The home-delivery ( n = 1 ) and dietary recommendation ( n = 3 ) RCTs showed similar effects with the exception of greater improvements in triglycerides relative to the control with the home delivery .
None of the RCTs evaluated an improvement in quality of life .
The Paleolithic diet result ed in greater short-term improvements in metabolic syndrome components than did guideline -based control diets .
BACKGROUND Paleolithic nutrition , which has attracted substantial public attention lately because of its putative health benefits , differs radically from dietary patterns currently recommended in guidelines , particularly in terms of its recommendation to exclude grains , dairy , and nutritional products of industry .
OBJECTIVE We evaluated whether a Paleolithic nutritional pattern improves risk factors for chronic disease more than do other dietary interventions .
Paleolithic nutrition improves plasma lipid concentrations of hypercholesterolemic adults to a greater extent than traditional heart-healthy dietary recommendations.
Recent research suggests that traditional grain-based heart-healthy diet recommendations , which replace dietary saturated fat with carbohydrate and reduce total fat intake , may result in unfavorable plasma lipid ratios , with reduced high-density lipoprotein ( HDL ) and an elevation of low-density lipoprotein ( LDL ) and triacylglycerols ( TG ) . The current study tested the hypothesis that a grain-free Paleolithic diet would induce weight loss and improve plasma total cholesterol , HDL , LDL , and TG concentrations in nondiabetic adults with hyperlipidemia to a greater extent than a grain-based heart-healthy diet , based on the recommendations of the American Heart Association . Twenty volunteers ( 10 male and 10 female ) aged 40 to 62 years were selected based on diagnosis of hypercholesterolemia . Volunteers were not taking any cholesterol-lowering medications and adhered to a traditional heart-healthy diet for 4 months , followed by a Paleolithic diet for 4 months . Regression analysis was used to determine whether change in body weight contributed to observed changes in plasma lipid concentrations . Differences in dietary intakes and plasma lipid measures were assessed using repeated- measures analysis of variance . Four months of Paleolithic nutrition significantly lowered ( P < .001 ) mean total cholesterol , LDL , and TG and increased ( P < .001 ) HDL , independent of changes in body weight , relative to both baseline and the traditional heart-healthy diet . Paleolithic nutrition offers promising potential for nutritional management of hyperlipidemia in adults whose lipid profiles have not improved after following more traditional heart-healthy dietary recommendations
The home-delivery ( n = 1 ) and dietary recommendation ( n = 3 ) RCTs showed similar effects with the exception of greater improvements in triglycerides relative to the control with the home delivery .
None of the RCTs evaluated an improvement in quality of life .
The Paleolithic diet result ed in greater short-term improvements in metabolic syndrome components than did guideline -based control diets .
BACKGROUND Paleolithic nutrition , which has attracted substantial public attention lately because of its putative health benefits , differs radically from dietary patterns currently recommended in guidelines , particularly in terms of its recommendation to exclude grains , dairy , and nutritional products of industry .
OBJECTIVE We evaluated whether a Paleolithic nutritional pattern improves risk factors for chronic disease more than do other dietary interventions .