Welcome to The Paleo Diet Blog!

The Paleo Diet--the world’s healthiest diet--is based on the simple understanding that the best human diet is the one to which we are best genetically adapted. It is supported by documented scientific evidence and by real-life improvements, even triumphs, of people winning their personal health battles.

The Paleo Diet is based upon the life work of Dr. Loren Cordain. Dr. Cordain is widely acknowledged as a leading expert on the diet of our Paleolithic ancestors. In numerous publications in the world's best scientific journals, he has documented the dramatic health benefits of eating a diet consistent with human genetic evolution and our ancestral, Paleolithic diet. Learn how a diet based on lean meats, seafood, fresh fruits, and fresh vegetables can lead to ideal body weight, optimum health, and peak athletic performance.

This concept represents the "unified field theory" of nutrition that has until now been lacking. The discipline of human nutrition previously had no orienting paradigm to guide research and inquiry, and as such was an immature science. In contrast, cosmology has the big bang theory, which orients all thought regarding the origins of the universe, and geology has continental drift and plate tectonics, which universally guide research into the origins of earth's land mass. In biology, the fundamental, guiding principle is Darwin's theory of evolution through natural selection, which provides a template for the creation of life on earth.

It has only been in the last two decades that a few enlightened scientists have realized that this principle also represents the basic biological principle which determines the nutritional requirements of any organism - including humans. Our genes were shaped by our ancestors' environment, including our nutrtional requirements. Because what we eat today is so far removed from the diet of our hunter-gatherer ancestors, a discordance exists between our genes and our diet, and this factor represents the underlying reason why we are so sick and overweight as a society.

Dr. Cordain has authored three pioneering books that provide specific applications of The Paleo Diet for general health and nutrition, specifically for athletes, and for curing acne.

The Paleo Diet provides the background and basis for the optimally healthful diet. It has been highly praised by researchers, scientists, and readers from all over the world.

The Paleo Diet for Athletes, written by Dr. Loren Cordain and world-class fitness trainer Joe Friel, provides detailed information on how endurance athletes can improve performance, recovery, and health by eating a slightly modified version of the Paleo Diet.

The Dietary Cure for Acne represents the first real cure--not a treatment--a real solution to this pervasive skin disease. It is a natural acne diet program, based on recent research.

We also offer numerous programs designed to help people address particular nutritional and health needs. These programs can enable you to achieve your health goals whether you seek to:

• permanently free yourself from acne
• improve your athletic performance
• enjoy a longer, healthier, more active life
• lose weight without dieting and exercise,
• reduce or eliminate your risk of diseases, including cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and the vast majority of all chronic degenerative diseases that affect humanity

For more information about our team and our products please visit our Paleo Diet web site as well as our Dietary Cure for Acne web site.

You may post comments and questions at the end of most blog posts. Scroll down to the end of a post, type your comments in the text area under the title Post a Comment, and click the Post Comment button.

Paleo Diet Q & A - 11.27.09

Dear Readers,

We hope you're gaining insight into The Paleo Diet and nutrition from the Q &A provided by the TPD community. Here's today's edition of Q & A.

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Q: I've got a 10-year old boy who is 1.48m tall and weighs 36kg. He is very fit, with resting heart beat of 60 (he's been checked and has first degree AV heart block which is nothing to worry about). He's a high-performance tennis player and footbal player, training/playing 4 times per week. He also has a magnificent appetite and a real love for meat, chicken, salads and dairy products.

I want to gradually introduce the diet to him, which means a significant shift from his Readybrek (a sort of refined porridge for children) with chopped fruits, 3 pots of fromage frais, 250 ml of fruit smoothie and a slice of wholemeal toast. This is because after I introduced solids to his diet at the age of 10 months he developed this skin condition that has been misdiagnosed as eczema until now, when one of the many dermatologists he has seen, has suggested he might have keratosis pilaris rubra fascia, with the differential diagnosis being comedonal acne vulgaris. On examination he showed follicular white papules across both cheeks with background erythema which appears telangiectatic in areas. He also has one or two similar lesions on his upper arms and thighs.

However, I believe that there must be something in his diet that is causing this (although the doctors here seem to disagree) since he had never suffered from this skin condition until I stopped breastfeeding him at the age of 9 months, so I want to give this new way of eating a try. He's not in to junk food or sweet things (bless him!!), and he really wants for his skin condition to improve as he was recently bullied at school.

My questions are:

1. Is his calcium intake going to be affected and how to prevent it from happening?
2. Can I still give him soya milk/youghrt or even greek youghart instead of cow's products?
3. Where can I find appetising paleo recipes for children, including healthy breakfasts that will satisfy him?
4. I have purchased 2 of your books for the whole family as a starting point, as although we are all slim and eat pretty well, my husband and I have begun to put on a bit of weight around our waistlines and tend to feel quite drained with 2 children to take care of, so again, I want to give this diet a try.

