Why His Paleo Diet Sucks (Case Study)

By Nick Pineault

This is diet critique of one of my clients who's on the Paleo diet. The truths you'll read here will make your jaw drop!

Here's a sample of what my client, Mark, eats on a typical day:

 

Breakfast: Cage-free omega-3 eggs with organic spinach

Snack: Brown rice protein with some "Stevia in the raw"

Lunch: Mixed greens, chicken breast and homemade olive oil dressing

Dinner: Grass-fed beef steak seasoned with soy sauce and a medium sweet potato

Evening Snack: Berries with honey

 

What Mark is doing right with his Paleo Diet:

Mark's Paleo diet is off to a good start because he focuses on natural whole foods. He's eating "cleaner" than 99% of people eating this way.

 

What Mark is doing wrong with his Paleo Diet:

Okay, let's take this meal by meal.

 

Breakfast:

Mark was doing the right thing trying to buy healthier eggs, but he got scammed by marketing terms.

"Cage-free" has no legal definition in the US, which probably means his eggs are produced by hens crammed by thousands inside small barns - making eggs with a fraction of the nutrition.

The second problem with those eggs is the added omega-3.

You see, the Center for Science in the Public Interest's independent lab tests revealed that they contain less than half of the omega-3 claimed on the packaging.

But it doesn't really matter anyway, because the omega-3 in them is ALA (from the flax hens are fed with), which is 800% to 3300% less absorbable than the form of omega-3 naturally contained in healthy eggs (EPA and DHA).

If you want eggs that contain multiple times more nutrients than these cheap cage-free eggs, stick with pasture-raised eggs - which means that hens are allowed to roam around outside like they're supposed to.

 

Snack:

Let's put it that way: this brand of stevia is a huge scam.

Stevia In The Raw contains 95% dextrose - also known as… pure sugar. Because the FDA allows any food that contains less than 4 calories per serving to be labeled as "calorie-free", this product shows portion sizes of 0.5g - 1/8 of a teaspoon - and continues to claim it contains 0 calories.

Instead of buying this forfeit brand, stick with any brand that only shows stevia on the ingredients list.

 

Lunch:

It's true: olive oil is a great source of healthy fats and anti-aging compounds... but only if you buy the right kind.

In 2010, Consumer Reports - one of the most credible and influential non-profit organizations fighting for consumer rights in the US - revealed that around 20% of all olive oils are fake and have been mixed with other cheap oils.

This terrible scam has been confirmed yet again in 2012, when the UC Davis Olive Center found out that only 27% of all olive oils passed the quality test to be labeled "extra virgin" - the best and most nutritious kind there is.

So again, without even being aware of it, your olive oil might contain up to 100% vegetable oil - filled with fattening trans fats.

 

Dinner:

Forget everything you heard about how red meat is fattening. Grass-fed beef contains 2 to 4 times more omega-3, many times more vitamins and minerals than the cheap supermarket kind, and is packed with the natural fat burner CLA.

The problem is: some grass-fed beef are "grain finished", which means they are fattened with grains in the last month before being slaughtered.

This process may help the beef farmer make extra money - but it actually changes the fat in your grass-fed beef from omega-3s to inflammatory omega-6s and removes the CLA.

Way to pay the premium price for something that doesn't contain what it's supposed to!

To make sure you buy the right fat burning beef, look for "pasture-raised beef" or "grass-fed AND finished beef".

 

Evening Snack:

There's no such thing as fat burning sugar, but certain natural sugars like honey are less fattening than processed sugar.

But watch out: a recent study by Food Safety News found out that 75% of the honey sold in the US may be fake and potentially contain the banned antibiotic chloramphenicol and dangerous heavy metals.

Always make sure your honey is real by buying it locally, and always buy raw honey instead of the pasteurized kind that's nothing more than pure sugar.

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Conclusion:

As you can see from the analysis of Mark's diet - chances that you're consuming a lot of fattening foods without even being aware of it.

Let me tell you, this is just the tip of the iceberg. There are hundreds of other shady and scammy foods that end up in your fridge.