EvolvingHealthConceptsLive from Ocala, The Paleo Diet!
Cheryl Polack and Dr. Loren Cordain at the IHMC Ocala Lecture Series
Dr. Loren Cordain of the Paleo Diet recently presented his lecture on “Origins and Evolution of The Western Diet: Health Implications for the 21st Century” at the Institute for Human and Machine Cognition here in my small hometown town of Ocala. I’ve become a paleo groupie, having first followed Dr. Cordain all the way out to California to hear him speak at the Paleo Brands Seminar and later having hunted him down in Orlando to hear two additional Paleo Diet lectures. My obsession has more to do with fact than fad.
Fads fade with time, but this has not been the case with the Paleo Diet. As Dr. Cordain states in his revised edition of the Paleo Diet, the popularity of Paleo Diet has exploded since it was originally published in 2002. Why? It has a lot to do with “the masses” following Robb Wolf’s Paleo recommendations as the “once upon a time” nutrition guru of CrossFit. Dr. Cordain also states in his new book that “electronic interconnectedness” has exploded in the last decade making information that is relevant to our lives easily accessible through emails, websites, and blogs. But the main reason the Paleo Diet has grown in popularity within Crossfit and the electronic community is because it actually works.
Not only will you lose weight, but you will also prevent (and reverse) future disease. Future diseases that are mistakenly believed to be an inevitable part of the aging process: getting heavier – the proverbial “spare tire around the middle”, abnormal blood sugar levels leading to Diabetes II, abnormal blood lipids leading to high triglycerides, cholesterol and LDL, increased risk for cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, osteoporosis, rheumatoid arthritis, etc. It doesn’t have to be this way, folks. I’ve not only read the research myself, but I have also applied the paleo principles in my own life with very positive results:
Robb Wolf: Paleo Guru
Being healthy and losing weight is not about counting calories or measuring food. As Dr. Cordain lectured this Thursday evening, it’s about eating in accordance with our evolutionary ancestral diet. We evolved for millions of years on a diet of nutritious minimally-processed wild plants and animals. Since the onset of the agriculture revolution some 15,000 years ago, we have increasingly displaced this nutritious diet with highly-processed, refined foods. Researchers are now beginning to recognize a strong correlation exists between our modern diet (the highly coveted USDA Food Pyramid), metabolic syndrome, and autoimmune disease. What we typically eat on a daily basis is making us very sick. Scary.
How do you stay healthy? Not by counting calories, but by avoiding all varieties of grains (wheat, corn, rice, etc), grain-fed meats, legumes (including soy and peanuts), dairy products, refined sugars, refined vegetable oils, salt and processed foods. What’s left? A diet of natural foods: lean meats that are grass-fed, wild-caught fish, vegetables, fruits and the “good fats”. It’s that easy. This is how you can take control of your own life and prevent (and in most cases reverse) chronic inflammation, metabolic derangement, acne, acid reflux, asthma, etc. You can also prevent hundreds of auto-immune diseases that may develop over time due to Leaky Gut Syndrome (see “Got Leaky Gut?”). Leaky Gut Syndrome has been implicated in auto-immune disease and is believed to be caused by grain, legume, dairy and nightshade vegetable consumption.
Miss the lecture?
How to implement the Paleo Diet in your life:
Official Paleo Diet Resources:
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The Paleo Diet Website and Blog (sign up to receive Dr. Cordain’s free Paleo Newsletter)
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The Paleo Diet Revised Edition (my review)
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The Paleo Diet Cookbook
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The Paleo Diet for Athletes
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Direct-Ms.org Lecture Series with Dr. Cordain: The Paleo Diet and Multiple Sclerosis (7 Parts)
Special thanks to Dr. Ken Ford of the IHMC and the many sponsors involved in bringing Dr. Cordain to Ocala so that others may benefit from his work. It was wonderful to have an opportunity to express our gratitude for the personal successes we have each experienced by applying his life’s research in our own lives.
Chef Al Rosas of Rosas Farm and Dr. Cordain
Erin Rosas adding the finishing touches to a beautiful table!
In additional, a heartfelt thank you to Al and Erin Rosa of Rosas Farm for creating a truly enchanting gourmet paleo event in their home following the lecture. Based on our experience with them that evening, with much anticipation I’m hoping they will soon publish a gourmet paleo cookbook so that we may all re-create Al’s paleo gourmet magic in our own homes! In the meantime, please visit the Rosas Country Market which is well stocked with organic and completely grass-fed beef, pork, poultry, eggs and wild-caught sea food. They also offer their own line of organic seasonings and the best organic barbecue sauce I have ever tasted (and the only one I’ve ever seen that does not list “corn syrup” on the label)!
Dr. Cordain, Dr. Montes, Cheryl Polack, and Dr. Wartels arriving in the Rosas Home
An evening of incredible food and great conversation!
It was great to listen to Dr. Cordain talk about the evolution of the western diet right here in Ocala.
I agree with you that the Paleo Diet works. Since instituting the Paleo Diet all my allergies have disappeared and my energy levels have soared.
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