The book contains the concept that taking care of your body is an important part of happiness and that you should eat foods that lead to being healthful and energetic. Not much was covered about what an optimal diet would be, however. There are many people out there with various opinions on diet and lots of choices of healthy diets to follow. However, here is a recommendation for a way of eating which works well for me, and I am hoping will work well for you as well.
The Expandable Modern Hunter-Gatherer diet (EMHG diet)
Obviously, the food we eat will affect our well being and thus our happiness. However, there are many disagreements by nutritional experts on what the optimal diet is. I have done some research and have currently come to the conclusion that something close to the ancient Paleolithic diet (also referred to as the Hunter-Gatherer or Pre-agricultural diet) is optimal for the following reasons:
* The evolution of our bodies occured mostly before the advent of agriculture, so we are best adapted to eating as hunter-gatherers.
* Some foods, such as wheat and beans, are toxic without being cooked, but cooking does not remove all the toxins, which have a cumulative effect on the body.
* When I personally eat in this fashion, my body feels lighter, stronger, more relaxed and more energetic. It just feels better. Something is right here, at least for me, so this qualifies as the strongest reason.
* No tedious counting of calories. Eat as much as you want within these food groups so long as you are getting enough exercise and not going overboard on the sweet tasting stuff, fatty foods, and oils... those are snacks or used to enhance a main dish. You should feel more energetic and driven to do a bit more exercise, and you should follow those feelings. If you don't allow yourself to follow your feelings to do a bit more exercise with this additional energy, you might get a bit irritable. (This is in no way to be interpreted as advice to begin strenuous exercise without consulting your medical doctor.) The point here is that the focus is on health, and though weight loss should occur in most people, it is not the primary goal.
* You can cook. As opposed to raw food diets, cooking is acceptable. However, you should avoid frying at high temperatures in oil, or using any other method which will burn the food as this causes compounds which are not healthy.
* Healthy meats are allowed. A vegetarian diet can be very healthy, but there doesn't seem to be any health benefit to excluding meats so long as you are choosing meats that have the right type of fat. (A decent ratio of omega-3 to omega-6 fatty acids) If you can't get the right type of fat, try to have the least fat possible, and make up for it with other foods which are high in omega-3.
* The evolution of our bodies occured mostly before the advent of agriculture, so we are best adapted to eating as hunter-gatherers.
* Some foods, such as wheat and beans, are toxic without being cooked, but cooking does not remove all the toxins, which have a cumulative effect on the body.
* When I personally eat in this fashion, my body feels lighter, stronger, more relaxed and more energetic. It just feels better. Something is right here, at least for me, so this qualifies as the strongest reason.
* No tedious counting of calories. Eat as much as you want within these food groups so long as you are getting enough exercise and not going overboard on the sweet tasting stuff, fatty foods, and oils... those are snacks or used to enhance a main dish. You should feel more energetic and driven to do a bit more exercise, and you should follow those feelings. If you don't allow yourself to follow your feelings to do a bit more exercise with this additional energy, you might get a bit irritable. (This is in no way to be interpreted as advice to begin strenuous exercise without consulting your medical doctor.) The point here is that the focus is on health, and though weight loss should occur in most people, it is not the primary goal.
* You can cook. As opposed to raw food diets, cooking is acceptable. However, you should avoid frying at high temperatures in oil, or using any other method which will burn the food as this causes compounds which are not healthy.
* Healthy meats are allowed. A vegetarian diet can be very healthy, but there doesn't seem to be any health benefit to excluding meats so long as you are choosing meats that have the right type of fat. (A decent ratio of omega-3 to omega-6 fatty acids) If you can't get the right type of fat, try to have the least fat possible, and make up for it with other foods which are high in omega-3.
To the left is a comparison of the Ancient Paleolithic Diet and today's Modern Diet eaten in most of the industrialized world.
The Modern Paleolithic diet will use the same food groups as the Ancient Paleolithic diet, but will take them in different quantities to further enhance the health benefits: more vegetables and less meat.
The Expandable Modern Paleolithic diet will also add in a few of the healthiest modern foods.
As far as portions are concerned, I personally recommend:
1. Vegetables be the biggest portion
2. Meats/eggs the next largest portion
3. Fruits less than Meats/eggs
4. Nuts, berries, and seeds as snack foods
5. Enough water that your urine is clear
With the following optional expansions:
6. Brown rice portion less than Meats/eggs
7. Whatever else works well for you (test it)
This would leave you with roughly 20% to 35% of your diet coming from animal sources.
The Modern Paleolithic diet will use the same food groups as the Ancient Paleolithic diet, but will take them in different quantities to further enhance the health benefits: more vegetables and less meat.
The Expandable Modern Paleolithic diet will also add in a few of the healthiest modern foods.
