De gustibus non est disputandum

Posted Fri, 02/12/2010 - 21:34 by Melissa

 

Occasionally I will hear from someone who does badly on a paleo diet or whose health improved when they gave up meat. It's very interesting to me. I guess I' shouldn't really surprised then by Matt Stone's latest post which is a rant about how paleo kills your sex drive (WTF?????* Lierre's assertion that paleolithic is a diet for a smaller population is about economics, as obviously grains allows us to feed more people) and also a letter from a woman who experienced horrible digestive and other problems on paleo. It's so bizarre because paleo cured the exact same problems for me. 

But then again, I've rarely been 100% paleo. I have this fantasy that if I were I would suddenly become super woman or something, but the errant bowl of grits with butter never has made me feel terrible enough to make me stop having cheat meals. I know people who are 100% and honestly they seem no healthier than people who eat butter or an occasional beer. 

But I also see a pattern in people who don't do well on paleo. I'm not blaming people...it's hard to do a paradigm shift and admittedly my first foray into low carb wasn't so successful either. I think it started working only when I stopped thinking low-carb and started thinking about food quality. Some Purdue chicken beasts and steamed broccoli isn't quality in my opinion. Grass-fed beef, oysters, seaweed, purple yams, blueberries, kale...these sort of things form a nutrient-dense nucleus for my diet. When I'm really craving grits or bacon lentils, I personally don't sweat it. Gluten, vegetable oil, and sugar free + high nutrient density seems to solve most of my own problems, the rest was just tweaking. So my own experiences can't refute Matt's assertions. 

But I just don't buy that low carb is dangerous. Plenty of arctic peoples ate low carb their entire lives and reproduced and didn't keel over and die! I think people should work on removing the worst offenders like sugar from their diet and simply do what works for them. 

*In Robb Wolf's podcasts he talks about many women in his gym getting pregnant while doing paleo, but he has also had some questions from people who lost their period...I would be curious to know the nutrition intake numbers of people who that happens to. 

Comments

there is going to be major

by Bryce Lee - 02/13/2010 - 18:05

there is going to be major gastric distress because a) you have not accumulated the relevant beneficial bacteria, and b) you're digestive system has regulated itself for the expectation of different nutrition regimen

Spot on!

I think a problem many people run into is that, while they are somewhat or even extremely disciplined about avoiding the bad stuff, they don't put enough into getting the good stuff.

It's not enough to just eliminate the garbage and stick with what's left over. They need to take a page from Weston Price's book and add the really nutritious stuff that nourishes us: animal fat, animal fat, and animal fat, not to mention some vitamins/minerals (mg/iodine/D).

This is a problem a lot of low carbers have. They reduce carbs, but don't increase fat, and then they crash.

As far as beer goes, wheats are my favorite and my downfall. I've had to say good bye to Blue Moons, and hello to Guinness, which doesn't mess me up too badly.

Great blog!

bryce

In case you are wondering

by Michael - 02/13/2010 - 17:26

In case you are wondering about paleo and alcohol.

When food sourcing is

by John S - 02/13/2010 - 12:06

When food sourcing is radically different in a new phase than it was prior, there is going to be major gastric distress because a) you have not accumulated the relevant beneficial bacteria, and b) you're digestive system has regulated itself for the expectation of different nutrition regimen (bile production will be down regulated for people on low fat diets, and vice versa). It doesn't matter if you're going from vegan to paleo or from paleo to vegan, it's just not going to be comfortable.

also traditional Tibetans ate

by emily - 02/13/2010 - 09:45

also traditional Tibetans ate almost only animal foods- yak meat, yak butter, yak butter tea, yak milk cheese, ect ( i wrote about this here). i think butter is so similar to rendered animal fat ie.tallow, schmaltz, etc, that unless you have the very rare casien allergy, eatingbutter is almost totally paleo nutritionally (i realize paleolithic peoples didint milk cows of course.

I'm sympathetic but not 100%

by Rob - 02/13/2010 - 05:05

I'm sympathetic but not 100% paleo. The health and well-being claims sound too much like the ones the vegans were making when that diet was enjoying the same popularity. Even some of the vegan proselytizers are now working the same shtick for paleo. A lot of mildly eating disordered people get attracted to the food as panacea idea and run with it. Obviously we evolved to eat a paleo diet, but recreating it with modern lifestyles and modern food sources isn't easy. I often fail because of lack of time and motivation after a 70 hr workweek.

I think you nailed it with

by Rick - 02/12/2010 - 23:12

I think you nailed it with food quality. My first foray into paleo involved lots of boneless chicken, nuts, and lean hamburger meat. This of course ended up in digestive disaster.

Thankfully I found Michael Eades, Mark Sisson, Weston Price's work, and others who know a thing or two...and know how to express it intelligently. And I am VERY thankful I didn't find Matt Stone. Now he's curing infertility with his magic potatoes? Sigh.

But then again, I've rarely

by Michael - 02/12/2010 - 22:23

But then again, I've rarely been 100% paleo. I have this fantasy that if I were I would suddenly become super woman or something, but the errant bowl of grits with butter never has made me feel terrible enough to make me stop having cheat meals. I know people who are 100% and honestly they seem no healthier than people who eat butter or an occasional beer.

Grits and butter?? So when are you inviting me over to dinner? LOL! I will even bring some old style grits (the current stuff is junk and the old style is actually healthy - its all in the preparation/processing) and some tasty and healthy micro-brews. :-)

Haha, beer and grits are my

by Melissa - 02/12/2010 - 23:30

Haha, beer and grits are my major two cheats....I wish I didn't actually like beer, as it has gluten and whatnot, but it's fermented....so uh, maybe the gluten goes away?...I've tried liking wine, but it really doesn't do anything for me except make me drunk faster than you can slap a tick.

Grits with butter, some more butter, some shrimp with black pepper, and some hot sauce is where it's at. That's grain, dairy, and nightshade...but so far no problems besides being a little hungrier later.

Where do you buy your grits?

Beer has gluten! The gluten

by Don Wiss - 02/13/2010 - 05:29

Beer has gluten! The gluten only goes away when a grain is distilled, like hard liquor.

Have you tried hard cider? It looks like lager with no head, and a fruity smell. Its alcohol content is along the lines of beer, which is good. Wine's is too high. Higher than you would find in fermented fruit in nature. So it needs to be water down to be paleo.

cheap rice beer is gf.

by emily - 02/13/2010 - 10:44

cheap rice beer is gf.

Cheats for you but not for

by Michael - 02/13/2010 - 01:17

Cheats for you but not for me. :-)) I know more than a few paleos who include dairy on a regular basis.

It depends on the beer and you. Are you drinking wheat beers? If one truly has a current problem with gluten then even traces of it will be problematic. The non-wheat beers supposedly have a something very similar to gluten, but there are gluten free beers on the market.

Guess I will have to bring beer, grits, and some great wine to dinner. :-) I know some wines that will have you thinking you died and went to food heaven!

Can't buy any old fashioned grits these days. You have to make your own. Actually the mechanically hulled grits are okay, just no longer a potassium rich food.