Re: Non-strict Paleo?

For the ex-vegetarian person who is having trouble adapting to a Paleo diet
and finds that meat sits heavily.  Don and I developed terrible/chronic
digestive problems from/during our long-term vegan, vegetarian, and
macrobiotic diets.  Don suffered from zinc deficiency for years, which no
amount of zinc supplements would truly rectify.  We were amazed at the
relief when we switched to a paleo type diet.   I have a few ideas.

1.  It is likely that you are deficient in both zinc and hydrochloric acid.
The best source of zinc is dark meat poultry, red meat, and organ meats.
You need zinc to produce thousands of enyzmes in your body, including
digestive enzymes.  Someone who is zinc deficient can end up in a downward
spiral:  they need meat, but they lack the enzymes to break it down, so they
avoid it or have little "taste" for it.  Taking an HCL with pepsin at meals
(along with eating some animal protein) has helped others.  It helped us!
We don't take it now, but did for a while.

2.  Many people find rare or raw meat easier to digest than meat that is
"well done".  Raw meat can be made palatable by preparing as steak tartar
(i.e., with mustard, ground black pepper, sea salt, parsley, minced onion,
with or without raw egg).  Raw fish can be a real treat prepared as Ceviche
(see archives).  The Infallible Rare Roast Beef recipe (see Paleo Diet
Recipes in archives) has been popular prepared with 2 tsp. ground black
pepper, 2 tsp. garlic powder, and 2 tsp. finely ground, sun-dried,
mineral-rich sea salt sprinkled over both sides before cooking (per 2
1/2-3-pound roast.  It's easy to make.  There are many other tasty recipes.

3.  You might find it helpful to start with fish, chicken, turkey and
eggs--one of these with a green salad or steamed leafy green or mixed
vegetables at each meal, along with 2-3 HCL capsule with pepsin at each
meal.   After a week or two of that you may find it easy to add red meat to
some of your daily/weekly meals.   Once you do you may find that you have
"meat hunger" and really feel something is missing if you were to eat a meal
without animal protein or to go too many days without red meat.  We've seen
it happen for others!

4.  In our experience, it makes a world of difference (long-term/in many
ways) to eat some kind of meat food or eggs at every meal.  If you are
deficient and only dabble in eating meat foods, you may find yourself
forever in a hole with ongoing deficiencies and a lack of energy!

5.  In Chinese Medicine, it is said that if one skips meals (or fasts) one
weakens the digestive fire.  Just as putting wood on a fire before the
embers die out, eating before you are "on empty" or totally famished can
help to regulate both appetite and digestion.  Eating at regular intervals
before you are out of energy or ravenous can also prevent lags in energy and
many of what people called "cravings".  Also, in TCM vegetables and fruits
are cooling and meat foods are warming, so an excess of vegetable foods and
deficiency or absence of meat foods can "put out the digestive fire" and
"the fire of life."

6.  Many people find it easier to digest meat foods when they eat them with
salad or lightly steamed, non-starchy vegetables.  Eaten with grains or
starchy vegetables, meat can make some feel heavy.   We eat flesh foods 2-3x
a day, and eggs at meals where no "meat" is served; we find that we feel so
much lighter than when we ate buckets of grains.  We have no problem eating
a piece of fruit for dessert after a meal though.

7.  Herbs and spices have many therapeutic/medicinal properties.  Many
stimulate the flow of saliva and digestive enzymes or bile.  In TCM, herbs
and spices are typically viewed as a "spark" to help stoke the digestive
"fire."  You might want to look into and experiment with using herbs and
spices in your daily food preparation.  It can also add a whole new world of
flavors and pleasure to the eating experience.

Hope this helps,

Rachel