Paleo Cookbook For Dummies (5 page)
Read Paleo Cookbook For Dummies Online
Authors: Kellyann Petrucci
Anti-inflammatory medications (NSAIDS)
Refined foods
Alcohol
Sugar
Dairy
Poor-quality fats and oils
If you've consumed any of these items over the years, you may be facing a problem of leaky gut.
The good news is that this condition can be reversed fairly easily. Paleo creates healthier intestinal cells. Eating the nutrient-rich Paleo foods helps heal your intestinal lining, which makes your skin look beautiful and keeps you well. Avoiding the offenders and sticking to Paleo foods infuses your body with good nutrients and bacteria to heal your gut. (Flip to
Chapter 3
for information on choosing Paleo foods.)
For additional healing nutrients for your gut, make sure you eat foods such as raw sauerkraut and kimchi, which provide good bacteria, and foods such as sweet potatoes and butternut squash, which contain good soluble fiber. If you have an illness you're trying to reverse or a stubborn skin condition that you suspect stems from leaky gut, you may want to remove eggs, coffee, nuts, and seeds as well until your gut has time to heal. You may even want to consider supplementing with a probiotic in a pill or powder form.
Paleo success story: Julie
Living Paleo and loving it! I decided to go Paleo and take the family with me. I gave them no choice after hearing Dr. Kellyann speak â and they're thanking me now.
What convinced me I really needed to take the plunge was my psoriasis. What I didn't expect was that after the first week, my entire family felt better, and we couldn't believe the food we ate had such an impact. Best of all, no one was hungry. My husband and I both lost at least five pounds immediately, and that was a welcome bonus. We made our weekly menu like we always did with a few adjustments. I have to admit the Paleo recipes were a needed change. I quickly learned what meals were good for weeknights and what needed to be made on the weekend. My psoriasis is now markedly improved in only eight short weeks, and I can't tell you how exciting it is to see those changes in my body! I've suffered with this condition for so long. I loved the weight loss, the clear skin, and most of all the energy I have. My family didn't miss a beat, and we are all better for it! Eight weeks now, and well on our way to what I call the Paleo lifestyle!
Sleeping better
Better sleep is my motivation behind sticking as closely as I can to the Paleo foods. All Paleo followers have a personal Paleo barometer that tells them when they've gotten too far off track and need to pull back and reset their bodies with strictly Paleo foods. For some, it's pains or weight gain, but for me, it's sleep. If I go off the rails too much, my sleep suffers, and I know that it's time to pull back. I actually know many folks who fell in love with Paleo when they discovered it would make them sleep better.
Here are some reasons Paleo helps you sleep like a baby:
Paleo foods are packed with minerals, a great natural sleep aid.
Balanced blood sugar causes fewer sleep disturbances.
Eating Paleo helps balance your hormones and signals associated with hormones to provide a feeling of stability and calm, which helps you feel better and thus sleep better.
Some additional tips to get better sleep include making sure you avoid all sweeteners (including artificial and Paleo-approved natural sweeteners) as well as caffeine because they can really cause blood sugar disturbances, which in turn affect sleep. After you have avoided sweeteners long enough to reset your body and are able to sleep naturally, you can add some Paleo-approved sweeteners such as honey back into your diet. Keep in mind that alcohol, stress, and chronic exercise (overtraining) all can negatively impact sleep, too.