Your Guide to 4 Diet Trends!

As the month of January comes to an end, I’d like to take a closer look at the number one New Year’s resolution for 2019: “Eat healthier.” Sounds simple, right? But there’s so much noise out there about how! Should you start a diet? If so, which one?! U.S. News & World Report declared the Mediterranean diet as the best in the nation. But your office mates say you should “Go paleo!” And how is that different from “going keto?” And what in the world is gluten and why can’t I have it?! Let’s take a closer look at these four diets: (1) Mediterranean (2) Paleo (3) Keto (4) Gluten-free.

Mediterranean diet

The Mediterranean region surrounds the Mediterranean Sea and includes several countries including Greece, and some of Italy and Spain. The Mediterranean diet is quite popular in the U.S. right now and encapsulates much of the region’s eating habits.

Why are fans raving?

In a study of more than 1.5 million people on the Mediterranean diet, there were fewer deaths, especially those linked to heart disease. It has also been linked to fewer cancer cases, including breast cancer. Maybe most importantly is the role of community. You should aim to share your meals with family and friends with this diet!

Why are naysayers booing?

This diet is named after an entire region where eating habits are actually quite diverse. Moreover, in this region, there has been a recent increase in the rate of obesity, just like here in the U.S.

What do you eat (or drink)?

• Eat plant-based foods all day
• Vegetables, fruits, beans and nuts are the heart of the Mediterranean diet. The recommendation is at least 9 servings each day. So, try adding fresh-cut veggies, like bell peppers, to your list of snacks. Or, grab a handful of nuts for a snack!
• Replace red meat with fish and poultry
• The healthy fats in fish like salmon, albacore tuna, and mackerel are preferred. Chicken and other birds should be chosen second to fish. Red meat isn’t completely eliminated from the diet but eaten no more than twice a month.
• Replace white grains with whole grains
• Grains like white rice or white bread have been bleached, and that process removes tons of nutrients. Instead of white rice, try brown rice. Quinoa is another versatile substitution. Replace sugary cereal with one made of whole grains.
• Drink red wine (in moderation)
• A moderate amount of red wine boosts the heart health of this diet. To dine like you’re from the Mediterranean, women should drink 5 oz or less, 10 oz or less for men. If you don’t want to imbibe, no worries!

What do you avoid?

• Red meat
• Again, red meat isn’t eliminated but minimized to no more than two servings per month.
• Salt
• Salt is replaced with fresh herbs which is associated with more normal blood pressure readings.

Paleolithic (Paleo, for short) diet

This is the first elimination diet we’ll cover. Remember learning about the hunter-gatherers in elementary school social studies? Remember what they ate? Well, that’s the paleo diet! It emulates the eating habits of our ancestors prior to the development of agriculture. There is no calorie-restriction. It is high in protein and low in carbohydrates (carbs).

Why are fans raving?

The paleo diet has been shown to decrease the level of bad cholesterol, blood sugar and heart disease. There is no calorie restriction, but it is associated with weight loss.

Why are naysayers booing?

This diet is often associated with the stereotype of a CrossFit member: a young, single, athletic man who is fueled by red meat. This stereotype might be referred to as a caveman. And naysayers think, “We don’t live in caves! Why should we eat as if we do?”

What do you eat (or drink)?

• Grass-fed organ meat
• Liver, marrow and sweetbreads are some top choices in the paleo community. Reading “grass-fed” on the label is ideal; otherwise, the animals are typically fed grain and are not paleo.
• Free range organic poultry
• Chicken, duck and turkey fit right in! Again, labeling is key, poultry that is not labeled “free range” is fed mostly grain. Right! Not paleo or as rich in vitamins.
• Wild-caught fish and shellfish
• Again, look for fatty fish like anchovies and fish eggs (roe or caviar)! Shellfish, including clams and oysters, offer some more variety. Fish should be “wild-caught” as opposed to “farm-raised” to minimize human manipulation and maximize nutrients.
• Plant-based foods
• Vegetables, fruits, nuts and seeds are the sources of carbs in the paleo diet. While fresh, organic produce is ideal, flash-frozen produce is also nutrient-dense. Some plant-based pantry ingredients to try include almond butter, coconut milk and ghee or clarified butter. (That’s right! Ghee does not have to be refrigerated.)

What do you avoid?

• Grains
• This is the big commitment!: no rice (brown or otherwise), pasta, wheat or even the beloved quinoa.
• Legumes
• Legumes, like black beans and chickpeas, are a source of protein. But they’re a bigger source of carbs. And here’s a tip: peanuts are legumes.
• Added sugars and sweeteners
• Yup, they’re carbs. No. Sugars. No natural sugars such as maple syrup, honey or agave. And no processed sweeteners. There was no Stevia in the paleolithic era!
• Dairy
• Now, this food group is a bit controversial. Strict paleo dieters avoid dairy because hunter gatherers did not milk cows (or sheep or goats, for that matter.) With some paleo influencers, butter gets a pass. Hence, some paleo dieters utilize the 80/20 rule here: 80% of the diet is strictly paleo and 20% (dairy fits here) isn’t.

