The Primal Blueprint (31 page)

Potatoes, yams, and sweet potatoes are considered tubers (vegetables that grow underground and have a swollen stem). Grok probably found the occasional wild tuber in his travels and enjoyed its starchy contents, particularly after learning how to roast it. However, most potatoes in general are another domesticated, recently introduced product that happens to stimulate a high insulin response when eaten. Yams and sweet potatoes are nutritionally superior to the lighter colored potatoes (russets, reds, whites, new potatoes) and stimulate a lower insulin response. Starchy vegetables might be a particularly appealing choice for those who require more than 150 grams per day of carbs to replenish their frequently depleted muscle and liver glycogen stores. This would include the Chronic Cardio crowd and those with very active lifestyles and high metabolisms.

“Drink eight glasses of water a day to ensure good health.” “By the time you’re thirsty, it’s too late.” We’ve heard these adages our entire lives as part of Conventional Wisdom’s 10 (or 20, or whatever) commandments to be healthy—right up there with “Drink milk to get your calcium,” “Eat your grains for fiber,” “Stay out of the sun,” “Cut down on fat intake to lose weight,” and other fables. While adequate hydration is paramount to good health, there is absolutely no scientific evidence to support the age-old rule of thumb that you should drink eight glasses of water per day.

Dr. Heinz Valtin, former chair of physiology at Dartmouth Medical School and one of the world’s foremost experts on kidney function, after conducting research for 11 months with the assistance of a professional librarian, discovered no conclusive studies about drinking eight glasses of water per day. Valtin believes that the myth originated in the 1940s when the National Institute of Medicine first issued recommendations for dietary nutrient intake, including water. Their suggestion to consume about two liters of water per day (this equals about eight 8-ounce glasses) for optimum hydration contained the long-forgotten comment that “much of this can be gained from the solid food we eat.”

Indeed, raw milk is 90 percent water, chicken 54 percent, ground beef 53 percent, pizza 50 percent, white bread 30 percent (but, of course, we wouldn’t be eating any pizza or bread, right?), and so on. Caffeine and alcohol, which constitute a significant portion of total fluid intake for many adults, have long been thought of as diuretics that dehydrate you by increasing urine flow. While this is true when you drink in excess, your daily cup of coffee, bottle of beer, or glass or two of wine will actually contribute to hydration levels and not lead to any appreciable fluid loss.

When you experience such variables as hot weather and increased activity levels, your thirst mechanism works wonderfully to dictate how much you need to drink each day. This is a mechanism that has evolved over millennia to prevent dehydration, which is one of the quickest ways you can die. To date, there is no archaeological evidence that Grok wore a CamelBak during his active life (or even a leather bota bag, for that matter!), but he did just fine scooping water out of streams, licking the dew off of leaves, and maintaining adequate hydration incidentally through his diet.

Even when your water intake fluctuates significantly, your kidneys and endocrine system work very efficiently to promote optimum fluid levels in your bloodstream. When you experience even a slightly higher than normal concentration of your blood volume, an agent known as antidiuretic hormone goes to work increasing the absorption of more water from the kidneys and returning it to the bloodstream. According to Dr. Valtin and other experts, if your blood becomes concentrated by about 2 percent, your thirst mechanism will kick in and send a strong signal to consume additional fluids. It is only when your blood becomes concentrated by 5 percent that the symptoms of dehydration present themselves. Dr. Valtin further asserts that while dark urine indicates a need to drink perhaps a glass of water, there is no validity to the idea that your urine needs to be clear to indicate that you are adequately hydrated.

Even with a wide variation in water intake, our bodies will do a great job at maintaining normal blood concentration. And yes, there is such a thing as too much water. Hyponatremia is a serious and occasionally fatal condition where sodium levels become too diluted in the blood as a result of overconsumption of water. Some believe that drinking too much fluid near or during meals can result in poor digestion and excretion due to the dilution of stomach acids that are critical to the digestive process.

