Obesity, heart disease, and diabetes: These are just a few of the health conditions that proponents of the Paleolithic diet, or caveman diet, blame on our sedentary lifestyles and modern way of eating, which is loaded with sugar, fat, and processed foods. Their proposed solution? Cut modern foods from our diet and return to the way our early hunter-gatherer ancestors ate.
To get an idea of what that means, we turned to the experts, including Loren Cordain, PhD, a professor emeritus at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, and the author of The Paleo Diet; Erin Holley, RD, of the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus; and Lona Sandon, PhD, RD, an assistant professor of clinical nutrition at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas.
For starters, to be and stay healthy on the paleo diet, Dr. Cordain says that you’ll need to exercise regularly while following a strict diet comprised only of foods that can be hunted and gathered.
In its purest form, the paleo diet allows you to eat only those foods that humans ate when they first roamed the planet about 2.5 million years ago.
Note that though nuts and seeds are allowed on this diet, they can be high in calories, and people who want to lose weight will have to limit their nut consumption.
RELATED: What Is an Elimination or Exclusion Diet?
Among their arguments: Some of the results were not statistically significant, nor did they show “any important clinical effects.” They concluded that they did not believe that the results of the review showed any evidence in favor of the paleo diet, and they called for more care in reaching health recommendations for the general public.
On the paleo diet, you’ll find fewer processed foods, but you’ll also need to cut out all grains, legumes, and most dairy. Here’s a closer look at the eating plan.
Although the paleo diet isn’t proven to work, if you want to give this eating plan a try, you’ll need to prioritize fueling up on lots of natural foods and natural fats, including these options:
Similarly, any foods that were not easily available to Paleolithic humans are off-limits in this diet, Holley explains. That means processed foods — many of which contain added butter, margarine, and sugar — should not be a part of the paleo diet. The same goes for dairy, which may not have been accessible to Paleolithic humans, and legumes, which many proponents of the diet believe are not easily digestible by the body.
Keep in mind that some versions of the paleo diet are less strict than others and allow some dairy products or legumes, like peanuts, Holley says.
Foods to avoid:
Learn More About What Foods to Eat and Avoid on the Paleo Diet
The paleo diet has become one of the most popular eating approaches out there, so you won’t have trouble finding a bounty of paleo-friendly recipes online and on bookshelves (virtual or not!). But if you’re a beginner, consider this one-day sample menu of the paleo diet to get you started.
Breakfast Onion and spinach omelet with liver pâté
Lunch Tuna wrapped in lettuce with almonds
Snack Hard-boiled eggs
Dinner Beef bourguignon
Dessert Ice cream made from coconut milk
Learn More About Where to Find Paleo Diet Recipe Inspiration and Get a Five-Day Sample Menu
While the paleo diet is certainly not a cure-all, it does come with some potential benefits. But that doesn’t mean it’s for everyone — there are also some risks you should be aware of before diving in.
There are a handful of benefits you'll potentially reap from following the paleo diet.
First, by eating fruits and vegetables, you’ll get many of the essential vitamins and minerals you need.
Also, the diet is simple. You eat the foods that are acceptable and avoid those that are not — there’s no prepacked meal plan or diet cycle to stick to.
Exercising regularly can do more than help you maintain a healthy weight. Discover the numerous perks of fitting in fitness.
But a hunter-gatherer diet can be difficult to maintain, especially long term. Because most foods are eaten plain, following the eating approach can get boring after a short time.
And again, there’s no concrete scientific proof that the paleo diet wards off disease, Sandon says. Any evidence of its benefits is anecdotal. Although some studies seem to support the benefits of the paleo diet, many scientists still believe we don’t yet have enough evidence to know whether the eating approach is totally healthy and without risk. “Nobody knows the long-term effects of this diet because no one has researched it to any degree,” Sandon says. It’s not really a new concept; instead it’s one that’s been recycled through the years, she says.
Learn More About the Possible Benefits and Risks of the Paleo Diet
Whether you’re looking to lose weight or manage symptoms of a chronic disease, dieting isn’t one size fits all. This detailed list will teach you the pros and cons of the most popular plans out there today.
The takeaway: Essentially, there aren’t enough encouraging study results for experts to make a formal recommendation for people with diabetes to try the paleo diet just yet. If you want to try the plan with the aim of managing your blood sugar, be sure to clear it with your healthcare provider first.
Learn More About How the Paleo Diet May Affect Type 2 Diabetes
As with type 2 diabetes, the paleo diet may or may not be good for your heart. It comes down to how you follow the eating approach.
