies. There are many articles online about these
claims, but it’s always good to think about what the cons to a diet might
be.
· A
diet heavy with meat comes with quite a bit of cholesterol and saturated fat –
neither of which is healthy for a diet to have in abundance.
· A
diet without grains runs the risk of being low in fiber content and lacking in
nutrients.
The big plus I see in going paleo is increasing your
consumption of veggies! Low in calories and full of vitamins and minerals,
veggies are considered nutrient dense foods and are a great source of
nourishment for the body.
So, will I be going paleo? No, but I will continue to do
my research and will go paleo only if I find compelling science-based evidence
supporting paleo diet health claims.
Here and there a paleo meal wouldn’t hurt me, and I’ve even found some
paleo recipes out there that sound mouthwatering.
My advice? Do some research yourself. Talk to a
dietitian. Do what feels right for your body. And always load your plate with veggies ;)
No comments:
Post a Comment