Evaluation of a Paleo diet

A paleo diet is a diet brought about by the types of foods eaten by early humans, foods such as meat, fish, vegetables, and fruit are included in this diet. Whereas foods such as cereals, dairy, and processed foods are excluded. So, for short, if the cavemen weren’t able to have the luxury of eating pasta and lollies, so with this diet neither are you. (Kamb, 2009)

When consuming this type of diet, counting calories are not the focus, the focus is the right types of foods you should be consuming and to eat until your satisfied. 

For an average Homo Sapien in the early years, they were known to be muscular and agile, whereas 2018 Homo Sapiens are being expressed as overweight and unhealthy. The main reason for this change is due to the agriculture, which increased humans consume of grain products.

When having a Paleo lifestyle, the energy comes from stored fat as the main fuel source for energy. In doing this it allows for fewer carbohydrates to be broken down into our systems to glucose. By having less glucose, the body relies on fats to be burnt to be used for energy, decreasing the body’s fat storage, and increasing weight loss. This process is known as ketogenesis.

The main types of foods that are eaten whilst on this diet are foods that occur naturally such as:

·      Meat that is grass fed

·      Fowl such as chicken, duck, and turkey

·      Fish that are wild

·      Eggs

·      Vegetables

·      Oils such as olive oil and coconut oil

·      Fruit

·      Nuts

·      Tubers such as sweet potato and yams

However, the paleo diet can be done “wrong”. If an individual is just consuming foods such as nuts and fruit, this could be leading to a high- calorie diet, and high carbohydrate and sugar diet. 

The Australian Dietary Guidelines consists of 5 different guidelines, all relating to ways to promote health and well- being. When analyzing the guidelines against a Paleo diet, this diet could be considered unhealthy in some aspects. 

Guideline 2 express that individuals need to consume a wide variety of nutritious foods from the 5 different food groups every day. The Paleo diet does allow you to consume “plenty of vegetables” (“Australian Dietary Guidelines”, 2013), fruits and lean meat (protein and iron). However, it can be considered unhealthy as it limited the intake to minimal amounts of grains (carbohydrates) and dairy products (calcium), which are two of the food groups in the guideline. 

One of the guidelines is about limiting intake of foods that contain saturated fat, salts, added sugars, and alcohol. This can be meet by using the Paleo diet as the sorts of foods consumed are those that naturally occur and these sorts of foods do not. 

Overall, as not all the guidelines are met, it may be believed that health problems are likely to occur for an individual.

There are many recommendations for the Paleo Diet, which are:

·      High in fat, moderate in animal protein and low in carbohydrates

·      Calorie counting and portion control is not encouraged

·      Eat large amounts of saturated fats

·      Eat large amounts of animal protein

·      Eat large amounts of vegetables, raw or cooked. 

·      Eat low to moderate amounts of fruit and nuts

·      Cut out all grains and legumes

·      Don’t consume vegetable, hydrogenated and partly- hydrogenated oils

·      Eliminate added sugars 

·      Eliminate dairy

·      Eat when you are hungry

·      Do not over exercise

·      Consider supplementing vitamin D and probiotics

References:

Australian Dietary Guidelines. (2013). Retrieved from https://www.nhmrc.gov.au/_files_nhmrc/file/publications/n55_australian_dietary_guidelines1.pdf

Paleo Diet 101 | Paleo Leap. (2018). Retrieved from https://paleoleap.com/paleo-101/

Paleo Diet 101: Beginner’s Guide of What to Eat and How It Works | Everyday Health. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.everydayhealth.com/diet-nutrition/the-paleo-diet.aspx

Kamb, S. (2009). The Beginner’s Guide to the Paleo Diet | Nerd Fitness. Retrieved from http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/the-beginners-guide-to-the-paleo-diet/

(2017). Retrieved from https://www.ourpaleolife.com/paleo-diet-food-list/