Word MIGHT be getting out. Decent little article but full of the typical debris of paleo diet objections. Too bad the author skimped on his homework and missed Loren Cordain’s site and the common misconceptions/lame counter points of the Paleo-clueless
Robb Wolf is a former research biochemist and 2X New York Times/Wall Street Journal Best-selling author of The Paleo Solution and Wired To Eat. Along with Diana Rodgers, he co-authored the book, Sacred Cow, which explains why well-raised meat is good for us and good for the planet. Robb has transformed the lives of hundreds of thousands of people around the world via his top-ranked iTunes podcast, books, and seminars. He also co-founded the 1st and 4th CrossFit affiliate gyms in the world, The Healthy Rebellion community platform, and is the co-founder of DrinkLMNT Electrolytes.
Search Robbwolf.com
[quote]Not everyone is jumping on the Flintstone-esque bandwagon, however. Keith Ayoob, an associate clinical professor of child pediatrics at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, a noted enemy of fad diets and author of The Uncle Sam Diet: The 4-Week Eating Plan for a Thinner, Healthier America, has some objections. Of the diet’s prohibition of grains, he says, “you’re talking about leaving out a really important food group.”[/quote]
I’m not even going to attack the whole grain thing…but did it just say a noted enemy of fad diets and author of a fad diet? My head is going to explode…
That is….um, funny!
Robb
While I am warming to the Paleo Diet, this article brings up the one thing that’s bothered me about the whole Paleo/low carb eating philosophy. Rice. Asian cultures eat mostly rice and seem to be doing quite well. Rice is the one food that is most difficult for me to wrap my head around as far as eliminating it goes. Where am I thinking wrong?
Josh-
loads…loads of information on the physical and health differences between hunter gatherers and agriculturalists…I’m going to let you dig around and find that stuff. Loren Cordains site is a prime place to start and anyone with any questions regarding the paleo diet would be well served by reading ALL of the peer reviewed published research offered on his site. I will say this:
Okinawans are taller, generally healthier than most other Japanese. The Okinawans consume relatively little rice. Instead they have a nutrient dense tuber similar to a yam or sweet potato. The difference may seem insignificant. Anything but however!
Robb
Robb,
Definitely a little thin on the content, but what would anyone expect from an investment sit founded by a guy who has a TV show called Mad Money on CNN.
Still good that it’s slowly getting out there.
I need some olive oil.
Nick-
Make that a double. Mine will be Tequila!
Robb
Yeah, I like his point about getting rid of all the wires we are connected to! Personally, I am obsessed and know it to be unhealthy but in today’s day and age, that’s not gonna change any….
Got Milk? No, I don’t. My mother tells me infant formula of the lactose laden variety induced projectile vomiting that closely resembled a leaf blower with an intake coupled to a dozen large cow tits. These days, it turns my feces to liquid and inflates my guts with noxious fumes. Admittedly, were I a single man, the diary super-gal that Robb introduced on this website could definitely convince me to chug a glass of milk. Damn the consequences. If you can digest it, I envy you… you bastard.
Got Rice? No, it rots my teeth, gives me zits, makes my restless leg syndrome act up and provides my body with about as many nutrients that I could get from licking my dogs anus.
Got meat, veggies, nuts and some fruit? Yes I do and I’m a 5’10”, 185lb half-Jap with no measurable body fat who is the second tallest (next to my brother) and strongest member of my clan in the past few thousand years. I can actually grow a beard. Horny 24/7, mean as a dung beetle mid poop gather, and call me crazy but the smell of the testosterone standards at my laboratory remind me suspiciously of my sweat.
Rice is for locusts and people who were unfortunately born into a situation where they have few other food choices.
If evolution is a farce then the world is flat.
Paleo is my momma, Robb Wolf is my daddy.
Brad
Wow! I um have nothing to add to that. I’m Brad’s dady…interesting implications….
