Morning snack: Handful of pecans. Small pile of baby carrots. Water, the elixir of life.
I forgot to take a picture of lunch, I got distracted and before I realized it, I had eaten it all...Imagine, if you will a tossed salad with romaine lettuce, cucumbers, chicken a small tomato and a simple dressing of olive oil and balsamic vinegar with lemon...
Dinner: leftover chicken tossed in a pan with broccoli, asparagus, mushrooms and little olive oil. I served it with 1/2 a cubed cooked yam, 2 small tomatoes, and 1/2 of an avocado.
Dessert was a fresh juicy pear.
I forgot to ask you about milk products. How do you get your calcium if you don't eat dairy?
ReplyDeleteHi Rosaria--
ReplyDeleteThat's a good question! I think that Dr. Cordain answered it best on his website (thepaleodiet.com)in the Frequently asked Questions section. Here is what he says:
"Calcium and Bones; Paleo Diet suggestions for Bone Health
Q: How can I get enough calcium to build strong bones if I cut down or eliminate dairy foods and replace them with fruits and vegetables?
I heard or read recently that high-protein diets are detrimental to bone health. Is this true and how does it occur? Will The Paleo Diet damage my bones or give me osteoporosis?
A: In the U.S. calcium intake is one of the highest in the world, yet paradoxically we also have one of the highest rates of bone de-mineralization (osteoporosis). Bone mineral content is dependent not just upon calcium intake but upon net calcium balance (calcium intake minus calcium excretion). Most nutritionists focus upon the calcium intake side of the calcium balance equation, however few realize that the calcium excretion side of the equation is just as important.
Bone health is substantially dependent on dietary acid/base balance. All foods upon digestion ultimately must report to the kidney as either acid or base. When the diet yields a net acid load (such as low-carb fad diets that restrict consumption of fruits and vegetables), the acid must be buffered by the alkaline stores of base in the body. Calcium salts in the bones represent the largest store of alkaline base in the body and are depleted and eliminated in the urine when the diet produces a net acid load. The highest acid-producing foods are hard cheeses, cereal grains, salted foods, meats, and legumes, whereas the only alkaline, base-producing foods are fruits and vegetables. Because the average American diet is overloaded with grains, cheeses, salted processed foods, and fatty meats at the expense of fruits and vegetables, it produces a net acid load and promotes bone de-mineralization. By replacing hard cheeses, cereal grains, and processed foods with plenty of green vegetables and fruits, the body comes back into acid/base balance which brings us also back into calcium balance.
The Paleo Diet recommends an appropriate balance of acidic and basic (alkaline) foods (i.e., lean meats, fish and seafood, fruits, and vegetables) and will not cause osteoporosis in otherwise healthy individuals. Indeed, The Paleo Diet promotes bone health.
For additional reading on this subject, navigate to the Articles page, The nutritional characteristics of a contemporary diet based on Paleolithic food groups.... and Paleo Diet Acid/Base Balance table.