As far as portions are concerned, I personally recommend:
1. Vegetables be the biggest portion
2. Meats/eggs the next largest portion
3. Fruits less than Meats/eggs
4. Nuts, berries, and seeds as snack foods
5. Enough water that your urine is clear
With the following optional expansions:
6. Brown rice portion less than Meats/eggs
7. Whatever else works well for you (test it)
This would leave you with roughly 20% to 35% of your diet coming from animal sources.
What to avoid and what to eat
You should try to eat foods that you could find and eat raw without any issues in a pre-agricultural age. (Some meats require cooking to kill parasites)
Exclusions:
* No Dairy (avoid milk, cheese, butter, cream)
* No foods with gluten or avenin or other anti-nutrients (avoid almost all grains - wheat, barley, rye and oats - and foods containing them such as:
* Low animal fats. Most animals in the wild are not as fat.
* No legumes (including beans, peanuts, soy and peas)
* No potatoes, yams, sweet potatoes
* No alcohol that is fermented from the restricted foods, and any acceptable one in moderation.
* No low pulp juices (throwing away fiber and extra vitamins for sweetness doesn't make sense; blending the entire thing and adding water is fine)
* No Caffeine and other drugs
* Avoid anything you have a known allergy to
That leaves a wide variety of foods:
* Lean meats (preferably grass-fed and not grain fed to be high in omega-3 fats, and ideally wild so no hormones or other wierd stuff. For fish, salmon, herring, mackerel, sardines, trout are high in omega-3.)
* Eggs (preferably not grain fed, to be high in omega-3, otherwise only eat the whites)
* Most nuts
* Some seeds
* Berries which can be eaten raw
* Non starchy vegetables
* Oils easily derived from allowed foods (walnut oil, sunflower oil, olive oil, ideally those higher in omega-3, such as flaxseed oil, which contains 3 times as much omega-3 as omega-6. When cooking, it's important to have a high temperature tolerance or "smoke point", which canola provides along with omega-3 intake as much as half the omega-6 intake)
* Honey
* Fruits
* Some Mushrooms
* Some insects (if you really want to...)
* Herbs and spices
* Pure Water (filter out chlorine)
* Brown rice (This is technically a grain and should theoretically be avoided as it contains a lot of calories compared to nutrients, but it is the only starchy staple food that digests very well and does not result in any gas. It can be included in the diet if you are losing too much weight, or needing additional energy as an athlete and really craving carbs)
Exclusions:
* No Dairy (avoid milk, cheese, butter, cream)
* No foods with gluten or avenin or other anti-nutrients (avoid almost all grains - wheat, barley, rye and oats - and foods containing them such as:
- breakfast cereals
- pasta
- bread
- beer, whisky and many other alcoholic beverages
- cakes, biscuits and other foods containing flour
- corn
* Low animal fats. Most animals in the wild are not as fat.
* No legumes (including beans, peanuts, soy and peas)
* No potatoes, yams, sweet potatoes
* No alcohol that is fermented from the restricted foods, and any acceptable one in moderation.
* No low pulp juices (throwing away fiber and extra vitamins for sweetness doesn't make sense; blending the entire thing and adding water is fine)
* No Caffeine and other drugs
* Avoid anything you have a known allergy to
That leaves a wide variety of foods:
* Lean meats (preferably grass-fed and not grain fed to be high in omega-3 fats, and ideally wild so no hormones or other wierd stuff. For fish, salmon, herring, mackerel, sardines, trout are high in omega-3.)
* Eggs (preferably not grain fed, to be high in omega-3, otherwise only eat the whites)
* Most nuts
* Some seeds
* Berries which can be eaten raw
* Non starchy vegetables
* Oils easily derived from allowed foods (walnut oil, sunflower oil, olive oil, ideally those higher in omega-3, such as flaxseed oil, which contains 3 times as much omega-3 as omega-6. When cooking, it's important to have a high temperature tolerance or "smoke point", which canola provides along with omega-3 intake as much as half the omega-6 intake)
* Honey
* Fruits
* Some Mushrooms
* Some insects (if you really want to...)
* Herbs and spices
* Pure Water (filter out chlorine)
* Brown rice (This is technically a grain and should theoretically be avoided as it contains a lot of calories compared to nutrients, but it is the only starchy staple food that digests very well and does not result in any gas. It can be included in the diet if you are losing too much weight, or needing additional energy as an athlete and really craving carbs)
How to succeed at changing your diet
To succeed at changing your diet, you need to redefine how you look at the world. First, it's important to get you into the mindset of a hunter-gatherer. Let's say you are out in the woods and you find a mushroom. You need to know whether that mushroom is edible or poisonous before you eat it. If it's poisonous, it's not food, and you discard it. The same applies to any plant or animal you find. Some animals do not make for good eating.
