Paleo Diet For Healthy Living
March 22, 2010
If you attribute illnesses to your lifestyle, you can perhaps protect your health by adapting the dietary habits of your Paleolithic ancestors. The hunters of the Stone Age knew nothing about refined and processed foods.
The diet of the caveman comprised of lean meat, seafood, fresh fruits, vegetables and nuts. The Paleo diet mimics the diet of the Stone Age. This is the diet that humans are genetically programmed to consume. By adopting the Paleo Diet, humans of the current age could reduce the risk of obesity, diabetes, hypertension, atherosclerosis, osteoporosis and many more ailments, which largely develop from our modern dietary habits.
Paleo diet
According to the propagators of the Paleo diet, the diet following the agricultural revolution worsened the eating habit of humans. We have become absolutely dependent on food grains and cereals for meeting our energy need. Excess consumption of high carbohydrate foods is blamed for obesity and health problems that accompany it. Conventional weight loss diet plans recommend either low calorie high plant based carbohydrate diet or low calorie high fats diet. Both the diet plans usually fail to produce the desired result.
By offering foods that humans are meant to consume, the Paleo diet is believed to be more effective than most weight loss diet plans. It is a high protein diet, which also contains large servings of fruits, vegetables and monounsaturated fats. A high protein diet is believed to be more effective than carbohydrates and fats in bringing down the weight. Proteins could prevent food craving and overeating by keeping you full for a long time. In addition, by pushing up the metabolism rate, your body burns more energy while digesting protein. For healthy fatty acids, Paleo diet relies on fish, organ meat, muscle meat and nuts. Canola oil is the preferred cooking oil in Paleo diet.
Drawbacks of Paleo diet
Unfortunately, vegetarians and vegans might find it difficult to follow the Paleo diet. It is difficult to find alternatives to animal protein. Creators of the Paleo diet plan do not encourage consumption of soy proteins such as tofu. Soybean agglutinin present in these products is blamed for abnormal immune activity, which could cause autoimmune diseases and inflammatory disorders. Vegetarians would need vitamin B12, carnitine, taurine and carnosine supplements.
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