Origins of the paleo diet
Let’s go back to 10,000 BC… Imagine – a family of cavemen ponder what they’ll have for dinner… A naked burger? A stir fry? Fish and chips? Paella?! They argue in grunts over the infinite choices…
Okay, maybe it wasn’t exactly like that, but a modern caveman diet really does have infinite options. It’s called the ‘paleo’ diet – basically, you eat what in accordance with what was available and accessible in the Palaeolithic times. Obviously our hunter-gatherer ancestors didn’t keep food journals, but research has deduced that cavemen essentially ate whole foods, ie. unprocessed vegetables, fruits, meats, nuts, and seeds. Research also tells us that lifestyle-related diseases such as heart disease, obesity, and diabetes occurred at much lower rates because of this, alongside keeping physically active. Nowadays, we don’t need to trek miles for food or hunt our food. Or run from sabertooth tigers, come to think of it. But simulating the early human lifestyle with the consumption of whole foods and daily movement can actually have a shockingly beneficial impact on our health.
To break it down simply, here is a list of things that are included in the stone age diet and things that aren’t.
The EAT THIS list
- Meat
- Vegetables
- Fruits
- Fish
- Nuts
- Seeds
- Herbs and spices
- Natural oils
The AVOID THIS list
- Processed foods altogether
- Refined sugars
- Grains (yep, that means bread, pasta, rice, oats etc)
- Dairy products (no, cavemen did not milk cows to our knowledge)
- Legumes (beans, lentils, even peanuts)
So let’s get into our five reasons why a paleo diet may benefit your health and your diabetes management:
#1 – It has been shown to improve and stabilise metabolic abnormalities in those with type 2 diabetes 
#2 – It boosts your metabolism and to support weight loss and weight management
#3 – It decreases diastolic and systolic blood pressure, total cholesterol, as well as your fasting plasma glucose (blood sugar)
#4 – Participants of studies say that the paleo diet is more satiating compared to a calorie-controlled diabetes diet
#5 – It’s one of the most easily accessible and maintainable diets nowadays – there are even paleo doughnuts, for goodness sakes!
Is Paleo right for everyone? Probably not. But it might just be for you.
See our ‘Paleo’ category on the Nourish’d menu for loads of delish meal options!
Reference List – For More Information
- https://www.mja.com.au/journal/2016/205/4/paleo-diet-and-diabetes
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2787021/
- https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/5-studies-on-the-paleo-diet
- https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/healthy-weight/diet-reviews/paleo-diet/
- https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/paleo-diet-meal-plan-and-menu#section12