The same applies when you go into the supermarket, except that most foods have been chosen to not make you immediately ill if you eat them. However, the dangers are hidden as there are many foods that will make you a little bit ill and if you eat enough of them regularly, those effects will accumulate faster than your body can compensate. Some foods may just have way too many calories and not enough nutrition, resulting in obesity since your body will crave more food for nutrients, while other foods may contain actual toxins. Our governments and experts know that some foods are unhealthy, but the focus is on providing a minimum level of safety and allowing the consumer the freedom of choice.
So when you go into a supermarket, think of going to hunt or gather in the forest, and realize that some of what you will find there is actually not good food. Hunter-gatherers would learn which foods were good or not from their village elders. Today we rely on our scientists and nutritionists, but unfortunately there are differing opinions, and a lot of people who are not concerned about the long term effect of foods, but only care about the short term.
A big issue with most diets is overcoming various cravings that you might have. The fortunate thing is that you will be getting so much more nutrition than you are used to that your body will actually have less cravings. You will probably be less hungry all the time as well due to this, and not feel as much need to overeat. This is not a diet designed for you to adopt for a while to lose weight, it is one where your lifestyle changes and you should be happier on it permanently. You will still be able to have the occasional chocolate bar or other treat like pizza if you want it, and really enjoy it, but you should not feel the NEED for it -- just remember that treats are entertainment food, not nutrition food. The point is that this diet should become the basis for how you eat most of the time and what you consider to be normal. The theory is that the standard North American diet is NOT NORMAL for the way our bodies evolved, and that seems to be supported in practice.
Another point with craving is that for certain foods, such as breads and fatty cheeses, you will feel cravings, but they are NOT YOUR cravings. There is a bacteria called candida which will hijack the chemical signalling system in your body and makes you overwhelmingly crave sugar and starchy foods so that you will continue to feed them. Cheese and milk products also feed the candida, which temporarily reduces the craving for starchy foods, so this also builds a positive association to crave cheese, and the same applies to a lesser extent to mushrooms and to vinegar. This is often the reason that these foods appear to taste so good. If you switch to the new diet and the candida dies off to normal paleolithic levels, these cravings will go away.
At some point a switch has to happen from foods you are addicted to, to foods that are optimal for your body and leave you feeling good in the long run. Short term pain, long term gain.
The same applies when you go into the supermarket, except that most foods have been chosen to not make you immediately ill if you eat them. However, the dangers are hidden as there are many foods that will make you a little bit ill and if you eat enough of them regularly, those effects will accumulate faster than your body can compensate. Some foods may just have way too many calories and not enough nutrition, resulting in obesity since your body will crave more food for nutrients, while other foods may contain actual toxins. Our governments and experts know that some foods are unhealthy, but the focus is on providing a minimum level of safety and allowing the consumer the freedom of choice.
So when you go into a supermarket, think of going to hunt or gather in the forest, and realize that some of what you will find there is actually not good food. Hunter-gatherers would learn which foods were good or not from their village elders. Today we rely on our scientists and nutritionists, but unfortunately there are differing opinions, and a lot of people who are not concerned about the long term effect of foods, but only care about the short term.
A big issue with most diets is overcoming various cravings that you might have. The fortunate thing is that you will be getting so much more nutrition than you are used to that your body will actually have less cravings. You will probably be less hungry all the time as well due to this, and not feel as much need to overeat. This is not a diet designed for you to adopt for a while to lose weight, it is one where your lifestyle changes and you should be happier on it permanently. You will still be able to have the occasional chocolate bar or other treat like pizza if you want it, and really enjoy it, but you should not feel the NEED for it -- just remember that treats are entertainment food, not nutrition food. The point is that this diet should become the basis for how you eat most of the time and what you consider to be normal. The theory is that the standard North American diet is NOT NORMAL for the way our bodies evolved, and that seems to be supported in practice.
Another point with craving is that for certain foods, such as breads and fatty cheeses, you will feel cravings, but they are NOT YOUR cravings. There is a bacteria called candida which will hijack the chemical signalling system in your body and makes you overwhelmingly crave sugar and starchy foods so that you will continue to feed them. Cheese and milk products also feed the candida, which temporarily reduces the craving for starchy foods, so this also builds a positive association to crave cheese, and the same applies to a lesser extent to mushrooms and to vinegar. This is often the reason that these foods appear to taste so good. If you switch to the new diet and the candida dies off to normal paleolithic levels, these cravings will go away.
At some point a switch has to happen from foods you are addicted to, to foods that are optimal for your body and leave you feeling good in the long run. Short term pain, long term gain.
Scientific studies
Scientific studies have shown positive benefits of the paleolithic diet. Those using this diet seem to be largely free of the signs and symptoms of chronic disease (such as obesity, high blood pressure, nonobstructive coronaryatherosclerosis, and insulin resistance) that universally afflict the elderly in western societies.
