Diet is the Difference: The Paleo Diet Protects Against Chronic Diseases

Extensive peer reviewed research has shown a multitude of potential benefits in changing from a Western lifestyle to something closer to our ideal, original diet. By comparing the health of typical North Westerners and Europeans to those who still practice a traditional, pre-agricultural lifestyle, they have found that such societies have:

•     Much lower blood pressure, which does not increase with age.

•     Much greater insulin sensitivity, which does not degenerate with age.

•     A body-mass index superior even to healthy or athletic Americans

•     Better bone health markers

•     Lower fracture rates

•     Lower incidence of chronic degenerative diseases, including diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer, acne, and myopia.

•     Almost no accounts of obesity, gout, hypertension, coronary heart disease, or epithelial cell cancers.

There are plenty of factors which may influence this, including exercise, exposure to sunlight, sleep patterns, stress and environmental pollutants. However, an organic, chemical-free, and nutrient rich diet is clearly a key factor as well.

Cereal grains, for example, are not nearly as nutritious a staple food as our original mixture of lean, grass-fed meats, seafood, fruits and vegetables. Not only do they have a much lower density of micronutrients, they also contain high levels of phytate, an anti-nutrient. In the intestines, as phytate breaks down into phitic acid, it combines with minerals like calcium, magnesium, iron, and zinc, preventing them from being absorbed and rendering them useless. Deficiencies in magnesium, for example, are found in over 50% of American adults, and can increase your risk of metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular disease.

Another problem with a diet primarily based on sodium, cereal grains and dairy products is that these foods all produce acids when broken down, which can drain your calcium levels. In a Paleolithic Diet, the acids produced by eating proteins like meat, fish and eggs are balanced out by the bases produced by fruits, veggies, tubers roots, and nuts. In a modern diet the result is primarily acidic. In order to cancel this out, the body has to create its own bases by using up its magnesium and calcium stores, potentially leading to bone and muscle loss particularly in old age. 

The human body is actually meant to take in more potassium (found in fruits and vegetables) than sodium. However, with the introduction of refined salts and our general lack of greens, the opposite is now usually true, and the results may be an increased risk of:

•     hypertension (also known as high blood pressure)

•     stroke

•     kidney stones

•     osteoporosis

•     gastrointestinal cancers

•     athsma and exercise-induced athsma

•     insomnia

•     air sickness

•     high-altitude sickness

•     Meniere’s syndrome

In addition to adding lots of potassium rich foods, the Paleo Diet puts heavy restrictions on the processed and pre-made foods which use sodium as their go-to flavoring and preservative. It recommends instead that people stick to whole foods cooked at home whenever possible, and use sea salts in reasonable portions for seasoning.

Because it’s grain-free and has an emphasis on lean, organic, naturally raised proteins, The Paleo Diet contains all of the advantages of a Gluten-Free Diet, as well as the heart- and brain-healthy Omega-3 fatty acids found in wild-caught salmon and grass-fed beef. To start breaking free of modern dietary diseases, click here to search for home-delivered, Paleo-Approved foods that can make your life simpler and healthier.