Paleo - The New Craze in Weight Loss

The “Paleo” diet is a buzz word right now. The cross fitters are doing it, mums who want to lose weight are doing it and even those diagnosed with mental illness are recommended to do it (not by Dr’s or Nutritionists, usually via internet websites).

So what is the Paleo diet and why is everyone jumping on board?

The Paleo, short for paleolithic, diet is meant to represent what our paleolithic ancestors ate. Paleo fans believe this diet will help everyone lose weight, function better and reduce disease risk. Basically it recommends that we more fat, more meat, no dairy, no grains, no starchy carbs (potato, sweet potato, pumpkin, lentils, peas, beans, bananas etc) and little or no fruit. There are a few different versions of the Paleo diet being advertised, but in short it’s a high fat, moderate to high protein, low carb diet.

If you read my last blog post you will know why healthy carbs are essential. Carbs not only supply glucose for energy but a multitude of vitamins and minerals, not to mention fibre, which are all essential for our bodies to function effectively. Fat is also an essential nutrient, it has many important roles in the body, but what some people don’t realise is that fat has double the calories compared to protein and carbs. Fat contain 9 calories (37 kj) per gram compared to carbs 4 calories (16 kj) or protein 4 calories (17 kg) per gram. Those who follow a Paleo diet generally consume good fats such as coconut oil and olive oil, but some have really high intakes of butter, ghee and other saturated fats from animal. I’m not necessarily calling these fats bad, they are not in the same category as trans fats which are truly bad, but not everyone benefits from high fat diets because unused fat is stored as fat in the body, it’s a simple process.

The reason I feel the need to write about this is because I currently have a patient who has been on the Paleo diet for close to a year and has put on 20kgs. She tried the diet for weight loss and for the promised health benefits as she had a number of medical conditions. Adding 20kgs definitely did not help her mental state or her health. When I asked her to complete a food diary it was completely obvious she was having way too much fat. Her overall calorie intake was much higher than what she was burning and as a result she had put on a significant amount of weight.

On the other hand one of my best friends, Seth, is an avid cross fitter and was advised to go Paleo by his training buddies and is benefiting greatly. Seth is stronger, leaner and most likely healthier than he has ever been. The biggest difference between Seth and my patient who as put on all this weight is the amount and intensity of exercise they are each doing. In addition, I also believe that a lot of Seth’s benefits have come from him reducing his alcohol intake and increasing his physical activity levels. My patient was not a drinker and had a relatively healthy diet before starting to follow the Paleo diet, but she does little physical activity.

What I do like about the Paleo diet is that it encourages people not to eat processed and packaged food. I’m all for dropping foods full of refined carbs, preservatives, colours, flavours and additives that are not good for us, but I’m not subscribing to a notion that this is the miracle diet that will benefit everyone. At the end of the day people need to be smart about their food choices, we can all make some simple changes that will have massive long term health benefits such as reducing sugar, processed food and/or alcohol.

Finally, if you want more info click on the link below to hear an interview with Marlene Zuk from University of California, author of the Paleofantasy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=nkQhSMnRwpI

Dr Denise Furness, PhD BSc RNut REP
Registered Nutritionist & Personal Trainer with Mill Park Leisure

 

Does Fruit Make You Fat?

Recently someone told me not to eat fruit because fructose (the type of sugar in fruit) turns to fat! This is NOT true. Fruit is not the enemy and fructose, like all other sugars, in moderation will not make you fat. In saying that, excess sugar will cause havoc in the body and everyone should avoid processed food with a high sugar content, especially those which contain high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). In the USA HFCS is in everything because it’s cheap, super sweet and they love the taste. Thankfully, here in Australia HFCS is not added to foods, but check your labels because we do import from the USA. 

What exactly is sugar?

Sugar is the common name for a group of sweet flavoured simple carbohydrates. The simple carbohydrates include monosaccharides and disaccharides. The most common monosaccharides include glucose, fructose and galactose (milk sugar). When two monosaccharides combine they form disaccharides, for example when glucose and fructose join together they form sucrose, better know as table sugar. Lactose is another example of a disaccharide, made up of glucose and galactose. Fructose is the sweetest of the monosaccharides and is primary sugar in honey and fruit. Glucose is mildly sweet and galactose has little sweetness compared to fructose and glucose.

Simple vs complex carbohydrates 

All carbohydrates contain carbon, oxygen and hydrogen (think carbon and water C + H₂0). Simple carbohydrates are easy for the body to break down as they only contain one or two molecules. Simple carbs provide a quick energy hit and a sudden rise in blood sugar. Complex carbohydrates, such as starch and fibre, are made up of many monosacchraides (usually glucose) linked together and are called oligosaccharides and polysaccharides. Complex carbs can help regulate blood sugar and can help us to feel fuller for longer. Carbohydrates are essential for optimum health and can help minimize risk for disease, for example fibre can protect against bowel cancer and helps to reduce cholesterol levels.

How do we metabolise and store carbs?

Carbohydrates are broken down and stored in the body as glycogen. Glycogen is a polysaccharide. A third of our glycogen stores are found in the liver and the other two thirds are stored in our muscles. The muscles store most of our glycogen so it can be used as fuel during exercise. When our blood sugar is low, hormones send messages to release glycogen, which is rapidly broken down to glucose and then transported in our blood to organs, tissues and cells.

Carbs are essential for our bodies to function effectively. Importantly, glucose is the preferred fuel for our brain, nerves and developing red blood cells. Protein can be converted to glucose if the body is desperate for glucose, but this requires more energy and can cause muscle breakdown. In addition, protein is required for other purposes in the body, so it is essential to consume enough carbs so proteins can perform their required roles. To spare body protein we need at least 50 to 100 grams (bare minimum) per day, this depends on your activity levels, age and gender.

Carbs and weight management

If you think carbs are “fattening” and have been avoiding them because you are trying lose weight, you should consider a different approach. Of course this type of strategy will help those who have a high intake of simple carbs (sugar) such as soft drinks and sweets, but not for those who eat a balanced diet with a variety of carbs such as vegetables, fruits, legumes and whole grains.

Most people should try to consume 45%-65% of your total calories as carbohydrates. Eating whole foods such as fruit provide not only fructose, but also fibre and plenty of other vitamins and minerals. The Australian dietary recommendation’s urge people to select abundantly from carbohydrate rich foods

Finally, if you are not interested in all the sciencey stuff and just want to know if carbs are good or bad the answer is that carbs are good and absolutely essential for our body to function properly. However, remember that not all carbs are created equal, high sugar processed foods, what I like to call fake food, will not provide the benefits of natural carbohydrate rich foods.

 

Dr Denise Furness, PhD BSc RNut REP
Registered Nutritionist & Personal Trainer with Mill Park Leisure