Most people think the primal diet is the same thing as the Paleo diet, but it’s not. Both are linked to the way people ate before farming occurred and far before industrialization. Since, they’re also based on what man might have eaten before farming are eliminated in the diet. One big difference is that the Paleo diet doesn’t allow milk products, but primal diets do, but only if the milk is in raw form. The Paleo diet also eliminates coffee and vegetable in the nightshade family like bell pepper, tomatoes and eggplant, but they’re included in the primal diet.
The primal diet is quite simple.
If you’re eating a primal diet, just cut out processed food. In caveman days, nobody stopped at a Burger Quickie that lines every corner today. There weren’t frozen meals or boxed mac & cheese that was quick to make. Other foods not on the list for primal eating include peanuts, soy and soy products, grain and products made from grain, alcohol, granulated sugar and refined vegetable oils. Processed milk products aren’t allowed either, but honey and maple syrup are allowed.
Where did the primal diet come from and what’s the logic behind it?
Your ancestors beyond your great grandmother and grandfather, probably never ate a Twinkie or some commonly processed snack foods people eat daily. The logic is that most of today’s illnesses occur because of over consumption of junk food, highly processed food, food with added sugar and additives. Those foods have led to obesity, the leading cause of preventable death. Man has changed over hundreds and thousands of years, but these foods are relatively recent. They’re made in a lab and not necessarily easy to digest. Similar to the Paleo diet, the primal diet is based on eating food man was genetically created to eat.
What’s in the primal diet besides honey and maple syrup?
The good news is that there’s a lot to eat. In fact, almost everything in the fresh produce and meat section are acceptable. Just cutting out added sugar and highly processed food makes the diet immediately healthy. This type of diet is beneficial for those with diabetes that require a reduction of sugar intake and also for people with food intolerance and allergies. It’s healthy, good for weight loss and on spot when it comes to eating healthy.
- One point of dissent surrounding both the Paleo and primal diet is the lack of whole grains, which are healthy. Some Paleo diets allow wild rice and quinoa, as does the primal diet. The primal diet is new, so there are few if any studies on the benefits or effects.
- The primal diet is primarily plant based with limited amounts of meat. According to scientific studies, cavemen diets were mostly plant based and had only a small amount of animal products.
- Compared to the average American diet, the primal diet is far superior. It eliminates food with added sugar, processed food and additives that all cause inflammation, while boosting vegetables, seeds and nuts that are anti-inflammatory.
- People on the primal diet showed improved blood pressure and cholesterol panels than those on the Mediterranean diet. They also lost as much weight as those on traditional diets, but most of it came from around the waist, which means they lost more visceral fat, the most dangerous type of fat.
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