The majority of nutritionists believe that reduced-
or low-fat milk and milk products, cereal foods such as
wheat, rice, and pasta, and beans are appropriate
foods.
Many scientists question whether a paleo diet
would have much affect on modern health, since mod-
ern health problems occur primarily in middle age and
beyond. It is unlikely that many paleolithic peoples
survived to an age at which problems such as heart
disease, cancer, arthritis, or osteoporosis begin to
develop.
General acceptance
The majority of nutritionists and the general pub-
lic view neanderthin as a quirky fad diet, unsuitable
for most people. However paleo diets are gaining pop-
ularity among athletes. Nevertheless, although few
people have or could adopt neanderthin, there is
increased skepticism concerning the overwhelming
reliance on grains in typical diets.
Resources
BOOKS
Audette, Roy.Neander-thin: A Caveman’s Guide to Nutri-
tion.Dallas, TX: Paleolithic Press, 1996.
Audette, Ray with Troy Gilchrist.Neanderthin: Eat Like a
Caveman to Achieve a Lean, Strong, Healthy Body.New
York: St. Martin’s, 1999, 2000.
Cordain, Loren. ‘Implications of Plio-Pleistocene Hominin
Diets for Modern Humans.’ InEarly Hominin Diets:
The Known, the Unknown, and the Unknowable, edited
by P. Ungar. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2006:
363-383.
Cordain, Loren.The Paleo Diet: Lose Weight and Get
Healthy by Eating the Food You Were Designed to Eat.
Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, 2001.
Cordain Loren. ‘Saturated Fat Consumption in Ancestral
Human Diets: Implications for Contemporary Intakes.’
InPhytochemicals: Nutrient-Gene Interactions, edited
by Mark S. Meskin and Wayne R. Bidlack. Boca
Raton, FL: CRC, 2006: 115-126.
Cordain, Loren, and Joe Friel.The Paleo Diet for Athletes: A
Nutritional Formula for Peak Athletic Performance.
Rodale Books, 2005.
Eaton, S. Boyd, Marjorie Shostak, and Melvin Konner.The
Paleolithic Prescription: A Program of Diet and Exercise
and A Design for Living.New York: Harper & Row,
1988.
Heinrich, Richard L.Starch Madness: Paleolithic Nutrition
for Today.Nevada City, CA: Blue Dolphin, 1999.
Stefansson, Vilhjalmur.Cancer: Disease of Civilization.New
York: Hill and Wang, 1960.
PERIODICALS
Ames, B. N. ‘‘Paleolithic Diet, Evolution and Carcinogens.’’
Science238 (December 18, 1987): 1633-1634.
Bryant, Vaughn. ‘‘I Put Myself on a Caveman Diet—
Permanently.’’Prevention31 (1979): 128-137.
Burfoot, Amby. ‘‘Should You Be Eating Like the Cavemen?’’
Runner’s World40 (December 2005): 5355.
Cordain, L., S. B. Eaton, A. Sebastian, N. Mann, S. Linde-
berg, B. A. Watkins, J. H. O’Keefe, and J. Brand-
Miller. ‘‘Origins and Evolution of the Western Diet:
Health Implications for the 21st Century.’’American
Journal of Clinical Nutrition81: 341-354.
‘‘Diet and Nutrition: Dietary Recommendations May
Change in the Light of Prehistoric Diets.’’Health &
Medicine Week(February 2, 2004): 202.
Eaton, S. B., and Melvin Konner. ‘‘Paleolithic Nutrition: A
Consideration of its Nature and Current Implications.’’
New England Journal of Medicine312 (January 31,
1985): 283-289.
Hunter, Beatrice Trum. ‘‘The Beneficial Paleolithic Diet.’’
Townsend Letter for Doctors and Patients(October
2003): 158.
Lieb, Clarence W. ‘‘The Effects on Human Beings of a
Twelve Months’ Exclusive Meat Diet.’’Journal of the
American Medical Association(July 6, 1929): 20-22.
Account of Stefansson’s experiment at a New York
Hospital.
O’Keefe, J. H. Jr., and L. Cordain. ‘‘Cardiovascular Disease
Resulting From a Diet and Lifestyle at Odds With Our
Paleolithic Genome: How to Become a 21st-Century
Hunter-Gatherer.’’Mayo Clinic Proceedings79 (Janu-
ary 2004): 101-108.
‘‘Our Paleolithic Ancestors ‘Had Stronger Bones.’ ’’GP
(June 16, 2006): 8.
Sherman, Rebecca. ‘‘Neander-Guy’’.Dallas Observer(July
6-12, 1995). Profile of Ray Audette. Available online:
<http://www.sofdesign.com/neanderthin/observer
.html>(April 1, 2007).
OTHER
Australian Nutrition Foundation, Inc. ‘What Exactly is the
‘Paleolithic Diet’?’Nutrition Australia.<http://QUESTIONS TO ASK YOUR
DOCTOR Are neanderthin or other paleo diets appropriate
for me?
Could this type of diet exacerbate my medical
conditions?
Have you treated other patients on these types of
diets?
Would I be expected to lose weight on
neanderthin?
Is it appropriate for me to completely eliminate
grains, legumes, and dairy from my diet?Neanderthin