I would really really appreciate if you could point me in the right direction as I am a great believer that you are what you eat and I am desperate to help my boy before he becomes a teenager with low self-esteem because of his facial appearance: he's already a bit shy.

A: Keratosis Pilaris is linked to elevated androgens and insulin serum levels leading to keratinocytes hyperproliferation (increased keratinocytes division). Both hormones are involved in another skin condition, namely acne. We receive many testimonials and I see many acne patients in my practice who have achieved outstanding results with The Paleo Diet. So, maybe The Paleo Diet can improve Keratosis Pilaris in your child, as it has a very positive response with androgens and insulin metabolism. The Paleo Diet relies on low-glycemic foods, and is free of dairy products, both of which are one of the causes of hyperinsulinemia and subsequent keratinocyte hyperproliferation.

You can find more details regarding acne treatment in our book The Dietary Cure for Acne available at our web site.

Regarding your questions:

1. No, calcium metabolism is not going to be negatively impacted, but rather improved with The Paleo Diet. Calcium metabolism is not only the amount you eat but also the amount your body eliminates. Calcium is one of the minerals able to reduce metabolic acidosis, produced by meat, fish, eggs, dairy and grains. Conversely, metabolic alkalinity is produced by vegetables and fruits. The Paleo Diet is rich in vegetables and fruits, meat and fish, and low in dairy and grains. This results in a net alkalinity state, meaning your body excretes less calcium. Broccoli, kale, brussel sprouts and cauliflower are good calcium sources.
2. Soy is not part of the Paleo Diet as soy is a bean/legume. Soy is a source of harmful substances, namely lectins, which could induce so-called leaky gut and low-grade inflammation.
3. Please visit our web site for a list of recommended recipes: http://www.thepaleodiet.com/nutritional_tools/recipes.shtml
4. The Paleo Diet is free of some of the known foods that cause insulin resistance and therefore central fat, such as grains and legumes, dairy, refined sugars and vegetable oils.

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Q: I have read all of your website about curing acne naturally through diet and purchased the book. I had a baby a month ago and my face broke out very badly afterward, so I decided to try this. I've been doing it solidly for a week and a half and my face has gone from bad to ABSOLUTELY WORSE! There are nodules that are so inflamed on my upper lip that my lip itself is swollen. I have two on my forehead that are making the area between my eyes swollen. Not to mention--they hurt so bad!!

My questions is if going Paleo makes the acne worse before it gets better? If that's not it, I need to see a dermatologist and get on meds. I can't handle this much longer if it doesn't mean it is a sign of improvement. I really don't want to go on meds since I'm nursing my little one, but I need something because of how swollen and inflamed my face is.

A: The majority of acne patients see improvement in their symptoms within weeks. They typically don't get worse in the beginning. I am aware of some patients who see their symptoms dramatically worsen in the beginning--typically they are Rheumatoid Arthritis patients. This is due to the fact that in order to resolve inflammation an acute response is compulsory. Maybe this could be your case. Moreover, these RA patients noticed great improvement in 6 weeks. We don't know if your case will take the same amount of time.

However, this is a extremely strange phenomenon. We strongly recommend you use some helpful supplements:

• Vitamin D start with 5000 IU per day and measure your blood levels
• Omega-3 take between 3-4 grams of DHA+EPA per day
• Zinc 50 mg per day
• Probiotic 6-9 billion per day

Please keep us posted.

Follow-up response: Thank you for your response. You gave me enough to know that this probably wasn't normal. I went to a naturopathic doctor today who said I have impetigo. After doing my own research online, I see that this is probably the correct diagnosis for me.

Once the impetigo clears up, I think I'll stick with the Paleo Diet to clear up my regular acne. I will keep you posted!

Paleo Diet Q & A - 11.20.09

Dear Readers,

We hope you're continuing to experience the health benefits of eating Paleo. Here is today's edition of Paleo Diet Q & A. If you find that reading our Q & A raises new questions for you about the Paleo Diet please post a comment and our team will respond.

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Q: I have just started the diet. For years I have been using pan sprays without alcohol for cooking. With soy and soy oil being detrimental, how bad is soy lecithin? It's not only in pan sprays, but 9 out of 10 fish oil supplements.

I am the chef/owner of a Mediterranean restaurant. Eating a Mediterranean diet (and exercise) has made me healthier, but my triglycerides are way high--but then it appears to be genetic. Hoping the Paleo Diet will reverse this.

A: Yes, this diet should definitely lower your triglycerides. I do not know if soy lecithin contains lectins and saponins or not (two of the main problematic components of soy) – it is something we will have to look into, and perhaps cover in a future newsletter.

