The Paleo Diet is Not Paleo

Just because a food wasn’t eaten during the Paleolithic era, that, in my mind, doesn’t mean we shouldn’t eat it now.

-Chris Kresser, @43:45

It’s regretful, In the Lord’s wisdom, the Paleo diet has a poorly chosen name. It comes from the evolutionary belief that Paleolithic man (hunter-gatherer) was bigger, stronger, and healthier than Neolithic man (agricultural, civilized). This foundational premise from which the diet gets its name has kept many Christians away from it as they roll their eyes. But a look at some of the top Paleo advocates shows that the diet itself actually isn’t Paleolithic and actually isn’t necessarily rooted in any evolutionary theory. Here’s why:

1. Just because a food wasn’t eaten during the Paleolithic era doesn’t mean we shouldn’t eat it now. (1)
2. Just because a food was eaten during the Paleolithic era doesn’t mean we should eat it now. (2) (3)

So if the Paleo diet isn’t Paleo, what is it?

It’s just a nutrient dense, whole foods diet that focuses on foods that have the lowest level of anti-nutrients and the highest level of micronutrients (4)

In sum:

I basically think of the Paleo Diet, at this point, as an Elimination Diet. (5)

That’s why it works. It teaches people to be aware of how different foods affect their individual bodies and to eat accordingly (it just so happens nearly everyone today does better off of grains – Btw, recent estimates suggest that 1 in 3 Americans are gluten sensitive). So get over the misnomer and look into the Paleo Elimination Diet. (See this too.)