Paleo – A lifestyle change for a healthier life

Capital Club Dubai, the region’s premier private business club and a member of the ENSHAA group of companies, recently hosted a seminar on the benefits of embracing the much talked about Paleo Diet. Members and guests enjoyed a three-course Paleo dinner after listening to a highly informative talk by Wellness Centre Manager, James Heagney, about the Paleo way of life.

Based on the understanding that the best diet is the one to which we are most genetically adapted, the Paleo Diet is becoming an increasingly popular lifestyle choice. Paleo (short for Paleolithic) operates on the premise that the type of food that we eat has a direct hormonal effect on our bodies and that it is this hormonal effect that we need to be aware of when making food choices.

Heagney commented that foods such as grains and dairy and their many products, which form the staples of the modern diet, are some of the biggest contributors to inflammation and increased levels of insulin in the blood. Insulin production in the blood is triggered by the intake of sugar, especially the sugars present in our commonly consumed carbohydrates. Elevated insulin levels in turn act as a hormonal trigger for fat storage, which means that individuals on a high carbohydrate but low fat diet have a much higher probability of gaining weight in the form of fat, than their counterparts consuming low levels of carbohydrates and high levels of healthy fats.

The Paleo Diet encourages its followers to replace dairy and grain products with fresh fruits and vegetables and increase their intake of protein, which mimics the type of diet that would have been common prior to the Agricultural Revolution. Heagney, however, also stressed the importance of choosing quality and as far as possible organic foods, as consuming products that have been treated with hormones and/or pesticides would negate the positive effects of following the Paleo way.

Heagney, who has been following the Paleo way for over three years, emphasised that it should not be treated as a diet, but as a long term lifestyle choice that delivers measurable positive results. These results include healthy weight loss, a decrease in the risk for diabetes, lower levels of food intolerances, and boosted immunity, amongst others.