The gist? Talk to your doctor before trying the paleo diet for heart disease. He or she will be able to tell you if it’s a good fit — and if so, how you should approach the plan for optimal health.
Learn More About the Risks and Benefits of the Paleo Diet for the Heart
Although research on the paleo diet’s possible role in helping manage autoimmune diseases is limited at best, researchers’ and paleo proponents’ interest in this prospect isn’t waning. There’s even a niche paleo diet for this very purpose called the autoimmune paleo diet.
While proponents of the paleo diet say they’ve anecdotally seen the diet help control inflammatory bowel disease, psoriasis, eczema, multiple sclerosis, celiac disease, and Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, research on these effects is lacking.
Definitely don’t expect paleo to be a panacea for any autoimmune disease you may be managing, and be sure to consult your doctor before diving in should you try it.
Learn More About How the Paleo Diet May Affect Autoimmune Diseases
You could lose weight following a Paleolithic diet — and quickly, depending on how strictly you adhere to eating the foods from the allowed list and how much physical exercise you add to your daily routine.
In the long term, you have to be sure you’re getting calcium and other nutrients you’re missing by not having dairy products and certain grains. Some paleo-approved foods, such as salmon and spinach, contain calcium, so you have to be sure you’re including them in your diet. It would be a good idea to check with a registered dietitian, too, to make sure you’re meeting your calcium and other nutrient needs.
On the whole, the paleo diet is not a bad choice, Holley says. If someone follows the diet by cutting out processed food, processed meats, and sugar-sweetened beverages and swaps them for more fruits, vegetables, and healthy fats, they’re likely to see some health benefits.
“One thing to consider is how extreme you want to take it,” says Holley, noting that some versions of the diet are more restrictive than others, limiting foods like dairy or peanut butter. It could be overwhelming to cut out a bunch of food groups all at once. Holley suggests trying small incremental changes instead.
“I’m always of the mindset that if we completely change everything at once, it’s less likely to stick. If we make gradual changes, we’re more likely to hang onto these things,” Holley says.
Overall, the diet is not for everyone, but it could be helpful to some, Holley says. “It’s important for each person to carefully understand the diet before they jump in.”
Before making any changes to your diet or exercise plan, be sure to speak with your physician to make sure that the changes you would like to make align with your personal health needs.
Learn More About What to Expect if You Try the Paleo Diet
The Paleo Diet
Loren Cordain, PhD, is the founder of the paleo diet movement and a professor emeritus at Colorado State University in Fort Collins. His website has all the info you need to get started on your paleo journey, from “Is It Paleo?” to the latest research on the caveman diet.
Diet Review: Paleo Diet for Weight Loss
Leave it to Harvard University's T.H. Chan School of Public Health to deliver an unbiased look at the research on paleo and the benefits and risks of putting the diet into practice in real life. If you’re looking to learn the scientific truth about this eating plan, you’ll want to check out this resource.
PaleOMG
PaleOMG is run by Juli Bauer, who has also published several cookbooks. Her recipes are well loved (like the classic “almost five-ingredient pizza spaghetti pie”), and include ideas for Crock-Pot, Instant Pot, and air fryer, as well as vegetarian, holiday, and party dishes — inspiration for paleo-friendly fare no matter the occasion.
Paleo Leap Meal Planner
It can be tough to remember what is and isn’t allowed when going paleo, so a meal planner helps take out the guesswork. This one, by Paleo Leap, includes 1,500 recipes that are gluten-free, grain-free, legume-free, sugar-free, soy-free, and corn-free. Also free? The app, which you can download on Google Play or the App Store.
Stupid Simple Paleo Tracker
This app provides a handy visual food list (so there’s no question what’s allowed and what’s not), plus a calorie and macronutrient tracker so you can better work toward your goals and chart your progress. Find it on iTunes, where it’s free with in-app purchases and has a 4.2-star rating, or in the Google Play store, where it’s also free and has a 3.7-star rating.
PaleoHacks
You have questions — and the vast community of paleo devotees has answers. From how to pair paleo with fasting, to psychological side effects, to why avoiding oatmeal is a must, you’ll find that connecting with like-minded members will help you feel supported.
The Paleo Solution Podcast
Robb Wolf, author of The Paleo Solution and Wired to Eat, has a 4.7-star rating on iTunes. If you’re just tuning in and need to get caught up, you’ll have over 400 weekly episodes to choose from. Topics include what to eat on paleo, how to try intermittent fasting, and tips for exercising.
For more of our feel-good podcast picks, check out our article.
Additional reporting by Stephanie Bucklin and Melinda Carstensen.
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