As a dietitian I am often asked, “What is the best diet?”  Is there one perfect diet that all humans should follow?   A film that is expected out later this summer also asked that question.  The film, called “In Search of the Perfect Human Diet” was made by C.J. Hunt, who nearly died at age 24.

As a result of his health issues, he set out to find the secrets of optimal health and became a broadcast journalist in the process.  Though I haven’t seen his film yet, I can tell by the list of people it interviewed as experts, it is likely to advocate what is called the Paleolithic Diet.

The concept of this diet is to eat as our ancient ancestors, the hunter-gatherers did: plants (greens, tubers, fruits, nuts), wild-caught meats, fish and eggs. No grains. No dairy.   
In short — eat like a caveman.

Several THB contributors believe there is something to this diet.  And at the LaValle Metabolic Institute, we have been using a modified version of this diet in our practice for years. (Our exception is that we do allow some use of goat’s milk foods, like the milk itself or yogurts or cheeses made from it.)

The primary tenet of the diet is that cavemen did not eat grains at all, much less refined flours, because these foods hadn’t been cultivated yet.  In our experience, since grains are high in starches, which break down to glucose, cutting out grains (even whole grains) does seem to be very helpful.

In fact it’s necessary for some people who are severely insulin resistant.  This is evidenced by waists that are larger than hips and blood sugars that are trending high and difficult to get down.

Whole grains can also be problematic due to their high lectin content, as Jim’s article discusses.

The caveman diet has other healthful properties beyond helping obesity and insulin resistance. One study that I love examines how the diet relates to another common and completely modern health problem: chronic acidosis, which is linked with osteoporosis, muscle wasting, kidney stone formation, and damage to the kidneys.¹

If you read a lot of bloggers and their hastily flung opinions, you will find that they typically recommend you stop eating meat to combat acidosis. But the scientists who analyzed this issue state clearly that our ancestors had alkaline bodies, not because they didn’t eat meat, but because they didn’t eat cereal grains and modern, energy-dense, nutrient-poor foods (refined sugars and vegetable oils).

The study authors write that the change that switched human diets from net-base (alkaline) to net-acid production was “entirely” from “the displacement of base-rich plant-food groups (roots, tubers, leafy green vegetables, vegetable fruit, and fruit) by cereal grains and [foods such as] refined sugars and separated fats.”

They recommend that to more closely mimic the caveman diet and return our bodies to an alkaline state we need to:

• Remove refined, processed foods from our diet, especially sugars and flours.   
• Add plant foods back into our diet, especially greens and vegetables.
• Include animal proteins.

To mimic the animal proteins that would have been eaten then, choose meat cuts from animals that eat their natural foods. That means no grain-fed fish, cows, chickens or hogs. Cows should graze on grass. Fish should eat their natural foods (smaller fish and algae or plankton). Chickens should eat insects, grass, insect larvae and worms. Hogs should feed on acorns and roots. 

Paleolithic diets can be a challenge if you are a stickler and never eat grains.  However, our patients do get good results with them.  We find that even if you give in and eat grains occasionally, the drastic reduction in grains and refined sugars does wonders for waistlines, blood sugar, blood pressure and healthy lipid profiles.

If you have any of these issues, I recommend you try it, and watch for Hunt’s film if you are interested in an informative exploration of the “perfect diet” for health.

Reference

1. Am J Clin Nutr. 2002:76(6): 1308-1316.

[Ed. Note: Laura B. LaValle, RD, LD is presently the director of dietetics nutrition at LaValle Metabolic Institute.   Laura and her husband, Jim LaValle, R.Ph, CCN, ND have developed the powerful and life-changing Metabolic Code Diet – containing step-by-step, easy to follow recommendations for harnessing optimal metabolic energy and turning your body’s chemical make up into a fat-burning furnace.  To learn more click here now.]

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