This is borrowed from: “The Paleo Diet.com” and the research and PDF file come from “Springer Link.com”.
Heart disease is the most common cause of death in most western countries. Type II diabetes and/or impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) are common risk factors for heart disease, and in fact, the majority of heart disease patients have abnormal glucose tolerance. A large waist circumference is another warning sign and is a characteristic of the metabolic syndrome. Most of the time patients with these symptoms are advised to eat whole grains, low fat dairy products, fruits and vegetables, legumes, fish, and unsaturated fats. However, as a team of Swedish scientists recently demonstrated, there is a better diet to improve these disorders.
Twenty-nine men with heart disease, type II diabetes or IGT, and waist circumference measurements of greater than 94 centimeters participated in a 12-week dietary intervention. They were assigned to either a Mediterranean diet group (including whole grains, low-fat dairy, legumes, potatoes, vegetables, and fatty fish) or a Paleolithic group (lean meat, fish, fruit, vegetables, root vegetables, eggs, and nuts).
A greater decrease in waist circumference was observed in the Paleo group than the Mediterranean group, but the most striking difference was the change in glucose tolerance. All subjects in the Paleo group had normal fasting glucose values after 12 weeks, while 7 of the 15 subjects in the Mediterranean group retained diabetic values. A 26 percent decrease in blood glucose concentration was observed in the Paleo group compared to only a 7 percent decrease in the Mediterranean group. In addition, participants in the Paleo group ate 25% less energy despite eating similar quantities of food (by weight). The authors summarize their findings by stating, “The study adds to the notion that healthy diets based on wholegrain cereals and low-fat dairy products are only the second best choice in the prevention and treatment of type 2 diabetes.”
This study is important in that it isolates the Paleo diet and compares other diets against it. Widespread dietary intervention studies using the Paleo diet have not been conducted and this study optimistically brings attention to that need. Hopefully, this is a pre-cursor study to more detailed analyses of the Paleo diet and the affect on diseases of civilization.
Lindeberg, S., Jönsson, T., Granfeldt, Y., Borgstrand, E., Soffman, J., Sjöström, K., Ahrén, B. A Palaeolithic diet improves glucose tolerance more than a Mediterranean-like diet in individuals with ischaemic heart disease. Diabetologia 2007 Jun.
Follow this LINK to read the research for yourself and get the PDF copy…
Sourced from: Absolute Self Defense and Fitness
Comments on this entry are closed.