Many of today’s health problems are caused by eating what is actually the wrong diet, but by using the Paleo diet – made up of the foods eaten by our distant ancestors — you can start to correct these problems, eat food that is healthier for you, and improve your health. The earliest humans hunted the animals around them and gathered Nature’s rich bounty of vegetables and fruits. These diets can help you return to these foods and all the diets contain instructions and dietary plans, and part of the process is setting up a Paleo food list.
If you want this mode of eating to be effective for you, you will not only have to focus exclusively on foods that were eaten by the cavemen, but will have to avoid processed or packaged foods as well. Although animal proteins are central to duplicating the caveman eating habits that our bodies are adapted to, especially fatty meats will not be included in this diet, either. Processed meats such as salami, pepperoni, spam, and bologna are not included on the list of allowable foods, for example, thanks to their considerable grease and the artificial preservatives with which they are laden. You will also have to give up pork and lamb chops that contain a lot of fat, plus bacon and breakfast sausage, though lean pork is perfectly acceptable.
Cavemen did not practice any kind of farming, so grains were not included in their diet at all. The “do not eat” list for this diet includes nearly all grain products such as wheat, oats, corn, wild rice, barley, and rice. Likewise, in order to follow the Paleo food list correctly, you must not eat any foods that are made from these grains such as breads, muffins, pasta, corn chips, granola, tortillas, pie crusts, and pancakes. Foods such as corn on the cob must also be scratched from your menu.
While the list of foods on the forbidden list may seem restrictive, there are plenty of good foods that you can eat and that will help you use the Paleo diet to best advantage. This is a diet that can be followed without difficulty in the long run, and it can also be used by every member of the family, since it is suitable for growing children just as much as adults (unlike many diet plans). Fresh fruits and vegetable abounded in the world around the cavemen and they knew what foods to gather in which season. We have the advantage of being able to find vegetables and fruits year around, which will provide more variety and interest. Eggs are allowed with this diet, as these were gathered by these early humans during nesting season.
Lean meats, such as were supplied to cavemen by wild game, will help you get the maximum benefit from this diet. When you go to the grocery, look for lean meat that contains little marbling and excess fat. In some areas it is possible to get meat from animals that have been range fed, which produces a much leaner meat. Such animals are the closest modern equivalent to herd animals that were hunted by our ancestors with their stone tipped spears and arrows.
Many diets fail simply because the dieter becomes too hungry to continue with them, and finally devours other food out of sheer desperation. Fortunately, the nourishment on the Paleo food lists will help you retain a ‘full feeling’ longer as the rate at which your body digests food slows down. You will eventually find yourself eating when you actually feel hungry, not just when the clock tells you to.