The PaleoDiet score included six food groups that are encouraged in this diet (fruit, nuts, vegetables, eggs, meat, and fish) and five that are avoided (cereals and grains, dairy products, legumes, culinary ingredients, and processed/ultra-processed foods). A recent prospective cohort study found a significant inverse association between the PaleoDiet score and CVD in the Seguimiento Universidad de Navarra (SUN) cohort. They also found a weaker association that became non-significant was observed when the item for low consumption of ultra-processed foods was removed from the score. These findings suggest that the PaleoDiet may have cardiovascular benefits in participants from a Mediterranean country. Avoidance of ultra-processed foods seems to play a key role in this inverse association. Please share your thoughts and experiences!

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  • Thanks Sarah and Savvas. Interesting post and reply!  I agree with Savvas's opinion and would like to supplement one point. How about the impact of Paleolithic diet of application on different areas? We should respect the local cultural characteristics on diets. You can't just say cereals and grains should be avoided for reducing risk of CVD, expecially in Asia area in which most people here use cereals as their primary energy source. Besides, proper grains and cereals intake to provide fiber, and plant protein could leave a heart protective effect. We can recommend people use whole grains instead of fine grains in Asia to reduce CVD risk, but not to using Paleolithic diet to avoid intake of all cereals and grains.     

  • Thanks for ther post, Sarah. Generally speaking, ultra-processed food usually contain high levels of sugar, salt, fat as well as chemical additives designed to make the products more appealing. They also have a high energy density all of which directly contribute to unhealthy levels of weight gain. And that increases the risk of CVD.. We all know that avoiding processed and ultra processed products is definitely helping having a better diet, rich in fruits, vegetables, legumes and nuts, but I think that we cannot generalise that "PaleoDiet may have cardiovascular benefits in participants from a Mediterranean country". There are many factors that may play a role. Were those participants more active? What were their stress levels? How relevant/significant is the genetic factor? 

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