As an alternative to the bottled water industry–influenced mantra, “drink, drink, drink!” without regard to your thirst, I recommend consuming a sensible amount of fluid each day, using your thirst as a guide to maintain optimum hydration. Sometimes this might be eight glasses of water, sometimes much less than half that. Heavy exercise, hot temperatures, body weight, and the water content of the foods you eat are obviously all significant variables. When in doubt, obey your thirst! (finally, a marketing slogan with a ring of truth to it!).

Even though wild rice is a high-protein, gluten-free, high-nutritional-value natural species grass, it is still technically a grain that has a relevant carbohydrate load. Nevertheless, it is an excellent substitute for white rice or brown rice.

One issue I have with our modern lifestyle is the emphasis on perfection. Newer, slimmer, bigger, better, faster—the message screams out to us from glossy magazines, slick television ads, and one pop-up Web banner after another. While I do believe fundamentally in pursuing your personal definition of peak performance, and I think we could generally be doing far better in terms of diet and exercise, I have a hard time with the constant barrage of images telling us that, in short, we suck.

This brings me to indulgences. I’m a pretty disciplined—okay, very disciplined—guy, but I stop short of attempting perfection. Sure, I could stress over those missed workouts when I’m vacationing with my wife and kids. I could forever kiss berries and cream, cheesecake, and chocolate good-bye. But why? Furthermore, when you choose wisely, many “indulgences”—such as those on the following list—may even support your health when you partake sensibly. With that in mind, here are a few items that Grok rarely or never enjoyed but which can be added to a Primal lifestyle with little or no downside.

If alcohol is something you enjoy and can consume moderately, go for it. Yes, these are calories devoid of nutritional value, so you don’t want to go overboard, but some of the potential health benefits may be worth noting. Wine is a bit better for you than beer, but these are both beverages you can sensibly enjoy on a regular basis. Red wines are the best, owing to their high phenol content. Recent studies have shown so many health-enhancing benefits from the resveratrol in red wine that red wine extracts have become very popular as supplements.

On the flip side, studies have clearly shown that alcohol in excess of one or two glasses a day can increase the risk of cancer (as well as auto accidents, divorces, bar fights, and other tribulations), so let’s be clear that I’m not leaving the door open for alcohol abusers. Furthermore, it’s believed that alcohol is the first fuel to burn when ingested. That means even the most Primal eaters will put fat metabolism on hold while the alcohol calories are burned.

Most of us know by now that dark chocolate is rich in antioxidants, brain-stimulating compounds, and that it offers impressive health benefits, such as reducing the instance of blood clots, lowering blood pressure, and helping prevent cancer. It’s all in the antioxidants—specifically, compounds known as phenolic phytochemicals or flavonoids. Some studies have shown that cocoa contains considerably more flavonoids than acclaimed heavy hitters like green tea and red wine (but I’d add that red wine has
resveratrol going for it as well). The ORAC values of cocoa powder and dark chocolate are higher than those of virtually any fruit or vegetable!

Chocolate is the most craved food in the world, thanks to it’s rich supply of phenylethylamine, an agent that is believed to trigger a feeling similar to falling in love. Be sure to choose the absolute highest-quality chocolate you can find, because not all chocolates are created equal, from both a taste and a health perspective. The higher the cocoa content, the more you’ll enjoy the aforementioned health benefits. This means milk chocolate is a distant also-ran to dark chocolate. Commercial bars like good old Hershey’s have diminished cocoa content and such additives as sugars and milk solids, agents that dramatically compromise health benefits. I recommend choosing chocolate that is 70 percent cocoa or greater (anything with more than 50 percent cocoa content is classified as bittersweet chocolate). Unsweetened chocolate (aka chocolate liquor—100 percent cocoa) is the healthiest option, but you may not enjoy the taste.

Organic chocolate offers you the comfort of greater oversight along the growing, harvesting, and processing procedures—important due to the fact that conventional cocoa beans have a high pesticide concern and commonly often arrive from countries with questionable growing regulations and safety standards. Enjoy your chocolate guilt-free, with total awareness of a taste so rich that even a small portion can deepy satisfy you.