Because of the unlimited amounts of fruits and veggies permitted on the Paleo Diet, your body will be slightly alkaline -- meaning that diseases and disease symptoms of acid/base imbalance (osteoporosis, kidney stones, hypertension, stroke, asthma, insomnia, motion sickness, inner ear ringing, and exercise-induced asthma) will improve.
The high soluble-fiber content of The Paleo Diet will improve most diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, and the high omega-3 fat content will improve most of the "itis" or inflammatory diseases. Omega-3 and Omega-6 fats are types of polyunsaturated "essential" fats that our body can't manufacture from other fats, so we have to get it from our diet. Scientific experiments determined that if the ratio of omega 6 fats to omega 3 fats exceeds 4:1, people have more health problems. This is especially meaningful since grain-fed beef can have ratios that exceed 20:1 whereby grass-fed beef is down around 3:1. The paleolithic diet is estimated to have contained small, but roughly equal amounts of Omega-6 and Omege-3 fats.
The focus on foods with higher concentrations of vitamins and minerals per calorie will ensure that optimum daily requirements are met and will wipe out any issues related to nutritional deficiences. As nutritional needs are being met, there will be less cravings and less overeating resulting in the body going towards it's optimal weight. The only nutrient where the paleolithic diet might not greatly exceed the RDA is with calcium. However, the diet is highly alkaline due to the high quantity of fruits and vegetables, so this will lower how much calcium would be excreted, and thus less calcium would be needed than the RDA calculated for western diets. This is because grains are acid forming and would cause calcium depletion, and the evidence indicates that osteoporosis is actually decreased on a paleo diet. However, you may want to consider eating a bit of ground up egg shell, or taking a calcium supplement just in case. One average 5.0 gram egg shell yields 2.0 grams of calcium, while the rda is about 1.0 grams of calcium a day, and an average paleo diet provides most of that. Consumption of 1 ground up egg shell a week sprinkled into food would make up for any possible issue. Eating some meat soup simmering with bones in them would also give you enough calcium as the bones dissolve into the water. Simply focusing on making sure a good deal of your vegetables are dark and leafy green should be enough as well as those are calcium rich.
The hunter-gatherer diet appears in theory and in practice to reverse or eliminate "diseases of affluence" that are prevalent in Western societies, but are not found in the remaining tribes of hunter-gatherers in the world. Beyond the ones mentioned above, this also includes: colorectal cancer, myopia, acne, depression, and autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis.
Avoiding dairy products and chocolate will remove the two largest factors causing phlegm build up in your throat and lead to having a better voice.
Last but not least, it is good for the health of your teeth and gums, being low in refined sugar. Refined sugar has an atomic density that is so high that any other substance on earth with such a high atomic density is classified as a poison.
Because of the unlimited amounts of fruits and veggies permitted on the Paleo Diet, your body will be slightly alkaline -- meaning that diseases and disease symptoms of acid/base imbalance (osteoporosis, kidney stones, hypertension, stroke, asthma, insomnia, motion sickness, inner ear ringing, and exercise-induced asthma) will improve.
The high soluble-fiber content of The Paleo Diet will improve most diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, and the high omega-3 fat content will improve most of the "itis" or inflammatory diseases. Omega-3 and Omega-6 fats are types of polyunsaturated "essential" fats that our body can't manufacture from other fats, so we have to get it from our diet. Scientific experiments determined that if the ratio of omega 6 fats to omega 3 fats exceeds 4:1, people have more health problems. This is especially meaningful since grain-fed beef can have ratios that exceed 20:1 whereby grass-fed beef is down around 3:1. The paleolithic diet is estimated to have contained small, but roughly equal amounts of Omega-6 and Omege-3 fats.
The focus on foods with higher concentrations of vitamins and minerals per calorie will ensure that optimum daily requirements are met and will wipe out any issues related to nutritional deficiences. As nutritional needs are being met, there will be less cravings and less overeating resulting in the body going towards it's optimal weight. The only nutrient where the paleolithic diet might not greatly exceed the RDA is with calcium. However, the diet is highly alkaline due to the high quantity of fruits and vegetables, so this will lower how much calcium would be excreted, and thus less calcium would be needed than the RDA calculated for western diets. This is because grains are acid forming and would cause calcium depletion, and the evidence indicates that osteoporosis is actually decreased on a paleo diet. However, you may want to consider eating a bit of ground up egg shell, or taking a calcium supplement just in case. One average 5.0 gram egg shell yields 2.0 grams of calcium, while the rda is about 1.0 grams of calcium a day, and an average paleo diet provides most of that. Consumption of 1 ground up egg shell a week sprinkled into food would make up for any possible issue. Eating some meat soup simmering with bones in them would also give you enough calcium as the bones dissolve into the water. Simply focusing on making sure a good deal of your vegetables are dark and leafy green should be enough as well as those are calcium rich.
