Dr. Cordain,
My name is Hollye. I am a graduate student at Mississippi College working on my master’s in Exercise Science. I am also a certified L1 Crossfit trainer. Part of my Master’s work is a thesis project. I follow the Paleo diet and have found it incredibly beneficial for my health but also my athletic performance. For my study, I want to compare the athletic performances of individuals consuming a Paleolithic diet with those consuming a “healthy” typical American diet based on strength and aerobic capacities. I have already written my literature review but have yet to conduct the study. I have not found any previous research looking at the athletic benefits of the Paleo Diet. I was curious if you may know of other individuals diving into this area? I am a huge advocate of your findings regarding the Paleolithic diet and am very grateful for your contribution to the nutrition and science field.
Thank you,
Hollye
Dr. Cordain’s Response:
Hi Hollye,
Our research group has written a number of scientific papers evaluating the effects of a Paleolithic diet and exercise regime on health and well being. These papers are available as free PDF downloads at my website: http://thepaleodiet.com/published-research-about-the-paleo-diet
Best wishes,
Loren Cordain, Ph.D., Professor
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Howdy! This post could not be written any better!
Reading this post reminds me of my good old room mate!
He always kept chatting about this. I will forward this article to him.
Fairly certain he will have a good read. Thanks for sharing!
As a legal research analyst, I have looked at your findings extensively with a layman’s curiosity and interest. What you suggest is not only logical but very practical. Many years ago, I trained for competion in the area of martial arts. I found that my students and I best performed when we followed a diet that very much aligns itself with the “Paleo” approach. I’m a baby-boomer, in fair health and intend to be one for many more years. Your diet will allow me to do that. Thank you and Best Wishes.
Hi Hollye, Have you come across the work of Prof Tim Noakes at the University of Cape Town, South Africa. For an intro to his work, have a look at his presentation at TEDxCape Town. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=97q1YCXmM9c
At 12:00 he gets onto low fat diets. He started eating a paleo diet in his 60′s and says he is running faster now than he has in 20 years and is getting faster.
Regards,
Frank
Well, he won’t live to see 80 if he makes the eating of dead animals a major part of his diet. There are now over 12 well-controlled scientific studies linking red and processed meats with CVD, stroke, colon cancer and certain other cancers. You are forgetting that the early hunters that you wish to emulate had a very short life span, whereas those people living in the “blue zones”of longevity are virtually total vegetarians, thriving on grains.
At age 80, I compete in four high intensity sports, using grains and other plant foods as my energy source. I can run rings around any meateater.
Have to agree with Terry…interesting to note that in the animal kingdom the longest living animals are all herbivores…average age: elephant 69 yrs, horse 50, hippo 49, chimp 40, buffalo 30..the carnivores are welldown the list..strongest animal the elephant able to run at 40kph and lift up to 500 kilos…largest heart, the giraffe..toughest animal in Africa, the hippo with the largest kill rate of humans..so plant eating can give you that agression needed to excel in many sports..
Terry, have you considered other factors and variables in these studies that have not been accurately represented? And ask yourself this, did our ancestors really have a shorter life span compared with life expectancy today due to their diet? Or could other factors include today’s healthcare? Medicines? Disease prevention? Again, too many variables for any basis of argument.
Grant, I’m sorry to be so blunt, but your argument is literally a joke. I actually laughed. Elephants are the strongest because they are vegetarians? Not because they weigh 3 tonnes and its relevant to their size? Giraffes have the largest heart because they eat leaves and fruits? Not because they need the largest hearts to pump blood at a high pressure an incredibly long way up their necks? And hippos have the largest kill rate of humans….because we steal their favourite greens? Or because they have the most powerful jaws of any creature that resides in the swamps of densely human populated areas?
You gentleman really must think again before making this plain silly opinions!
Oh dear Dan, all that eating of animal flesh has scrambled your brains…have you not studied the “Blüe zones of longevity” those five areas where people live the longest and healthiest lives, many becoming centenarians…virtually total vegetarians. Why don’t you join me in a veggieburger and coffee (fresh expresso, that is)
Dan, you meateaters will do and say anything to justify your love of dead animals..You need to study the exhaustive work on this subject..Dr.M.Mills..”The Comparative Anatomy of Eating ” wherein he examines features of both carnivores and herbivores with regard to facial muscles, jaw motion, mouth opening versus head size, teeth incisors, canines & molars, chewing mechanism, saliva attributes, stomach acidity, stomach capacity, length & type of intestines, kidney function, urine concentration, thus presenting overwhelming evidence that humans were always meant to be herbivores. There are now more than a dozen scientific studies showing the strong links between eating red and processed meats and CVD, stroke, and certain cancers. One in every six teenagers already has atherosclerotic deposits in their arteries due to the heterocyclic amines present in meat which cause mutations leading to cancer…but of course, I don’t expect you to accept any of this irrefutable evidence..
I accept it. As much as you accept that the cell phone you have causes cancer, or the laptop you use that can also cause cancer. Just as many studies published on these topics, yet you still use them. Humans were never designed to fly or travel at 70mph, but I bet you’ve been on a plane, or drive your car? So yeah, I’ll eat my meat. My heart rate will stay at 36bpm, and my VO2 Max above 71 ml/kg/min. I’ll get fitter, stronger and remain disease and sick free, as I am every year.
Immediately an animal is killed and the blood stops circulating, many of the good bacteria (commensals) resident in the gut mutate quickly to become pathogenic organisms, leaving the intestinal tract to permeate through the body. When you eat animal flesh you are already consuming rotting diseased material but there will not be any offensive odour until the bacterial count reaches a certain level. Butchers usually sell off their meat before this stage is reached.
Incidentally, the same situation applies if you eat human flesh, therefore if you are shipwrecked and end up with another human, eat only their stomach contents and not their flesh..