Paleo vs. Low-Carb Paleo

While some food may be considered paleo, it is not all low-carb paleo.

Paleo by definition is something that our hunter-gatherer ancestors would/could have eaten.  An example of this could be honey.  Every now and again they may have happened upon a beehive and they enjoyed a few days of blissful sweetness, along with a few bee stings.  After a few days they likely had eaten all of the honey and they were back to eating the “regular” stuff they found or hunted.

So realistically, they had sweet things (carbs) occasionally and infrequent.  The bulk of their diet was comprised of meats they hunted or caught and edible plants and some occasional nuts and seeds.  Nuts, seeds and berries/fruits were only available seasonally.

This rhythm of eating what was seasonally available naturally allowed them to live a pretty low carb existence.  This allowed for a high level of “health.”

One of the biggest problems in our society now is that carbs are plentiful, present and consumed regularly.  This is very UNLIKE how our ancestors ate.

Eating carbs creates an insulin response in the body.  If it is sustained, many negative things happen including elevated cortisol levels.  Elevated cortisol levels will contribute to virtually every modern illness that exists including heart disease, cancer, diabetes, osteoporosis, depression, senility and auto-immune disorders like fibromyalgia, MS and lupus.

So when you consume “Paleo treats,” they should be eaten in moderation and infrequently.

You get to decide what moderation and infrequently means for you based on your health goals.

If your goal is to lose enough weight to get into a healthy state, low-carb paleo is a good idea and will help you reach your goals.

If you are already very lean and an active athlete, you’re going to need more carbs than someone who is sedentary.

It’s always a good idea that whenever possible, allow your carbs to be paleo.  This means they are closer to nature.  Examples would include dates, raisins, other fruits, honey, and pure maple syrup.  Avoid artificial sweeteners and high fructose corn syrup like the plague.

So, sometimes it is appropriate to be low carb paleo and other times it’s ok to be just paleo.  You decide based on your goals.

The treats we have today are Paleo but they are not low carb paleo.