The hunter-gatherer diet appears in theory and in practice to reverse or eliminate "diseases of affluence" that are prevalent in Western societies, but are not found in the remaining tribes of hunter-gatherers in the world. Beyond the ones mentioned above, this also includes: colorectal cancer, myopia, acne, depression, and autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis.
Avoiding dairy products and chocolate will remove the two largest factors causing phlegm build up in your throat and lead to having a better voice.
Last but not least, it is good for the health of your teeth and gums, being low in refined sugar. Refined sugar has an atomic density that is so high that any other substance on earth with such a high atomic density is classified as a poison.
Additional modification to exclude the remaining "difficult to digest" polysaccharides
The good news is that most of these difficult to digest foods are already excluded from the hunter-gatherer diet, so you should already have much better digestion. However, if you exclude a few more foods you can finish off the remaining digestive issues with little effort and have one less worry in life. Note that although some of these foods are difficult to digest, the parts that do digest end up being very healthy, so there is no additional health benefit here, just the benefit of being more comfortable.
Flatulence-producing foods are typically high in certain polysaccharides, (especially oligosaccharides such as inulin). Those high polysaccharide foods already excluded in the hunter-gatherer diet include beans, lentils, dairy products, sweet potatoes, potatoes, corn, oats, wheat, and yeast in breads. The additional foods to exclude to gain this additional benefit would be: onions, garlic, scallions, leeks, turnips, rutabagas, radishes, cashews, Jerusalem artichokes, and cruciferous vegetables. Cauliflower, broccoli, cabbage, brussel sprouts and other cruciferous vegetables that belong to the genus Brassica and are commonly reputed to not only increase flatulence, but to make the person somewhat "scent challenged".
Flatulence-producing foods are typically high in certain polysaccharides, (especially oligosaccharides such as inulin). Those high polysaccharide foods already excluded in the hunter-gatherer diet include beans, lentils, dairy products, sweet potatoes, potatoes, corn, oats, wheat, and yeast in breads. The additional foods to exclude to gain this additional benefit would be: onions, garlic, scallions, leeks, turnips, rutabagas, radishes, cashews, Jerusalem artichokes, and cruciferous vegetables. Cauliflower, broccoli, cabbage, brussel sprouts and other cruciferous vegetables that belong to the genus Brassica and are commonly reputed to not only increase flatulence, but to make the person somewhat "scent challenged".
Vitamin C supplementation
This vitamin deserves special attention as it is not naturally produced by human beings, a few primates, and a few other animals such as guinea pigs, but the majority of animals on earth produce their own vitamin C. The recommended daily allowance (rda) for vitamin C is set by various institutions to be around 90mg/day for an adult male, but this is only the amount required to prevent scurvy in 95% of people, so this is not the optimal amount. An adult goat, which is a typical example of a vitamin C producing animal, produces about 13,000mg/day of vitamin C, this amount increases when they are under stress, and it weighs less than a human being.
Vitamin C is an anti-oxidant and removes free radicals which cause oxidative stress to the body. It's usage in sufficient quantities has been correlated to a reduction in the incidence of various cancers, heart disease, cataracts, colds, strokes, lead toxicity, and blood pressure. Given intravenously in high enough dosages, it can actually selectively target cancer cells and reduce their growth or result in the death of a cancer cell by causing them to produce hydrogen peroxide in greater quanties than normal cells. The effect is safe on normal cells, as opposed to other therapies. For more information click here.
The diets of simians, primates who are very similar to humans, are 10 to 20 times as high in vitamin C as the recommended values for humans from the government institutions. The hunter-gatherer diet is also similarly rich in vitamin C, so this fact alone will bring you health benefits.
The tolerable upper limit (UL) established by the Food and Nutrition Board of the US Institute of Medicine is the highest level of daily intake of a specific nutrient likely to pose no risk of adverse health effects in almost all the individuals of a specified age. The UL is currently set to 2000 mg/day in adults 19 and older. Linus Pauling, a nobel prize winner in chemistry, recommends 2000 mg/day of vitamin C and personally consumed 18,000mg/day in divided doses (No more than 2000mg at a time). This is because vitamin C has a half life of 30 minutes, meaning that if you consume 2000mg, there is only 1000mg left in your system after 30 minutes, then only 500mg left after an hour, and 250mg left after an hour and a half. So you would probably not exceed the UL by taking 2000mg every 2 hours, so long as you were taking sufficient water. Exceeding your body's actual upper limit, or saturation dosage, will cause your body to attempt to excrete via your colon as opposed to in your urine. The interesting thing is that the more unhealthy you are, the more vitamin C you need before you will excrete in this manner. The body seems to comfortably take in much more vitamin C when it is unhealthy, and as it becomes healthier and saturated, it will exceed it's actual tolerance at lower doses.
