Eat plenty of plants and animals

Primal Blueprint Law #1, Eat plenty of plants and animals (eat plenty of animals and plants, if you will) encompasses everything our ancestors ate to get the proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, phenols, fiber, and other nutrients they needed to sustain life.

This, along with specific exercise, stimulated our genes to build strong muscles and provide us with all the fuel and building blocks to expend a lot of energy on the move each day, maintain a healthy immune system, evolve bigger brains, and raise healthy children. physiological core A proper human diet consists of plants and animalsIn particular, it refers to whole foods that are relatively unprocessed and edible and nutrient-dense through simple preparation techniques such as cooking over fire, chopping, and mashing.

• Land animals: Beef, lamb, bison, pork, poultry (and eggs) are all game. Prefer grass-fed and free-range animals, which contain better fatty acids, more vitamins and minerals, and taste better. Insects also fall into this category. Dairy products (preferably full-fat) are optional but permitted.

• Animals of the sea: Fish of large and small oily varieties, crustaceans (crabs, lobsters, shrimp, shrimp), bivalves (clams, mussels, oysters, scallops), cephalopods (octopus, squid, cuttlefish). Wild-caught fish is best, but farmed shellfish are generally okay because they are raised just like wild shellfish.

• Unlimited Produce: All kinds of leafy greens, colorful plants, cruciferous vegetables, roots, alliums and tubers. Berries are the best fruits. Otherwise, prioritize seasonal options.

• Nuts and Seeds: macadamias, walnuts, cashews, almonds, pecans, Brazil nuts, pistachios, hazelnuts; Pumpkin, squash, sunflower, chia, hemp seeds.

• province: Butter (especially grass-fed), coconut oil, olive oil, avocado oil, red and regular palm oil, ghee, animal fats (lard, tallow, duck fat, etc.).

• Herbs and Spices: Spices and herbs such as cumin, coriander, thyme, rosemary, sage, chili powder, mint, turmeric, paprika, garlic and cayenne add flavor to dishes and prevent the destruction of essential nutrients during cooking, so adding spices or herbs makes your food taste better and is actually healthier.

This basic diet excludes modern interpretations of animal products such as chicken nuggets and other mechanically and industrially processed meats. Additionally, they do not contain significant amounts of refined grains, processed sugars and industrial seed oils, so they do not require extensive processing to make them digestible or contain any unique nutrients to aid in consumption and metabolism.

Support for this basic human diet comes from three main avenues of evidence: archeology, anatomy, and clinical trials.

The archaeological findings are clear. This was the food consumed by ancient humans.

• Large herbivores, such as mammoths, are found in the archaeological record, bearing cut marks from human tools.

• We discover numerous ancient slaughterhouses containing bones and remains of antelope, deer and rabbits, from which the marrow was extracted in a way that no other species besides humans could obtain.

• The massive shell middens along the coastline date back tens and even hundreds of thousands of years, indicating that seafood is a consistent source of protein and fat.

• Historically, human presence led to the decline of large herbivores in the same region, suggesting that we were adept at catching, killing, and eating herbivores.

Human anatomy and physiology show that we are built to digest both meat and plants. The human intestines exhibit high acidity similar to that of carnivorous wildlife, indicating a diet rich in easily digestible meat and animal fat. Our digestive tract is also relatively short. This represents an adaptation to foods that do not require the extensive digestive systems found in herbivores with larger or multiple stomachs to break down fibrous plant material. Although not strictly carnivorous, human anatomy is clearly adapted to an omnivorous diet that includes both plants and animals.

Due to the logistical and financial challenges of conducting large-scale diet trials in humans, clinical evidence is not conclusive, but still provides insight.

• Certain foods that have been part of the human diet for thousands of years, such as red meat, have been shown to promote health and provide essential nutrients unavailable from other sources, such as vitamin B12, carnitine, and creatine. Studies in older adults have shown that a diet rich in red meat can lower inflammation and improve muscle strength, grip strength, daily functioning, and even cognitive function.^1,2 If red meat were truly harmful and inflammatory, we would expect these vulnerable populations to exhibit adverse effects. But evidence suggests they are becoming fitter and fitter.

• Animal proteins from meat and processed dairy products outperform plant proteins derived from strange sources like beans and grains using industrial processes that were unavailable for most of human history.³

• Fish consumption improves children’s alertness, and these changes are associated with increased tissue omega-3 levels.⁴

• Human trials giving participants colorful fruits, berries, vegetables, tubers like potatoes and sweet potatoes, crucifers like broccoli and cauliflower, and leafy greens like kale and arugula have been almost uniformly positive.

• Even small human trials of diets that mimic the ancestral or Paleolithic foods our ancestors would have consumed have been uniformly positive.⁵

All relevant evidence points to plants and animals forming the basis of a healthy human diet. The amount of each component is up to you, but you cannot avoid the need of plants and animals.

1. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24477043 ↩

2. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28721837/ ↩

3. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25702958/ ↩

4. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32529206/ ↩

5. https://diabetesjournals.org/diabetes/article/33/6/596/6104/Marked-Improvement-in-Carbohydrate-and-Lipid ↩

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* This blog reflects my personal views and opinions and is not intended as medical advice, but I hope it will be informative and inspiring in your pursuit of a healthy and fulfilling life.