Paleo diet?

[westtexas]

From Mark's Daily Apple

"Expeller Pressed Refined Coconut Oil - There’s that word: “refined.” Not so bad when you’re talking 16-year single barrel Scotch, monocles, The New Yorker, and finely oiled mustaches, but extremely suspicious when you’re talking edible fats. Most refined oils are processed using chemical solvents like hexane, some of which may show up in the finished product. Expeller pressed coconut oil, however, is physically processed. They literally press the coconut flesh to squeeze out the oil.

Refined coconut oil doesn’t taste like coconut, thanks to the deodorizing steam-treatment it receives. If you want that coconut flavor, go for virgin coconut oil. But if you’re doing a stir-fry, cooking up some eggs, maybe oven baking some sweet potato fries, and you don’t want everything to taste like Thai food, expeller-pressed coconut oil is a fantastic choice. It’s more resistant to high heat than virgin coconut oil, too, making it the go-to fat for those times you want to cook something on high.

The other benefits of coconut oil, like the medium chain triglyceride content, are not affected by the refining process. They remain intact and present.



Read more: http://www.marksdailyapple.com/is-it-primal-paleo-bread-braggs-liquid-aminos-psyllium-fiber-and-other-foods-scrutinized/#ixzz25YWsOcZg"

I've always used unrefined virgin coconut oil, but I will probably go with the expeller pressed kind next time because I seriously dislike the flavor of coconut oil.

[Catrin]

Thanks Westtexas, THIS was what I was thinking of regarding coconut oil - I had forgotten that it was referencing refined, not virigin. I do like the mouth feel of the virgin - and my cookware is lower temp stainless steel anyway. I do want to try the refined when I restock my coconut oil supply.

Have you tried Walnut or Avocado oil for cooking?

On an unrelated note - my weight is now lower than it has been in 2 years I still have the same calorie targets but as I eat more good fats and keep my carbs low - my weight is slowly dropping. It is under 130 for the first time since I was over-doing things in 2010 - AND I am not having to kill myself to do it. I feel very good, my energy levels are fine. I've been told that it will go faster if I drop my carbs even lower, but right now I am happy with my rate of progress given my activity level. Getting enough sleep is still hard - and that is part of the process as well.

[Sky King]

Just one note of caution on coconut oil, as with any food, make sure you aren't allergic to coconut (I happen to be allergic to coconut and to soy) if you aren't certain, a good naturopath will be able to help you

[surgtech1956]

I've decided to try the Paleo Diet. I've been researching it some. I am a little concerned about the calcuim, but I'm thinking about modifying it a little if I have to. Any thoughts or advice? Thank you

[OakLeaf]

Just a thought about minerals from someone who hasn't gone full paleo ... I sweat out a LOT of calcium and magnesium, and my need to supplement has gone WAY down since I reduced my grain intake and increased my % calories from vegetables. Come to think of it ... I'm less than 7 weeks out from a marathon, the weather has been pretty hot, I'm only supplementing 670 mg each calcium and magnesium daily plus maybe 150 -250 mg each from the electrolyte supplement I use on my weekly long run ... and I haven't woken up ONCE with leg cramps from lack of electrolytes. This has, like, never happened to me before!

Vegetables are alkaline forming - grains are mostly acid forming, many of them very much so. When you reduce grains you're not leaching near as much calcium and magnesium out of your bones to buffer your blood. Some people make a big deal about phytic acid in grains interfering with mineral absorption, but I don't think that's near as much a concern as the pH balance.

Plus, by getting a large amount of your calories from vegetables, you'll be getting a lot more dietary minerals (even if they tend to be in the form of less-available salts). If you're getting a lot of your calcium from enriched grain products now, that's basically no different from taking a pill supplement ...

I should note that I'm also eating way more meat than I have at almost any time in my life ... pretty much once a week regularly, sometimes twice a week - which meat consumption is also in line with paleo theory, although I really only crave it during heavy training - and although meat is obviously highly acid-forming, I'm still doing fine with less mineral supplementation than ever.

[Catrin]

In order for the body to be able to take advantage of calcium, there are other minerals that are required by the body, and Oakleaf makes some excellent points where this is concerned. Research has shown that we (the collective US/west in general) consume the largest amount of calcium supplements yet we have the highest rates of osteoporosis than other parts of the world. It is ironic that other parts of the world where they consume far less amounts of dairy and supplements have much lower levels of osteoporsis, and there are many factors that impact this.

A brief discussion is found here on Mark's Daily Apple, it was very helpful to me when I was worried about the same thing 7 months ago. I went from drinking 2 gallons of milk + yogurt + cheese every week to NONE at that time, and very recent blood tests show my calcium levels to actually be much better than what they were before... The long/short of it is dairy isn't the only place we get calcium from and once we remove those things that prevent us from absorbing what we do get - and ensure we are also getting those minerals that helps us to absorb it in the first place, it isn't near the problem that some think.