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Q: I first want to thank you and your research group immensely for doing the work you do. I have read The Paleo Diet and The Dietary Cure for Acne, which have made a great impact in my life (and some of my friends' as well!). I have suffered intense acne for years and have tried basically every acne medication out there without success; except for Accutane because of the possible side effects. After two months of being on the diet, I can see incredible progress in my complexion and continuously see improvements. I cannot express the astounding changes with words; my family and friends are amazed. Again, for this I thank you deeply. I have also cherished the changes the Paleo Diet has brought to different aspects of my life, one of these has been better racquetball performance (I'm a racquetball aficionado).

I do have a quick question. In The Dietary Cure for Acne you explain how teens are most susceptible to acne because the body normally increase the amount of insulin in the blood in order to facilitate the adolescent growth spurt. Since the Paleo Diet decrease this insulin, does it also put the body in a less favorable state to grow (height-wise) than the normal American diet? (Assuming that all other variables as nutrients, vitamins, etc are the same.) I have noticed that the hunter-gatherers living today have a lower average height than Americans/Europeans. Is this the reason?

Although I am past my growth spurt, I have not recommended this diet to young teens because I would like to let them know about this information as well, if my conclusions are true. If they are not, please explain to me why not.

A: Thanks for the feedback and congratulations on your success. Yes, because insulin is a pro-growth hormone, it is possible that the increasing height seen in many people today is the result of a high-glycemic diet. It is also possible that the same diet may increase their risk for certain cancers as they age. Epidemiological studies also support this notion.

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Q: I have read The Paleo Diet for Athletes and have put it into effect with excellent results. While obviously ground nuts should be a good substitute for flour, you don't mention chestnuts in your book. Are chestnuts and chestnut flour in the same category as almonds, walnuts, etc., or should they be avoided?

A: Yes, chestnut and chestnut flour are allowed in The Paleo Diet. Chesnuts belong to the nut family.

Paleo Diet Q & A - 11.16.09

Dear Readers,

Here is today's edition of Q & A from the Paleo Diet community.

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Q: Hello -- basically:

• I'm 18 years weighing in at 11 stone 1/8 something like that.
• I play 3 sports: cricket, hockey and rugby.
• I'm not overweight.
• I'm underweight by about a few pounds so not much.
• I've stopped playing sports for the summer and have realized that i may soon be going over that okay perfect weight boundary
• I eat anything fatty or not--it has never seemed to bother me until now, and I have stopped the chocolate and the booze for 2 weeks. Now I've tried to cut out the fat altogether.

I'm interested in using the Paleo Diet, and for my workout I'm trying "the 300 workout." I have realized a high amount of protein is required.

I just wanted to know if this diet will work for me. Will it help me gain muscle and become bigger built along with my workout? I have acne, so this diet is ideal already but I'm not overweight so is it ideal to take on this diet underweight or not to help with my workout?

A: In most people The Paleo Diet helps to maintain or achieve optimal body weight and fat/muscle mass distribution. If you are underweight you should increase your caloric intake with good fats such as olive oil, avocado, nuts, and protein from seafood, lean meats and eggs (if you don't suffer from an autoimmune disease). Branched chani amino acid supplementation will also help you to gain muscle mass.

Regarding acne, The Paleo Diet has been shown to dramatically improve this condition in most patients, demonstrated in a controlled clinical trial with 43 patients (Smith et al).

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Q: I am completely satisfied with the switch over to eating paleo. I've been eating for three days strictly paleo but find myself hungry after each meal. I must admit I am not serving myself much fruit or vegetables at each sitting. I eat three meals per day but am hungry in between. Before increasing fruit and vegetable servings at each meal, is it appropriate to snack in between or should I just increase meat serving at each meal. I've been eating around 3-4 ounces per meal. Is this enough? Any suggestions

A: Basically, if you are still hungry, you need to eat more. This is a common experience many people have, because when you remove the bread, rice, or pasta you remove a whole lot of calories, so your plate should be overflowing with meat, fruits, and veggies. If you need a snack between meals that is ok too, though the first step I would recommend is eating larger meals.

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Q: I am a registered dietitian and clinical nutritionist. I value the Paleo Diet and all the research you have done to support this way of eating. I am just trying to figure out your feelings and thoughts on protein powders. I am assuming because the sources of the protein are either whey, soy, or rice, that all are taboo. What do you think about Hemp since it is plant based? Or are there others to consider? Many of my clients and athletes prefer having a smoothie with fruits and vegetables, seeds, nuts, and protein powder. I would appreciate it if you could comment on this.

A: If the person does not have an autoimmune disease, we would generally recommend egg white protein as your best protein powder. Alternatively, you may want to consider a liquid amino acid supplement. You are correct, we do not generally recommend whey, rice, or soy, and I am not aware of studies looking at lectin content of hemp seeds, so cannot advise you there.