Paleo vs Gluten Free
In a health conscious world, one’s diet is very much important. However, different types of diets have become so diversified that it is indeed difficult to discern the differences between them.
What is Paleo / Paleo Diet?
Paleolithic diet, more commonly known as paleo, Stone Age diet, caveman diet and hunter-gatherer diet, is a nutritional plan that is based upon the presumed diet of Paleolithic humans on the basis that human genesis have hardly changed during the end of the Paleolithic era, that the modern humans are already accustomed to the Paleolithic diets and that with the help of modern science, the discerning of such diets can be determined.
A controversial topic amongst anthropologists and dieticians, paleo diet was first introduced in the mid-1970s by gastroenterologist Walter L. Voegtlin. This meal consists of fish, eggs, grass-fed pasture raised meats, fruits, vegetables, fungi, nuts, and roots and stresses upon proper portions, to establish a balance between the nutrients. These are food that can be fished, hunted or gathered. It excludes agricultural products such as legumes, grains, potatoes, refined sugar, refined salt, processed oils and dairy products.
Paleo practitioners are allowed to drink water mainly while some encourage the consumption of tea, as well. About 56–65% of their food energy comes from animal foods while 36–45% is derived from plant foods. A diet high in protein and low in carbohydrates is recommended with a regulated amount of fat intake similar to that of a western diet. Although food may be cooked some practitioners believe that since humans have not yet adapted the method of cooking food before the invention of fire by Homo erectus, eating uncooked food is the proper way to go.
What is Gluten-free?
Gluten is a protein composite found in cereals like wheat, barley, triticale and rye and a gluten-free diet basically means a diet that is devoid of this protein composite. Gluten-free food, known to be the only medically accepted treatment for celiac disease, may include fresh fruits and vegetables, meats, dairy products, eggs and other types of food devoid of any ingredient that is either directly related to or derived from sources which include gluten. Several starches and grains such as potatoes, corn, rice, tapioca, amaranth, millet, arrowroot, various types of beans and soybeans, montina, quinoa, lupin, sorghum, chia seed, taro, teff, almond meal flour, pea flour, coconut flour, cornstarch and yam can be introduced as gluten free food and are consumed by those with gluten sensitivity and food allergies relating to gluten.
What is the difference between Paleo and Gluten-free?
• Paleo is a nutritional plan that is based upon the presumed diet of Paleolithic humans. A gluten-free diet simply consists of food that does not contain gluten which is a protein composite.
• A Paleo diet consists of no processed, refined, canned, or boxed food and only consists of natural ingredients that can be either caught or harvested. A gluten-free diet can include canned, boxed, processed, and refined food.
• A Paleo diet does not contain dairy products, legumes, grains or potatoes. A gluten-free diet includes these things.
• Gluten-sensitive individuals and those suffering from celiac disease are medically advised to have a gluten-free diet. A Paleo diet is still a controversial subject among dieticians and has not been medically recommended for any illnesses.
Hence it is easy to see that while a Paleo diet is not gluten-free, a gluten-free diet does not conform to the standards of a Paleo diet either and, therefore, are very different from one another.