5 Health Benefits of Paleo Diet
Are you looking for a diet that’s easy to use and offers a variety of health benefits? Do you want a way to lose a few pounds without feeling deprived? Do you enjoy raw or fresh, simply-prepared foods? Perhaps the Paleo Diet is for you.
What is the Paleo Diet?
The Paleo Diet, also called the Caveman Diet or the Stone Age Diet, is based on the foods supposedly eaten by our ancestors during the Paleolithic era, a period that spanned about 2.5 million years and ended about 10,000 years ago. Foods of this era are incredibly basic and unprocessed. Examples include raw nuts and seeds, grass-fed meat, vegetables, fruit, roots and fish. Notably missing from this diet are grains, processed foods, sugar, salt and dairy products. Beverages are limited to water, tea and natural fruit juices.
Created by Walter Voegtlin in the 1970s, the Paleo Diet is founded on the theory that our bodies are genetically predetermined to favor the foods eaten by our distant, hunter-gatherer ancestors. By focusing on primary foods, this diet eliminates many of the factors that have been proven to cause chronic health issues like diabetes and heart disease.
Health Benefits of the Paleo Diet
The Paleo Diet is somewhat controversial and has many vocal proponents and detractors. Those in favor of this diet regime cite its many health benefits, a few of which are listed below:
1. Encourages weight loss. The Paleo Diet promotes foods that our bodies turn to energy, such as meats, fish, fruits and vegetables. By getting rid of sugar-filled foods and carbs, this diet makes it easy to gradually lose weight in a healthy way. An added bonus to this diet is that because of its high-fiber foods, you’ll feel full even while you lose weight.
2. Helps allergy sufferers. Many Americans suffer from mild food allergies to such things as processed sugar and wheat. These allergies can cause upper respiratory and stomach distress. Many of us don’t even realize when it is food that is causing this discomfort. The Paleo Diet eliminates common food allergens, helping those prone to food allergies to breathe and digest their food more easily.
3. Increases energy. Sugar and carbohydrates are also energy-sappers. By getting rid of these empty calories, the Paleo Diet can ramp up your energy level.
4. Improves digestion. Because this diet is rich in fiber, avoids salt, and stresses water over sugary beverages, it reduces bloat and promotes good digestion.
5. May promote heart health. The Paleo Diet features many foods that have been proven to promote a healthy heart. These include fish rich in Omega-3 oils, such as salmon and mackerel, and an abundance of fresh fruits and vegetables. Eliminating salt and processed foods from your diet, as is done with the Paleo regime, is another factor in improving your heart health.
The Paleo Diet is easy to try. There’s no measuring, finding weird ingredients or starving yourself. If you’re looking for a healthy diet change, maybe it’s time to get back to your “roots” with the Paleo Diet.
