Miley Cyrus lives by it. So does Megan Fox. And now, it's sweeping the nation. We are talking, of course, of the Paleo diet, the latest craze promising a better life and thinner thighs to women everywhere.
The basic gist of the diet is to eat like cavemen/women did by cutting out grains, sugars and processed foods and sticking with high-protein basics like meat, root veggies, eggs, fruit and, um, grass-fed butter (?). Like Atkins, it's a high-protein, low-carb mix designed to ratchet up the metabolism.
As far as diets go, this is hardly a dangerous shocker (the thigh gap starvation diet, it ain't). But some of the directives are a little questionable, like avoiding perfectly healthy foods such as quinoa, tomatoes and beans. Moreover, new research is starting to kill the buzz.
A couple days ago, findings from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey suggested a diet rich in animal protein could be as dangerous as smoking over a long period of time, increasing cancer and diabetes risks. Instead, researchers suggest (surprise!) a balanced diet where protein plays a role alongside other elements such as fat.
Nutritionists were quick to point out that the findings were nuanced, and that the "press release" version of the research—meat and cheese will kill you like cigarettes!—sends a wrong and dangerous message to the public. And while people have been quick to point to the Paleo diet as a representative example of the dangerous trend, it actually does caution against too much dairy.
Still, this serves as a nice little reminder to do some research and consult a doctor before diving in to any hot new diet, especially if it favors cutting out some essential foods while heavily emphasizing others. And especially especially if it harkens back to this.
Image: Wikimedia Commons
