Paleo VS Keto: Which Diet Should You Follow?
You will find people shouting that their diet is healthier than yours, Right? And in recent times, the two most popular diets that people really like to follow are Keto and Paleo Diets. These two diets have huge fan bases when it comes to fighting diseases, lowering the chances of diabetes, or reducing the spare tire.
Now if you are wondering which diet you should follow, here is a complete guide that will help you determine the one that will suit you the most. Not to mention ultimately help you stay healthy and fit at the end of the day. So, let’s get started!
Learn about Keto & Paleo diets
Keto and Paleo diets are the two dietary options that people can follow to boost their overall health by helping reduce their weight. These two diets center around eliminating highly processed food from your daily meal.
Keto Diet
The Keto diet mainly involves eating minimal carbs, lots of healthy fats, and protein-rich foods. Here the purpose is to reduce the daily carbohydrate intake in our body, mainly serving as energy fuel So, the body starts using stored fat and protein instead of carbs as the energy source to perform daily activities.
You might hear about Ketosis, where the liver converts the fat into ketones and then uses it as an energy source. And this is the main purpose for the people who follow the Keto diet to reach that state. According to some studies, the Keto diet is good for people dealing with diabetes and heart disease.
Paleo Diet
The Paleo diet, which is also famous as the caveman diet, mainly focuses on the food that people ate during the Paleolithic era. It includes eliminating all the foods that we get from farming or food processing. Instead, it centers around the foods that stone-age ancestors gathered through hunting.
According to the Paleo diet supporters, the human body is not good for modern-day foods, so cutting out on grains, legumes, processed foods, and dairy products is required to reduce the chances of diabetes and heart disease as well as lowering body weight.
The Paleo diet encourages people to consume animal protein and high amounts of healthy fats, such as grass-fed animals, butter, nuts, olive oils, and nut oils. Some research showed that the Paleo diet is also beneficial for improving metabolic syndrome and cholesterol levels.
What Are The Similarities Between The Keto & Paleo Diet?
These two diets mainly advise you to consume nutritious whole foods that are low in carbohydrates and loaded with protein and good fats.
Foods you can eat
Both Keto and Paleo diets will allow you to eat nuts, seeds, seafood, unprocessed meat, non-starchy veggies, olive oils, nut oils, and so on.
Eliminating highly processed foods
Both keto and paleo diets avoid unhealthy processed foods. It includes products rich in brown sugar, agave nectar, and corn syrup. And also some unhealthy packaged snacks, chips, and crackers.
Eliminating healthy some foods
So many healthful foods come under this category that you will be surprised, the list includes oats, bread, rice, quinoa, and wheat. And legumes, there are lentils, peanuts, peas, and beans.
The Major Differences Between Keto & Paleo Diets
The list is pretty long when you start to differentiate between foods in these two diets. They follow completely different rules in terms of processed meat, starchy veggies, sweeteners, fruits, and dairy products. So, let’s check them out one by one.
Processed Meat
Processed meat like bacon, ham, and salami are totally off-limits in Paleo diets as they are the result of high food processing techniques. Although minimally processed products without preservatives or nitrates are still acceptable in the Paleo diet.
While on the other hand, these meats are pretty acceptable in the keto diet unless they come with any carbohydrates or sugar. As they will prevent your body from reaching the ketosis state. Although it is recommended not to consume any processed meat while following any type of diet as that may increase the chances of cancer.
Sugars & Sweeteners
Natural sugars such as honey, coconut, date sugar, and maple syrup are suggested to use in the paleo diet, whereas artificial sweeteners are a must-exclude from this diet as they come from modern food processing technology.
The Keto diet allows you to use artificial sweeteners that do not increase blood sugar, especially sucralose, and stevia. But you can’t take natural sugars or fructose while following a keto diet.
Fruits
The Paleo diet is more fruit friendly than the keto diet. Here you can have fruits like berries, melons, and citrus that basically come with low sugar. Although bananas, mangoes, and grapes, you can eat but in lower amounts.
In keto diets, all the sweeter fruits are big NO as they will interfere with your body’s ketosis state. However, there are some keto-friendly fruits as well, like berries, peaches, cranberries, and apricots, that you can eat in small amounts.
Dairy Products
The Paleo diet does not suggest all dairy products, including cream, milk, and cheese, as Paleolithic humans did not eat them. However, a person can drink unsweetened coconut or nut milk while following this diet plan.
While on the keto diet, consuming dairy products loaded with high protein and fat is advisable. But you must avoid products that contain high amounts of sugar, such as ice cream, sugar-sweetened milk, or coffee.
Starchy Vegetables
Some starchy veggies are loaded with high carbs, so those are totally restricted in the keto diet to maintain daily carbohydrate intake in your body.
However, some nutritious vegetables are allowed in the paleo diet but in moderation. In a paleo diet, a person can consume beets, carrots, or sweet potatoes, but prioritizing low-carb veggies should be your first concern.
Final Thought
Both Paleo and Keto diets come with specific rules that you must follow to shed some weight and improve your overall health. You will find some common foods in these two diets, but there are also many variations.
For people, eliminating all carbohydrates and legumes and too much dependency on fat or protein may lead to major health difficulties.
Sometimes you may encounter the side effects of ketosis that will come with symptoms like headaches, insomnia, lethargy, constipation, low libido, and many more. While on the other hand, people following the Paleo diet may face calcium deficiency in their bodies due to excluding all dairy products.
So, the right solution is to choose a diet that will suit your current health condition and how strictly you can follow the diet or the individual health goal. You can also take some suggestions from the dieticians before switching to a keto or paleo diet, especially if you are dealing with diabetes, heart disease, or any other chronic health issue.
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