If someone is on a Western diet, I would recommend a minimum of two 500 mg supplements of Vitamin C a day. On the paleo diet, you should not need to supplement Vitamin C as you will intake a high amount, though you could try supplementing one 500 mg per day and see if it increases your well being further.
For more information, click here: Vitamin C
Vitamin C is an anti-oxidant and removes free radicals which cause oxidative stress to the body. It's usage in sufficient quantities has been correlated to a reduction in the incidence of various cancers, heart disease, cataracts, colds, strokes, lead toxicity, and blood pressure. Given intravenously in high enough dosages, it can actually selectively target cancer cells and reduce their growth or result in the death of a cancer cell by causing them to produce hydrogen peroxide in greater quanties than normal cells. The effect is safe on normal cells, as opposed to other therapies. For more information click here.
The diets of simians, primates who are very similar to humans, are 10 to 20 times as high in vitamin C as the recommended values for humans from the government institutions. The hunter-gatherer diet is also similarly rich in vitamin C, so this fact alone will bring you health benefits.
The tolerable upper limit (UL) established by the Food and Nutrition Board of the US Institute of Medicine is the highest level of daily intake of a specific nutrient likely to pose no risk of adverse health effects in almost all the individuals of a specified age. The UL is currently set to 2000 mg/day in adults 19 and older. Linus Pauling, a nobel prize winner in chemistry, recommends 2000 mg/day of vitamin C and personally consumed 18,000mg/day in divided doses (No more than 2000mg at a time). This is because vitamin C has a half life of 30 minutes, meaning that if you consume 2000mg, there is only 1000mg left in your system after 30 minutes, then only 500mg left after an hour, and 250mg left after an hour and a half. So you would probably not exceed the UL by taking 2000mg every 2 hours, so long as you were taking sufficient water. Exceeding your body's actual upper limit, or saturation dosage, will cause your body to attempt to excrete via your colon as opposed to in your urine. The interesting thing is that the more unhealthy you are, the more vitamin C you need before you will excrete in this manner. The body seems to comfortably take in much more vitamin C when it is unhealthy, and as it becomes healthier and saturated, it will exceed it's actual tolerance at lower doses.
If someone is on a Western diet, I would recommend a minimum of two 500 mg supplements of Vitamin C a day. On the paleo diet, you should not need to supplement Vitamin C as you will intake a high amount, though you could try supplementing one 500 mg per day and see if it increases your well being further.
For more information, click here: Vitamin C
Additional work
By now, you are probably realizing that following this diet is going to take a bit of additional work, both mentally, to learn what is "good food" and what isn't, and physically, as it might require some additional time and effort to gather in the store or to take trips to less convenient locations. The hunter-gatherer used to walk long distances and get a lot of exercise, however. This additional work is actually going to be a benefit to you as it will keep your mental faculties sharper, and you will also get more exercise, which is one of the primary factors in good health. Any additional time you invest, you will gain back as you will have additional energy to do more instead of being tired or sleepy.
One thing is for sure, even though this is going to be a bit more work than the convenient alternatives, it will most certainly be a lot less work than the paleolithic hunter-gatherer used to do. Eating the hunter-gatherer diet these days is definitely far more convenient than before, and by comparision is actually very easy.
The most difficult part is to make the decision to try it, and then to break your habits and to break your addictions. Many foods have been purposefully constructed to be addictive to guarantee repeat sales by adding extra sugar or fat, or by adding drugs such as caffeine or by adding extremely appealing artificial tastes or flavors.
One thing is for sure, even though this is going to be a bit more work than the convenient alternatives, it will most certainly be a lot less work than the paleolithic hunter-gatherer used to do. Eating the hunter-gatherer diet these days is definitely far more convenient than before, and by comparision is actually very easy.
The most difficult part is to make the decision to try it, and then to break your habits and to break your addictions. Many foods have been purposefully constructed to be addictive to guarantee repeat sales by adding extra sugar or fat, or by adding drugs such as caffeine or by adding extremely appealing artificial tastes or flavors.
Chewing
Chewing is a part of your diet as it affects what you take into your digestive system. Bigger chunks of unchewed food will lead to incomplete digestion in the stomach and growth of bacteria in the intestines, as well as less lubrication and digestion from saliva. The biggest reason for lack of chewing is rushing as the world is a more hectic place than it used to be. When you aren't rushing, eating food is a pleasureable experience full of sensations. Don't deny yourself that pleasure, and don't deny yourself your health.
