I'm looking at other reviews and I see fives and ones. So what makes my review a 4? Well, like the top 1-star reviews I have some trouble with the tone of the book. In particular it is a personal journey book disguised as a scientific book. I've fallen into this trap before -- Susan Powter's "Stop the Insanity" repackaging "Diet For a New America" with a personal journey story; and Brendan Braizer's "Thrive"; and "Forks Over Knives". I've read them all, given each style of eating at least a month and none of those are miracle diets. So, one demerit for pretending to be something it's not. That leaves 4 stars. Why 4? -- Wolf breaks out of the Paleo mythology and ties the diet to concrete observations: first that human remains show more health markers before the agricultural revolution than after; second that the point of the paleo diet is to address systemic inflammation in our bodies. -- Wolf makes the information both technical and easy to get through. It's the same mix of interesting/informative presented in "You On A Diet." There are many places "The Paleo Solution" could just refer you to the other book -- the discussions on ghrelin and cortisol for example. But he also admits he's skimming the surface there. This leads us to the central arguments of the book: First that protein from animal sources is more biologically available than protein from plan sources. Second that vegetables are superior sources of everything we hope to get from eating grains, and they provide fiber, vitamins, and flavor with a much smaller glycemic load. And third, in some portion of the population, trying to process grains doesn't just have the insulin impact, it also causes systemic inflammation. The first two points are reasonable. The third would be acknowledged by most people but limited to folks who have celiac. Robb and the Paleo community would argue that the population is much larger. The ultimate point of the book is this: if you are having systemic inflammation issues -- asthma, weight gain, allergies, hypothyroidism, insulin resistance, etc. -- do an allergen protocol and remove grains from your diet for 30 days. Fill up on lean protein and veggies instead. After making this point there's a lot of other info -- exceptions, additions, and other information about inflammation, but the long and short is: try 30 days and see if you're better. This was the first Paleo book I bought when I started revamping my health and lifestyle. I haven't looked back since. Since I started eating paleo, I've lost weight, become healthier, and no longer suffer from the midday/post carb slump that was getting to be a daily nuisance. Between paleo, weight training (Tactical Barbell), and moderate aerobic/cardio exercise, I'm in better shape than I was when I was ten years younger! I highly recommend this book if you're looking for a solid introduction to the Paleo world. The author is not only an expert on Paleo, but also a high performing athlete, which I think is important. He comes from an angle of not only eating in a healthy, but eating in a way to sustain performance.
What do You think about Paleorecept (2010)?
Get into the science! The facts do a lot to motivate good health habits and health discipline!
—JennaLin
Good content, but very heavy on the science/nutrition info, which made it difficult to read.
—Jfer
I learned a lot. I disagree with cave man idea but will apply a lot of the information.
—dawn13XD
Good information but didn't like the tone. Lots of repetition.
—brenda
Helping me redefine good nutrition after my heart procedure
—siono432
