Paleo Diet: All Meat and All Meaning?

A "Paleo Diet" is starting to grow in popularity within the media and among fitness junkies. The trendy diet consists of meat, fish/seafoods, whole fruits and vegetables, eggs, nuts and seeds, and some oils. The diet is based on the premise that the diet that was consumed during the paleolithic era is the diet that our bodies would metabolize the in the best way possible. This diet is what we are "supposed" to be consuming.

I thought that the concept of the Paleo diet was interesting, the entire concept that there is a diet that is the one that Humans should follow intrigued me. That this one diet was the way that we are supposed to be eating.

Although in theory this sounds logical, looking at some of the research surrounding the Paleo diet backs up this notion. In a primary research study published in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, researchers compared the blood pressure, sodium blood levels and glucose levels between a group who consumed a paleo diet and those who carried on with their regular everyday diet. There was a difference between the two groups, those on the paleo diet showed lower blood pressure, lower blood glucose levels, and lower cholesterol levels. These differences became apparent only after a 3 day "transition period" where the experimental group transitioned out of their old diet and gradually consumed more "paleo foods".

The media is still spouting conflicting recommendations and there does not seem to be a consensus on the diet yet. For example, this article from the New York Daily News claims that following the paleo diet will lead to weight gain. At the University of Melbourne a research study was performed where mice were fed a paleo diet, which resulted in a 15% body weight gain increase for the mice. The mice also developed a glucose intolerance. Meanwhile the article from Biz News claims that this study from the same university should be retracted since the article made too many bold statements.

In the Biz News article, Dr Akil Palanisamy, a US board-certified integrative medicine physician was quoted supporting the paleo diet, stating that it would work well for diabetic patients since it is a low glycemic option. Overall, the article does suggest that there is not one solution for diabetic patients but the paleo diet should be considered. 

Not everyone is supportive of the Paleo diet, Michael Pollan lists his reasons for critiquing the paleo diet in this Mother Jones article. I think that Pollan brings up good points, especially the third point he makes regarding microbes. Knowing how important our micro biome is to our health (and that these microbes come from foods that are not found in the paleo diet), Pollan uses this as a reason to sway away from the paleo diet. 

Hopefully a consensus will emerge between the two camps!