Cancer prevention
If you look at the risk factors for cancer, you will see that the majority of these factors are controllable, and a lot of it falls under diet. The primary factors to consider to control cancer according to the World Cancer Research Fund and the American Institute for Cancer Research are:
* Eating less fat, and better fat (more omega-3 fats, more unsaturated plant fats, more oils with omega-3), don't fry oils at high temperatures.
* Eat 5-13 servings of non-starchy plant based fruits and vegetables a day, depending on your weight. (Potato, yam, sweet potato, and cassava don't count) Eat only limited amounts of refined grains like white bread and pasta. A serving is a half a cup in size, and for an average active person needing 2000 calories a day, this would translate to 9 servings, or 4 and a 1/2 cups.)
* Limit red meat (beef, pork, lamb, goat) to less than 18oz. per week and completely avoid processed meat. (I personally believe that this applies only to agriculturally grown red meats, who are often raised to have unhealthy ratios of omega-3 to omega-6 fats, or other additives such as hormones, and that wild raised or organic red meats are fine.)
* Limiting sugar and sugary drinks.
* Limiting alcohol. (1-2 drinks a day maximum)
* Limiting salt. (2400 mg a day max)
* Get regular exercise. (30 minutes a day vigorous, or 60 moderate)
* Being as lean as possible with a recommended BMI of 21-23 (click here to calculate)
* Don't depend on pills. Some supplements or high-dose nutrients are associated with higher risk of developing cancer. Stick to a healthy diet instead and don't bank on dietary supplements as the magic pills in preventing cancer.
All of these recommendations were normal behavior for someone following a hunter-gatherer pre-agricultural diet and lifestyle.
* Eating less fat, and better fat (more omega-3 fats, more unsaturated plant fats, more oils with omega-3), don't fry oils at high temperatures.
* Eat 5-13 servings of non-starchy plant based fruits and vegetables a day, depending on your weight. (Potato, yam, sweet potato, and cassava don't count) Eat only limited amounts of refined grains like white bread and pasta. A serving is a half a cup in size, and for an average active person needing 2000 calories a day, this would translate to 9 servings, or 4 and a 1/2 cups.)
* Limit red meat (beef, pork, lamb, goat) to less than 18oz. per week and completely avoid processed meat. (I personally believe that this applies only to agriculturally grown red meats, who are often raised to have unhealthy ratios of omega-3 to omega-6 fats, or other additives such as hormones, and that wild raised or organic red meats are fine.)
* Limiting sugar and sugary drinks.
* Limiting alcohol. (1-2 drinks a day maximum)
* Limiting salt. (2400 mg a day max)
* Get regular exercise. (30 minutes a day vigorous, or 60 moderate)
* Being as lean as possible with a recommended BMI of 21-23 (click here to calculate)
* Don't depend on pills. Some supplements or high-dose nutrients are associated with higher risk of developing cancer. Stick to a healthy diet instead and don't bank on dietary supplements as the magic pills in preventing cancer.
All of these recommendations were normal behavior for someone following a hunter-gatherer pre-agricultural diet and lifestyle.
Wait a minute, doctors tell me that dairy and whole grains are healthy for me... are they wrong?
No, they're not wrong at all. Low fat dairy and whole grains are very healthy for you compared to the average North American diet. Most people are using the average North American diet as the baseline to which they compare everything. However, if you use the hunter-gatherer diet as the baseline, you will see that the foods in these food groups are less healthy compared to the hunter-gatherer diet. That's the only message I am trying to get across here. Start to consider the hunter-gatherer diet as the baseline diet for human health and then consider adding some other foods to it that won't significantly decrease the nutrition value of your diet. Stop focusing on reducing this or that on the "broken beyond repair" Modern diet, and start to focus on adding some things to the Ancient Paleolithic diet as they make sense, and develop a Modern Paleolithic diet which suits you.
That said, if you start with a pure hunter gatherer diet, and add in some skim milk and whole grains later on, you will end up with a healthy diet as well. Low fat cottage cheese and ricotta cheese are also quite nutrient rich. These should be treated as "additions" though, and tested individually once a paleo baseline has been established.
That said, if you start with a pure hunter gatherer diet, and add in some skim milk and whole grains later on, you will end up with a healthy diet as well. Low fat cottage cheese and ricotta cheese are also quite nutrient rich. These should be treated as "additions" though, and tested individually once a paleo baseline has been established.
What about organic?
Everything was organic back in the paleolithic days, pesticides didn't exist, so there is less that your body is not used to in organic food. The American Medical Association recommends limiting exposure to pesticides due to long term health effects, and there have been many examples of pesticides used which were later banned due to unexpectedly severe health effects. The goal of a pesticide is to kill things that are alive after all. Some cited health effects in pesticides that are still used today include: skin and eye irritation, nervous system disorders, cancer, and birth defects. The World Health Organization and the UN Environment Programme estimate that each year, 3 million workers in agriculture in the developing world experience severe poisoning from pesticides, about 18,000 of whom die. According to one study, as many as 25 million workers in developing countries may suffer mild pesticide poisoning yearly. Unfortunately, pesticide sprayed food is often much cheaper, so it depends on where your priorities lie. In general if you wash the food carefully before you eat it, or remove the peel, you will remove the majority of the pesticides, and thus limit your exposure.
