Brand new

[hunkydunky]

I'm new to Paleo and new the Whole 30.  I'm going to be doing September challenge starting the 6th.  I'm quite excited to see what foods really don't do well with my body and hopefully I can get off some meds!

I do have questions, if anyone can help me.  I came from a Plant-based lifestyle, my husband and I did loose some weight and he was able to get off his diabetic meds.  But, what turned me too the Plant-based foods was the documentations from the China study and the related studies of that.  I've been reading a lot about the Paleo diet and I'm growing confused about if meat is really good for our bodies.  I have in the past noticed that if I eat any meat that is commercially raised, my whole digestive system is out of whack and I literally end up sick.  I just see so many arguments that eating meat is bad coming from the plant-based lifestyle.   I just need some reassurance that what I am actually going to embark on with the Paleo and the Whole 30 is going to be the best.  I'm looking at new eating styles because it seems that my energy levels have dropped and my weight has increased also.  My husband has also experienced weight gain and his diabetes is now borderline.

Maybe I need to change the way I was thinking for the last 4 years.  I also would like to hear your opinions on this. 

 

[ShannonM816]

There are plenty of critiques of the China Study out there -- google China Study rebuttal to find some.

More important than a study of other people, though, would be to conduct your own study of yourself and see how you feel. 30 days, plus time for reintroduction, of eating meat in the grand scheme of your life is not that long, and if at the end you feel better, you know you personally do better with animal protein, but if at the end of 30 days you feel worse, then you know you personally don't do well with it.

For people who have gone several years without eating meat, sometimes digestive enzymes are helpful as your system re-adapts to breaking down the meat proteins.  Here's an article about those, although it's old and at one point I know the particular brand mentioned was not compliant anymore, so if you choose to try them, read your labels and be sure you find one with no off-plan ingredients.

This article has some tips for people who aren't used to eating meat but would like to try. This download explains some of the terms used to describe meat products and what to look for to get the best quality.