Robb
His book is based on the 2005 USDA food pyramid. We really needed a book to explain that? Are you kidding? On one hand he states that half the world eats fish and rice, then on the other hand states that dairy is essential and people shouldn’t cut it out. Last time I checked that half of the world that eats fish and rice doesn’t really have much dairy in the diet. Another thing with the dairy thing is that the half of the world he is talking about is mostly dairy intolerant anyway.
Ugh…anyway.
Allen-
I wonder WHO that guy is a consultant for? If you have a minute perhaps you can do a bit of digging?
Robb
I love the status quo physicians still saying “we need grains, we need dairy for calcium.” They are just parroting stuff they’ve been told rather than stuff they actually understand. Ugh! But it’s a start.
Cheers
Scott Kustes
Modern Forager
On the whole “well the Japanese eat Rice and they are skinny” arguement is flawed for many reasons:
– They also eat a ton of fish, meat, vegetables
– For the most part live an active lifestyle
– Their total calorie intake is lower
– Their portions are smaller than the Western version
– They still suffer the same rise in heart disease, arthritis and cancers. http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?tool=pubmed&pubmedid=15374905
Like Robb mentioned there is lots of research to suggest the health decline with the grain based society vs the hunter gatherer. Skinny people can be sick too.
i hate the grain guy, ayoob’s “moderation may be a better answer” line, especially from a dr. it becomes the mantra for ppl to “reconcile” all the “conflicting” health news… but really, they just haven’t done the reading!
EC-
You are spot on. The “moderation” argument is such a crock of crap! it’s a bull-shit-pseudo-intelectual-white-wash that gives the appearance of some kind of “deeper knowledge”…my…head..may…..explode…
Robb
Good points Mike OD. I’ve been to Japan to visit my family many times, and you are 100% correct.
I’m not sure why this is so confusing for everyone, but let me outline it again: Bacon, whole milk, eggs, pizza and Chinese food. That is the food highrise.
G-
sorry we keep confusing that issue. Bacon, milk, eggs, pizza…mmmmmm
Robb,
Ayoob is the scientific advisor for kidnetic.org which is funded by the IFIC. which is funded by…drumroll please…
http://www.cspinet.org/integrity/nonprofits/international_food_information_council_and_ific_foundation_.html
I looked around IFIC.org a little and saw this:
http://www.ific.org/research/hfcsresearch.cfm
Very nice.
Allen-
Thanks for doing the leg work on that. What a tool, I love it. The IFIC is right up there with the center for science in the public interest. Yeesh.
Robb
I’m totally lactose-intolerant, allergic to pennicillian (mold) as well. I was led to a paleo diet after reading about the possible connection to my blood-type (type o). After leading the caveman diet lifestyle for awhile, saw real results in that my digestive processes became so efficient that other related health issues fell into place and my body was able to process many of the toxins and stored stuff that it just didn’t seem to have time to deal with because of incomplete digestion.
I am Scotch-Irish from both sides which led me to eat, for example, cold water fish (salmon and trout vs. catfish), and a dried kelp, sold as an herb called bladderwrack which has 2 benefits- high iodine content (raised my metabolism slightly) and the effects on the fucos lining of my stomach were tremendous as far as the actual uptake of the food that I intook. As it’s name suggests it WAS fairly hard on the kidneys but easily monitored and adjusted..
Discovering my mold problem has kept me from eating high mold-content fruits- melons and ‘dews.
Then I discovered the benefits of food combining for acid-alkaline balance and…and…and…
Kirk-
Good stuff! Paleo kinda brackets all that stuff…macrobiotic, seasonality, food combining. Just have to keep tinkering!
been looking through your blog. what’s your take on psylium husks? when I eat paleo I usually need this to stay regular.
What does your vegetable intake look like? I would suggest increases there before looking to psyllium. Also, your hydration status can play a role in keeping you regular too. A solid paleo diet will naturally be high fiber and not require a supplement to stay ‘regular’. If you’d like some help evaluating your current diet let me know!