Paleo Takes the Blame…Inappropriately
Let’s face it. Paleo is still greatly misunderstood by the masses, and those masses, unfortunately, tend to include doctors, nurses, dietitians and many other ‘healthcare’ providers.
Why else would it be commonplace for people of all ages, in varying degrees of health or illness, to be told that their ‘radical diet’ may be to blame in as a causal component of their maladies, rather than the panacea it truly can be?
Drives me nuts.
One client shared that after years of taking his hypertension meds and asking his doctor whether he’d ever be able to stop if he were to change his diet, he was told time and time again that it wouldn’t likely make that much of an impact. Up to his eyeballs with frustration, he read about Paleo, began eating that way, lost about fifty pounds, asked for a reevaluation with the same physician and was able to taper off the Vasotec. The physician would not admit that the change in eating habits (hello, Paleo) might have had anything to do with it.
Another client who had dropped those last ten pounds and become quite lean, which helped with her marathoning, was told she was too light by her doctor and it was suggested she should have some cereal or ice cream each night before bed because she was ‘too lean’. She felt fantastic, slept well, trained and raced phenomenally and had a pristine blood panel at her physical. Nonetheless, simply because she appeared lean and toned, she was treated as though there was something wrong not only with her, but her uber-restricitve diet (big misconception).
Interesting to note, by the way, that in both instances, my clients informed me that their doctors were rather on the overweight side. I don’t know about that. I wouldn’t go to a dentist with rotten teeth, so I’m not keen on the idea of an obese doctor giving me eating tips.
Just saying.
May sound harsh but it’s the cold, hard truth.
Paleo is not radical, it is healthy, it is balanced and it can be responsible for marvelous health improvements when followed properly. If followed incorrectly, sure, we can go wrong, but then it’s not really Paleo in the first place!
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