Dessert—the tradition of eating a high-calorie, high-sugar meal after you have just eaten your regular meal—is a bizarre concept that has become perverted by modern American society. (I was once asked in Texas, after eating a four-egg omelet for breakfast, whether I wanted some dessert!) We rarely have dessert in my house, and my kids never ask for it. Grok certainly had no choice in the matter, but you do. Avoiding dessert is probably one of the easiest ways to start going Primal.

Nevertheless, if you feel the urge to indulge, do yourself a favor and choose a high-fat, fresh-made, premium-quality treat instead of a store-bought product that comes with too much sugar and unpronounceable chemicals and preservatives and that falls well short of homemade in the taste category. My favorite choice for dessert is a bowl of fresh berries with a small dose of homemade whipped cream and mascarpone cheese. If you have a thing for cheesecake, have a small slice—not the 1,400-calorie insulin tidal wave–producing monsters offered by the Cheesecake Factory. Or maybe try some sliced apples with nut butter or fry some plantains in coconut oil with a pinch of sugar (there I go again!). Experiment with simple desserts that you can make with your kids. Then take a walk after your meal to burn off some of the glucose and moderate the insulin response. Wake up the next morning and eat a delicious low-insulin breakfast to get your body back into hormone and blood glucose balance.

While there are many things we can do (or eat) today that very closely approximate what Grok did to trigger positive gene expression, there are also a number of obstacles that can thwart our attempts to be as Primal as possible. Artificial light prompts us to stay up too late and sleep too little. Electronic entertainment competes for our time when we should be out walking and basking in sunlight. We don’t always have access to ideal foods. We use medicines to mask our symptoms instead of allowing our bodies natural symptoms to strive for homeostasis. You get my point. It’s tough going “full Primal” today. Hence, I enjoy discovering modern adaptations that produce the same gene expression Grok experienced—but by using 21st-century technology or just plain old common sense. Given the lack of certain critical nutrients in even the healthiest diets (refer to the discussion on the drawbacks of conventional animal, vegetable, and fruit products), using premium-quality supplements is a great example of a “modern Primal” adaptation.

As you may know, I own and operate a supplement company called Primal Nutrition, which markets products of the nature I describe here. While I am not keen to blend my company’s marketing efforts with my literary efforts to help you get Primal, the question arises often enough that a basic explanation of what and why is appropriate. I agree that the supplement industry does have its share of shady characters. Most of the products you see on store shelves are probably harmless, but some are also probably useless—with more smoke, mirrors, and hype than credible research backing them up. However, there are also some high-quality products that deliver proven benefits and that I wouldn’t be without in my own regimen. Here I will discuss the most important supplement categories and also discuss the ways that you can ensure that the brands you choose are of the highest quality.

The flagship product of the supplement industry is designed to offer complete protection and nutritional balance to make up for any inadequacies in your daily diet. The popularity of this category makes it rife with poor-quality offerings, so be sure to review the product quality selection tips in the coming section. You’ll want to choose a supplement with natural forms of all the vitamins.

The topic of free radicals and oxidative damage has been covered in depth at
MarksDailyApple.com
beyond the scope of this book. Suffice to say, we want to do everything we can to reduce oxidative damage to our cells (and particularly inside our mitochondria, the energy-producing component of our cells). Eating and exercising according to the
Primal Blueprint
(particularly avoiding excessive high-end cardio) and managing stress effectively with
Primal Blueprint
lifestyle laws are your first lines of defense. However,
our powerful antioxidant systems can fall short when we face even the routine level of stress inherent in modern life. If you challenge your stress-management system by eating sugar, drinking alcohol, taking prescription (or nonprescription, ahem) drugs, skimping on sleep or sunshine, or arguing with your spouse about the particulars of the dreaded holiday trip to the in-laws, you can overwhelm your defenses and find yourself in sincere need of a boost.