Why Is Paleo Trending Now? It works! People love it. Top food writers like Mark Bittman & Michael Pollan are telling us that it’s time to cook again. I’m in that camp too. We believe that the period of packaged food is over. And that’s what’s empowered me to create recipes that re-invent your favorite foods so they can be Paleo, fresh, healthy, and nourishing.
Why now? Because the public is waking up to the fact that American agriculture, the food industry and the government are not on our side. We are deeply disillusioned and have lost our trust in the food establishment. Newspapers, magazines and the web publish reports and studies daily about the failure of our food supply to foster health and well-being. Despite this, there is no change, not even a spark of recognition that there is a crisis of health, of nutrition and of trust.
Public interest has sparked the slow food movement, support of local farms and farmer’s markets, and a return to a more grass-roots approach to food. And it is natural, since modern food is a failure, to reexamine the ways of eating of the past, the food that our species originally consumed.
Early Paleo adopters were visionaries who saw the possibilities Paleo offered. Their experience of health and well-being, energy and freedom from chronic conditions was dramatic. They were motivated to share their outcomes. It was quickly diffused to a wider audience, including athletes and those on special diets. Now it is a popular and well-known alternative.
The Paleo Diet is also known as the primal diet, caveman diet, Stone Age diet or hunter-gatherer diet It consists of fresh vegetables, fruits, roots, nuts, wild fish, free-range poultry, and grass-fed meat.
The Paleo Diet excludes all grains, legumes, dairy products, refined sugars and processed oils. It is my observation that poorly cultivated and prepared grains, plus sugar and chemicals are a toxic combination in the guts of many of us. Because it is free of chemicals and anti-nutrients, many people find the Paleo Diet ends their struggle with chronic disease. The millions of American who follow special diets find that it works for them if their food choices are gluten-free, celiac friendly, diabetic, peanut-free, or soy-free. They don’t have to wonder about the hidden ingredients in packaged foods or the false claims made by the food industry.
By eliminating dairy, sugar and carbs, the Paleo Diet decreases the inflammation that triggers auto-immune diseases, migraines, allergies, and many other chronic health conditions.
Crossfit gyms across the country have endorsed the diet, underscoring its attraction to athletes. And Paleo writers and bloggers transcend food to promote a lifestyle that offers more physical and mental energy, less stress, and healthy habits in their daily lives.
Studies show that common food additives and colorings can increase hyperactive behavior in children. Artificial additives increase hyperactivity and decrease attention span in a wide range of children, not just those for whom over-activity has been diagnosed as a learning problem. For their parents, Paleo provides a diet that is fresh, easy and nutritious, and free of harmful additives. Read More.
In a nutshell, people are drawn to Paleo because:
- It is a whole foods diet, composed of fiber, lean proteins and healthy fats. This combination stabilizes blood-sugar levels, reduces hunger and cravings, and prevents the accumulation of unwanted body fat.
- It is free of additives and processed foods, toxins and chemicals.
- It reduces inflammation.
- It is low in the carbohydrates that cause many chronic conditions.
- It removes common allergens like gluten, wheat, soy, and milk/cheese/dairy.
- It is rich in the vegetables that we need.
Our media reports constantly on the failure of processed food. Nutrition experts have been appealing for years for a cleaner diet based on whole foods, unadulterated meats, fruits, vegetables and less sugar, sodium, and processed foods. For more and more people, the Paleo Diet fits the bill.
