Go Paleo?

Many readers will have heard about the Paleo diet inspired by the work of the doctor and dentist Weston Price. The author is a nutritionist and leading expert in the field. Here she provides an overview of the Paleo approach, with arguments both for and against and explaining why and how she has modified the purist form. Prepare to have some common myths about the health benefits of a purely vegetarian diet exploded by the science cited in this book, much of which has been carried out by Dr Loren Cordain. The chapter headings and sub-headings convey the gist of the argument: cereal killers (the downside of high carb grains), milking the facts about dairy, beans may be just a lot of hot air, not soy good for you, pseud's corner on pseudo-proteins, saturated fat as your new best friend, sugar beat and vegetarianism – dicing with diet. The author's conclusions are based on her extensive experience of nearly every diet under the sun, and she makes the valid observation that the initial success of many diets may be due as much to what they exclude – refined flour, sugar and carbohydrates – as what they include. An eye-opener is the prevalence of many anti-nutrients in vegetarian foods, such as phytic acid, and the argument that, although there may be an initial detox effect, most vegetarian diets deplete bodily systems in the long run – so you can survive rather than thrive on a vegetarian diet. In the end, though, there is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all diet but this book helps readers work out what is best for them.