Convenient list of super healthy foods for shopping list
Tomatoes, cucumbers, omega-3 eggs (flax fed), flaxseed oil (for salads or cold dishes), canola oil for cooking, celery, bell peppers, eggplants, asparagus, artichokes, okra, avocados, lettuce, spinach, collard greens, kale, beet top, mustard greens, dandelion, swiss chard, watercress, turnip greens, seaweeds, endive, arugula (rocket), bok choy, rapini, chicory, radicchio, carrots, beets, turnips, parsnips, rutabaga, radish, jerusalem artichokes, cassava, butternut squash, spaghetti squash, acorn squash, pumpkin, buttercup squash, zucchini, yellow summer squash, yellow crookneck squash, bananas, apples, oranges, berries (strawberry, cranberry, cranberry, blueberry, blackberry), grapefruit, pears, peaches, nectarines, plums, pomegranates, pineapple, papaya, grapes, cantaloupe, cherries, apricot, water mellon, honeydew mellon, kiwi, lemon, lime, lychee, mango, tangerine, coconut, figs, dates, passion fruit, persimmon, pistachios, brazil nuts, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds (pepitas), pecans, walnuts, pine nuts, macadamia nuts, chestnuts, cashews, almonds, hazelnuts, button mushroom, portabello, oyster mushroom, shiitake, chanterelle, crimini, porcini, parsley, thyme, lavender, mint, basil, rosemary, chives, tarragon, oregano, sage, dill, bay leaves, coriander, honey, crab, lobster, shrimps, scallops, clams, oysters, mussels, mackerel, lake trout, herring, sardines, albacore tuna, salmon, wild game or grass fed animals (avoid grain fed)
The bottom line for diet
Whether the hunter-gatherer diet suits you or not, you should consider what is in your diet, and what is going into -- and out of -- your body. The body can get rid of a certain amount of toxins, but if it takes in more than it can get rid of it becomes overloaded, and illness will result.
It's important to pick a diet that doesn't bring in more toxins than you can get rid of and that considers the elimination process. You can get help to get rid of toxins by drinking ample amounts of water, by eating enough fiber, and by doing some exercise that results in sweating, or spending some time in a sauna. If you never do anything to sweat, it is difficult for the body to get rid of oil soluable toxins.
Pay attention to how your body feels. If you don't feel fantastic a while after a certain type of meal, then there was probably something in that meal that didn't completely agree with you. Conversely, if you do feel great, there was probably something there that your body really needed, unless it was something that produced short term pleasure such as a drug, or sugars or fats. See how you feel a few hours afterwards.
If you want to try the hunter-gatherer diet you should probably try to follow it very strictly at the beginning and see how you feel after one to three weeks. You should feel some initial benefits already after a few days, though chronic conditions such as a perpetually irritated throat or skin conditions might take several weeks to resolve. Once you start to really feel the benefits, and you feel that you have gotten as healthy as you are going to get on it, then try one of your old foods again that you really liked, and see what happens to your health level. If you maintain your health level over the next week or so then you can consider trying to add another one, if not exclude it again.
Much more information on the paleolithic diet can be found by clicking here.
Good hunting!
Mark
It's important to pick a diet that doesn't bring in more toxins than you can get rid of and that considers the elimination process. You can get help to get rid of toxins by drinking ample amounts of water, by eating enough fiber, and by doing some exercise that results in sweating, or spending some time in a sauna. If you never do anything to sweat, it is difficult for the body to get rid of oil soluable toxins.
Pay attention to how your body feels. If you don't feel fantastic a while after a certain type of meal, then there was probably something in that meal that didn't completely agree with you. Conversely, if you do feel great, there was probably something there that your body really needed, unless it was something that produced short term pleasure such as a drug, or sugars or fats. See how you feel a few hours afterwards.
If you want to try the hunter-gatherer diet you should probably try to follow it very strictly at the beginning and see how you feel after one to three weeks. You should feel some initial benefits already after a few days, though chronic conditions such as a perpetually irritated throat or skin conditions might take several weeks to resolve. Once you start to really feel the benefits, and you feel that you have gotten as healthy as you are going to get on it, then try one of your old foods again that you really liked, and see what happens to your health level. If you maintain your health level over the next week or so then you can consider trying to add another one, if not exclude it again.
Much more information on the paleolithic diet can be found by clicking here.
Good hunting!
Mark