Ketogenic (Keto, for short) diet

If you limit your carbs, your body burns FAT.

Well, you have to be more strict to “go keto” than to “go paleo.” Grains are eliminated AND no more than 50 grams of carbs are allowed per day. To give you some context, an average white potato contains about 60 grams. Ouch! An apple contains 25 grams. Sigh … A medium celery stalk offers only about 1 gram of carbs! Ding ding ding!

A quick cell biology lesson - most human cells prefer to use glucose (carbs) for fuel. If no carbs are available, most cells (EXCEPT BRAIN CELLS) will then burn fat. Burning fat produces ketones; the ketones can then be an additional source of energy for cells (including the brain).

Why are fans raving?

The keto diet has been extremely successful in treating epilepsy (seizure disorder) where conventional medicine has failed. It’s also popular with the weight-loss community. When you drastically cut carbs, you cut out the majority of the calories in the typical American diet. Fewer calories consumed leads to weight loss. The keto diet is associated with “metabolic flexibility.” Basically, this is the idea that your body will burn as fuel whatever you present it.

Why are naysayers booing?

It’s a strict diet! Like, really strict! So, it can be hard to adhere to it fully. If you stick with it for two to three weeks, there can be some pretty uncomfortable side effects for several weeks: lethargy, headaches, constipation, and brain fog to name just some. After this transition point, you are “keto-adapted” and no longer subject to these side effects. Another pain point is testing your blood ketone level. At the start of your keto journey, you might measure ketones at least weekly. This can be painful and inconvenient. And expensive! A blood testing strip can cost you $4!

What do you eat (or drink)?

• Grass-fed red meat
• Here, you don’t have to focus so much on organ meat. Beef, bison, lamb or venison are great options.
• Free range organic poultry
• Eat chicken, duck turkey and their eggs.
• Wild-caught fish and shellfish
• Fish with healthy fats - think salmon and mackerel - are best, but if you like flounder and tilapia, go for it! Clams, scallops and other shellfish are also keto-friendly.
• Plant-based foods
• Vegetables and nuts fit beautifully into the keto diet. And when I say, “vegetables,” think more “greens” like spinach, kale and collards than “starch” like corn and potatoes.
• Dairy
• Dairy is a go when you “go keto!” And the higher the fat content, the better! For example, heavy cream is preferred over skim milk. Why? There is less sugar (carbs) in heavy cream.

What do you avoid?

• You guessed it! Carbs! 50 grams of carbs is a pretty small amount. You have to beware of “hidden” carbs in foods like legumes (beans). Here’s an example: 4 ounces of salmon offer 0 grams of carbs. 4 ounces of black beans offer 80 grams of carbs. I’ve already hinted to fruit’s carb load with the apple example above. But here’s another one: a medium banana contains an average of 27 grams of carbs. The keto diet will make you rethink that morning glass of orange juice!

Gluten-free

Gluten is a protein naturally found in wheat. Recently, research has suggested that humans can’t completely metabolize gluten. Then, gluten loosens the cells in the lining of your gut where a big chunk of your immune system lives. This activates the immune system, confusing it, spurring it to act out against your body’s cells as if they’re enemies. This is called an autoimmune reaction. Food particles and bacteria get out of the gut and into your bloodstream. Have you heard the term “leaky gut?” This is it. The symptoms include bloating, belly pain, anemia, fatigue, and bone and joint pain.

Why are fans raving?

If you test positive for celiac disease, meaning you have a gene variant in your immune system, you should avoid it. That’s about 1% of us and the illness is called celiac disease. But many others are affected by gluten-sensitivity without a known gene association. Eliminating gluten then leads to the resolution of symptoms (in most cases).

Why are naysayers booing?

Celiac disease and other gluten sensitivities are real. Naysayers may not understand; so, send them to this post!

What do you eat (or drink)?

• Anything that doesn’t contain wheat. Here are a few examples of swaps:
• Replace wheat bread with a corn tortilla.
• Replace wheat pasta with lentil or chickpea pasta.
• Replace croutons with pepitas or other seeds.

What do you avoid?

• Just gluten.

I hope this was helpful! Whether you choose one of these diets or no diet at all, it’s most important to understand what’s in the food you eat and how it makes you feel. Ready to learn more? Then, start here with my step-by-step sugar tutorial. It may just be the resource you've been looking for!