Paleo: Necessary, Not Sufficient

Seth RobertsUC Berkeley & Tsinghua University

twoutopias@gmail.com

“It Works” Defense

• “I don’t give a *&%@ what detractors say. Paleo/low-carb works for me.” – Mark’s Daily Apple comment

• “The Ancestral health movement has become popular because it works . . . Millions have experienced its benefits.” – Paul Jaminet

Problems with “It Works” Defense

• Many things work that are wrongly explained

• Paleo includes theory – the theory behind the advice. If you want better advice or more advice, you want the theory to be true.

Three Kinds of Paleoistas

1. Theorists give advice 2. Testers try the advice (does it work for

me?)3. Me theorist & tester, micro ideas &

advice

My Interest in Paleo

• Self-experiments showed dermatologist & I both wrong

• Can self-experiments improve sleep? 10 years of failure

• Finally: no breakfast less early awakening

• Breakfast not paleo. Start with mismatch assumption?

6 Uses of Paleo Ideas

1. Morning faces & mood2. Shangri-La Diet 3. Flaxseed oil & brain function4. Fermented foods5. Standing & sleep6. Morning Vitamin D & sleep

What Examples Share

Paleo Idea + Non-Paleo Input Progress

Morning Faces & Mood

Problem Early awakeningNon-paleo input When we socialize influences when we sleepPaleo idea Stone Age people chatted with neighbors in morningBig new effect Seeing morning faces improves mood the next day

Shangri-La Diet

Problem ObesityPaleo idea Amount of energy stored should depend on energy costNon-paleo input Rat experimentsBig new effect Calories without smell cause weight loss

Flaxseed Oil & Brain Function

Problem How to do Shangri-La Diet?Paleo idea Aquatic Ape Theory Non-paleo input Nutrition experts rarely study brain functionBig new effects 1. Flaxseed oil improves balance and other measures of brain function. 2. So does butter. 3. Removal of mercury amalgam fillings improved brain function.

Morning Vitamin D & Sleep

Problem Tara Grant’s poor sleepPaleo idea Less sun exposure now than long agoNon-paleo input Morning sunlight improves sleep, sunlight makes Vitamin DBig new effect Morning Vitamin D improves sleep

My Experience

What Worked Several TimesMismatch Assumption + Guesses about Ancient Life + Non-Paleo Input

What Never Worked Mismatch Assumption + Guesses about Ancient Life

Paleo Alone Can Be Misleading

Warinner Me• diversity No reason to think

50% good, 50% bad better than 100% good

• fresh fermented better• whole foods supplements helpfulWarinner told listeners what they already believed. Which I consider wrong or overstated

My Explanation

My Explanation

My Explanation

My Explanation

My Explanation

•Paleo helped me decide where to look • . . . but I needed more help

to find useful effects