> > Robert Kesterson wrote:
> >> For what it's worth, I think the high failure rate of conventional
> >> diets is mostly because of the people engaging in them.
> >
> > Philip wrote: Since obesity is rare or nonexistent among HG's, I think
the
> > availability and quantity of modern foods is obviously the 
> biggest factor in the
> > failure of conventional diets.
> 
> I suppose that's arguable, but I think if the person doing
> the dieting  
> would just have the willpower not to eat the inappropriate foods,  
> availability isn't the culprit.
> 

I meant on a societal level. If the modern foods are a given, then yes, a
person will need willpower. But if the remaining HG societies, such as the
!Kung San, remain HG and are able to keep encroaching civilization at bay,
they will continue to have much lower rates of obesity than moderners
because the modern foods will continue to be largely unavailable to them and
they will still have to walk to get their foods. In other words, willpower
only becomes a factor once a people adopts a neolithic approach. People who
live in the wild remain lean while eating whatever they want. They don't
count calories and they don't even know what calories are.

> Sure.  If the modern foods were not available, we wouldn't be
> having this  
> discussion.  ;-)
> 

Probably not, and it's ironic that through the science and technology of
civilization we've discovered that the source of our obesity problem and
other problems is the diet and lifestyle of the very civilization that
enabled us to develop that science and technology (Cordain's double-edged
sword).

> fruits, and haven't found anything I didn't like yet.  Even 
> some things I  
> used to dislike (beets and beet grees, for example) I find 
> that I enjoy  
> now.
 
I know what you mean. Putting aside whether beets are Paleo or not (Cordain
says yes, Audette says no--don't know what Audette would say re: beet
greens), I noticed that my taste buds got a boost when I went Paleo. Foods I
never liked at all, like kale and brussels sprouts, didn't seem as bad, and
for a few months after going Paleo raw kale tasted good--even a little
sweet. Beet greens always tasted good to me, but they did seem to taste even
better after going Paleo. Since I believe the taste buds contain fibrous
protein cells, I speculate that they may take a hit from an out-of-whack
immune system triggered by modern food ingredients like the fibrous protein,
gluten. There are probably other factors as well.

> We have indeed been doing that whenever possible.  It's
> working out very  
> nicely because for the most part, the "replacements" are 
> tastier than the  
> stuff they're replacing.  More expensive, frequently, but 
> definitely more  
> pleasurable to the palate.

Yeah, I've noticed that too. For example, flaxseed pancakes taste better to
me than wheat pancakes and they don't leave me with a heavy feeling in my
stomach afterward. Gluten-free macaroons taste better than ones that include
wheat. Paleo meatloaf is far tastier than meatloaf with breadcrumbs. It
makes me wonder why people, especially wealthier people, don't eat more
foods made with Paleo ingredients.