Why Is The Paleo Diet Unhealthy? Paleo Side Effects

Some of those who are following Paleo may ask; why Paleo diet is unhealthy, although that is not always the case. In fact, the Paleo diet has its own benefits and drawbacks.

The paleo diet is a potentially healthful diet that is founded on a sound assumption regarding the dangers of contemporary, processed foods. However, eating too many fatty meats (particularly processed meats) may quickly transform this potentially beneficial diet into a health nightmare.

The popular Paleolithic diet (also known as the paleo, caveman, Stone Age, or steak and bacon diet) is based on the concept that eating like our ancestors.

The natural food that is definitely healthy is genetically compatible with our bodies, and hence beneficial to our health. 

A paleo dieter’s dietary options are restricted to what could be hunted, caught, or collected in prehistoric times, such as meats, fish, and vegetables.

Why Paleo diet is unhealthy

The normal paleo diet, can put most people at risk for calcium and vitamin D deficits. Both of which are important for bone health.

  • Increased risk of renal disease and heart problem: saturated fat and protein intake might be well beyond recommended amounts, raising the risk of renal and heart problems, as well as some malignancies.
  • Increase lipid levels: The paleo diet is ineffective for long-term weight loss. Since it is difficult to stick to any diet that restricts one or more dietary groups. In terms of overall health, it may increase lipid levels. These lipids such as total and LDL (low-density lipoprotein, or “bad”) cholesterol raises the risk of heart disease over time.
  • Calcium deficiency raises the risk of osteoporosis, rickets, and bone fractures.
  • Chronically low carbohydrate consumption may result in excess utilization of fat for energy, often known as ketosis.

Those following the paleo diet should seek medical advice. Especially if they have heart, kidney, liver, or pancreatic illness, or if they want to stick to the very low-carbohydrate form of the diet.

What are the paleo diet side effects?

The Paleo Diet’s Negative Effects and Disadvantages

  • It may get pricey.
  • You avoid grains and dairy, which can be beneficial to your health and energy levels.
  • This diet might be challenging for vegetarians, especially because it avoids legumes.

Also, individuals who follow a Paleo diet may experience a condition called Paleo flu or Low-carb flu. 

Low-carb flu symptoms include:

  • Headaches. 
  • Fatigue. 
  • Weakness. 
  • Hazy thinking (brain fog).
  • Irritability.
  • Hypoglycemia (low-blood sugar) if you are on certain blood glucose lowering medicines.
  • Cravings.
  • Lack of energy initially.
  • Bad breath.
  • Change in bowel habits.

Check out more posts about Paleo diet:

Long term effects of Paleo diet: Is it safe long term?

A paleo diet may assist you in losing or maintaining your weight. It might possibly offer additional health benefits. 

However, there have been no long-term clinical trials on the diet’s advantages and potential dangers.

Finally, to sum up what we said and answer why Paleo diet is unhealthy, the short answer is because it raises the risk of some serious diseases, although it has many benefits. Make it a rule that your body needs all kinds of nutrients in moderation. Unfortunately, omitting one or two food categories will possibly put your health in danger.

Modern diseases and Paleo diet

The fundamental hypothesis is that the growth in chronic diseases in modern society is the result of the agricultural revolution, which introduced grains, legumes, and dairy into meals, resulting in a slew of chronic diseases and disorders ranging from obesity to allergies.

According to new research, those who followed a paleo diet for a year had double the level of TMAO in their system.
TMAO is a biomarker that has been shown in prior research to raise a person’s risk of a severe cardiovascular issue by 62%.

Also, it increases mortality by 63%.
The increasing prevalence of TMAO is thought to be due to a lack of whole grains.

Low-carb diets like keto may raise a person’s risk of heart disease.
According to a new study, those who follow a paleo diet may be more prone to acquire heart disease.

For one year, Edith Cowan University in Australia investigated 44 Paleo dieters and 47 individuals following the Australian diet.
Those who followed the paleo diet had double the level of a biomarker linked with heart disease as those who followed a standard diet.

The Paleo diet followers believe it is similar to what was eaten by Paleolithic human ancestors from 10,000 years ago. However, this diet relies heavily on meat, fish, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and some fruits. Check out list of foods not to eat on paleo diet

Cereals of any kind, dairy, legumes, refined sugar, processed oils, and salt are excluded from this.

Check out paleo detox diet.

What Paleo dieters believe?

Paleo dieters believe that returning to the food that humans ate before modern farming techniques would not only help them lose weight but may also help them reduce the risk of certain diseases related to the many refined and processed foods abundant in current diets.

Check out How long does it take to lose weight on paleo

But due to the popularity of the paleo diet, little research has examined the effect of this eating pattern on long-term health, gut bacteria, and microbiome.

In fact, the authors of this paper, which was published in the European Journal of Nutrition, claim that it is the first significant study to look specifically at how a paleo diet could impact gut bacteria.

The researchers measured levels of trimethylamine oxide (TMAO), an organic compound produced in the gut. Previous research has connected TMAO to an increased risk of heart disease.
According to a 2017 study, TMAO raises the risk of cardiovascular issues by 62% and the chance of mortality by 63%.

High amounts of TMAO and the bacteria that create it prompted experts to conclude that a paleo diet might raise one’s risk of heart disease.
Many proponents of the paleo diet believe that it is good for gut health. But a study shows that when it comes to TMAO generation in the gut, the paleo diet may be harmful to heart health.

But it’s not simply the increased meat consumption of many paleo dieters that Ginoni believes is to blame for the increased risk of heart disease.

Instead, she and the researchers point to what dieters don’t eat — especially whole grains — for potential harmful problems.