Paleo

Paleo... When I first heard about the "Paleo Diet," I was intrigued. I had heard that it was a different way of eating and a different way of looking at food, but I wanted to know more. What was so different about it? Why was it supposedly a better way of eating? I had so many questions and the more I researched the more I wanted to know. The basic concept is that we should be eating more like people during the Paleolithic Period. Meat, fruits, veggies, nuts, and eggs.

There is a ton of research and background that I won't get into, but one thing I read in Robb Wolf's, "The Paleo Solution," talked about the skeletons of people prior to farming. The farmer's teeth were terrible, broken, brittle, rotten, while those prior to that era had nice, strong teeth. The foods they were eating contributed greatly to the strength of their teeth, and other areas of their bodies, I'm sure.

 My main beef with this whole thing? Flour and corn. Everything that they say we should be eating is natural. What is so bad about flour and corn? God made wheat, just like he made berries. Why can't we eat it? Well, it's been genetically altered by us, to the point that it is nothing like original wheat. We have been mass producing wheat and corn for decades. Agriculture has found ways to make it grow faster, more efficiently, and bigger. It's to the point where many of our bodies can not properly process it correctly.

Once again, if you want the science behind all of this, please read Robb Wolf's book. The proof that I have is the fact that when we altered our diet and did "hardcore Paleo" for 30 days, I noticed significant changes. I had more energy, felt better, lost weight in areas that I have never been able to lose weight in, and had clear skin for the first time since I was 6 (that might be a slight exaggeration, but I can't remember the last time I had clear skin.) When we had a "cheat meal" to celebrate making it through our 30 days, my husband and I felt awful; bloated, sleepy, our stomachs hurt, and we just wanted to eat and eat and eat. Not fun.

 We try to eat at least 90% Paleo. Sometimes we have "cheat meals" and sometimes I need a scoop of ice cream. I'd like to transition to eating closer to 100%, but we're just doing the best we can. There are a million more things I can say about Paleo and what it's done for us and why I was skeptical, but I'll save some of that for future posts.

This style of eating has been known to REVERSE diabetes and other autoimmune diseases, and at minimum, make them better. Robb Wolf himself was in the doctor's office and hospital often with varying stomach issues. He ate "healthy" as a vegetarian and he just couldn't understand why his body was failing. They wanted him to take all kinds of medicine and basically told him he would have to deal with this for the rest of his life. Well? After doing some research, he decided to change his diet. His issues? Completely resolved. The doctors couldn't believe it and most of them even denied the fact that eating meat, fruits, and veggies without whole wheats and such could have possibly cured him. I think the "proof is in the pudding."

 If you're intrigued, I encourage you to do more research or just try eating this way for 30 days. 30 days is not very long and I promise you will notice changes. I don't want to beat anyone over the head with this, but I want you to know that it really has made a difference for us.