My Journey

So why should I eat like a "caveman"? This is the question I asked myself when proposed to try it out myself. So I looked into the subject - deeply, and became intrigued. I gave it a try. After only two weeks of actually being "paleo" as we say, I had become convinced! Now a few months into it, I have never felt better, and it will take a lot of convincing to get me to go back to eating "normal" - check that, I will never go back to that! The purpose of this blog is for me to track my journey through the "paleo" lifestyle as well as provide a convenient and accessible source of legitimate information regarding the subject.
Why am I embarking on this adventure? Well, it has become obvious to me, from all the information I've sifted through over the years, that this lifestyle is the most conducive to optimum health and longevity. I have personally seen individuals lose large amounts of weight, reverse insulin resistance, decrease anxiety, improve mood, increase energy, decrease stress, and just feel better in general.
To better understand what this is all about, check out the short "Paleo in a nutshell" video below.

Supplements

   Now at first glance this may seem to be a little contradictory.  Cavemen certainly didn't take any supplements!  Before you go jumping all over me, let me get some explaining in.  There are a few supplements that I find to be necessary because of our different lifestyle, there are some that would have benefited any paleo-man if he had access to them, and there are others that are a huge waste of money. 
   Vitamin D
Vitamin D is really more like a hormone than a vitamin.  It is produced when ultraviolet (UV) light stimulates a chemical process in your skin.  Using sunscreen actually blocks your body's production of vitamin D.  Paleo-man got a lot of sun exposure year round.  Today, we are lucky to be in the direct sunlight more than 5 minutes a day (walking to and from the office, car, and house).  Below, we will talk about why it is essential that we get enough vitamin D (even if it has to be in pill form).
 -In the kidneys, vitamin D helps maintain your blood calcium levels (sends messages to you intestines to increase the absorption of calcium and phosphorus while working with other vitamins and minerals to promote bone mineralization)
 -Vitamin D is a potent antibiotic.  It works by increasing your body's production of proteins called antimicrobial peptides, which destroy the cell walls of bacteria, fungi, and viruses (immunity)
 -Vitamin D and calcium work in concert to control fat metabilism
 -Vitamin D has been shown to have preventative or protective effects against leukemia, lung cancer, kidney cancer, thyroid cancer, ovarian cancer, pancreatic cancer, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, and many other forms of cancer as well (1)
The sun is the best option for vitamin D, however, especially in the winter months, many of us do not get nearly enough exposure.
*Because this is a fat-soluble vitamin, it should be taken in conjunction with our next supplement: Fish Oil

   Fish Oil
There are two types of polyunsaturated fat: omega-6 and omega-3.  The primary source of omega-6 are corn, soy, canola, safflower, and sunflower oil (your common vegetable oils in most processed foods).  The primary source of omega-3 are derived mainly from fish (oil), walnuts (oil), and flaxseeds (oil).  Our ancestors did not have the abundant access to omega-6 fats that we do today, while they had more access to omega-3 than we do today.  You see, feeding livestock grains alters their omega-6/3 ratio and fattens them up (much like it does us).  This is the main reason why I recommend eating "grass" fed beef.  To understand the importance here, we must look at the "inflammatory" profile of each fat.  Omega-6 fats are pro-inflammatory, while omega-3 fats are anti-inflammatory.  The average American diet will have an omega-6/3 ratio of anywhere from 10:1 to 20:1 (very pro-inflammatory!), while our ancestors were closer to a 1:1 to 2:1 ratio (neutral).  Being able to balance this ratio is vital to fend off inflammatory conditions such as arthritis, diabetes, heart disease, joint aches, gut irritation and bowel disease, and even cancer.
 
Fish oil contains the omega-3 fats EPA (eicosapentanoic acid) and DHA (docosahexanoic acid), which are profoundly anti-inflammatory.  Here are some of the benefits of fish oil supplementation:
 -helps to normalize blood pressure because of its anti-inflammatory actions on blood vessel walls, and helps prevent plaque deposits and scar tissue buildup which narrow arterial walls
 -normalizes the rate and rhythm of your heartbeat and helps prevent potentially fatal arrhythmias
 -prevents clot formation and therefore helps protect against strokes and heart attacks
 -helps normalize HDL and LDL ratios
 -offers protection from many types of cancers
 -promotes optimal mental/brain function
 -promotes fat metabolism due to its regulating effects on insulin
Fish used to be a great way to get omega-3 fats in your diet.  However, today our fish supply is laden with chemical toxins like mercury.  Fish oil is generally clean from these toxins because of the process it goes through for extracting the oil.  Again, grass fed beef maintains a better omega-6/3 ratio then commercially farmed grain fed beef (and just because it says "organic" does not mean it is grass fed)
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