The Paleo Vegan

An emerging  new diet that is attracting a lot of attention  these days is the ‘Paleo’ or ‘Primal’ diet. As the name implies, it is supposed to imitate the diet of cavemen. The assumption is that primitive man’s hunter gatherer culture produced better human health before the dawn of agriculture. This diet proclaims that meat, fat, roots and berries make up our natural diet and that the carbohydrates of our advanced agricultural civilizations have weakened our health and constitution by flooding our bodies with glucose.  It is essentially an updated version of the ‘Atkins Diet’ with improvements by putting more attention on overall health instead of simply weight loss.

The Paleo /Primal diet attempts to eliminate the inevitable keto-acidosis that results from the consumption of too much meat and too few alkalinizing carbohydrates, especially vegetables. The new version accepts the inclusion of sugars in small quantities, such as those found in berries whose nutrient value outweighs their negative effects. The recommended use of anti oxidants and emphasis on supplements are an improvement over the Atkins regime as well. One still has to consume an enormous amount of meat on this diet. 

But the debate continues on the subject of what actually is our ‘natural’ diet. First, there is the ancient fossil evidence, then there is the evolution of food development that helped to fuel our changing needs until the present. The human digestive system resembles most like that of fruititarian primates whose diet includes both fruits and insects. As man evolved, his larger brain required more calories to operate in a rest state. Primates use  about 8% of their resting metabolism for the brain, other mammals (excluding humans) use 3-4%, but modern  humans use an impressive 25% of resting metabolism for the brain. A simple diet of fruit and insects wasn’t going to cut it so he had to find a better source of concentrated calories that were digestible in a raw state. There were still too many plants he could not eat, as humans can’t digest starches and foliage without cooking them first.

Man Ape turned to eating raw meat for concentrated calories and then eventually started cooking it. He began experimenting with cooking starchy tubers and leafy plants at this time, too. One thing led to another with all of this experimenting and eating, and soon the seeds of some of these plants began to grow out of their garbage pits. Man realized that he could replenish his supplies by controlling this and agriculture began.

With agriculture, civilizations quickly emerged and dragged this man ape into the future, still toting much of the same primitive mental baggage from his tribal past while his technologies were surpassing him (what is still going on today). Advances in food development did correspond with advances in human health, as evidenced by a longer lifespan,  providing us with more variety and a means to control our calories stores. The caveman didn’t have this luxury and had a much shorter life to look forward to. So the question is posed: Should the benefits of civilization have given him this advantage, would his fossilized remains show more chronic disease? I think that the bones of most people living only the lifespan of a caveman today would look pretty good fossilized, too.

So what is our natural diet? If we are supposed to be heavy carnivores, why aren’t we built for it like dogs or snakes? If we are supposed to be herbivores why don’t we possess four stomachs and are able to digest grass? If we were supposed to live off of fruit, why does our brain require more energy just to rest, than fruit can supply? Man is different from these other creatures because of his brain. He is evolving to keep up with this demanding organ, which is, by the way, responsible for all the wonders we create and subsequently take for granted.

Just like the hunter gatherers of old, modern paleo-vegans are always alert to new protein sources which include tofu, tempeh, seitan, seeds and nuts, seed and nut butters, soy and nut milks, protein powders and faux meat alternatives. Most of the new values added over the last few decades to the vegan diet, have been in the form of protein. The stores are full of these new vegan products providing lots of new choices. The modern vegan doesn't live off of granola and banana bread anymore, but can balance an anti oxidant rich diet with available high quality proteins.

Humans are simply continuing to invent and process better foods to match their evolving needs. As we advance into even more evolved beings, living like Methuselahs well into our hundreds, we will need better, more evolved fuel than the stuff that we’ve been clinging on to for too long. Herding cattle into this space age future is just not going to happen, so get used to it.

Below is a good example of hunter gathering in the modern world. This sub sandwich was foraged from local grocery stores and makes a great nutritious meal. A sub like this, with Tofurky deli slices and vegan cheese slices rivals any made with ‘real’ meat and dairy and is a good source of protein.