Jim >the consumption of grains masks satiation and allows overconsumption
of fat.  And much of this fat is retained as a defense against the grain
(or other offending items), which the body rightly regards as an invader.

CB >I would love some further discussion on that last point. Are you
commenting on weight gain as a defense against allergens or other offending
substances, or getting at something else?

That's exactly what I'm getting at. The body may use fat as a buffer
against stuff it doesn't recognize as food.

I was intrigued by this theory when I first read it in Neanderthin, but
Ray's apparently not the only one to come up with the idea.  Here's a quote
from Oliva from a message posted a couple of months ago: "I think it's safe
to say that the 'revolutionary idea' you speak of is not Ray's....  It was
developed some time ago and Dr.Rudy Rivera and Roger D.Deutsch discuss it
in 'Your Hidden Food Allergies Are Making You Fat.'"

Drs Rivera and Deutsch do not appear to understand why from a paleo
perspective some foods cause "allergic" reactions in people, but they do
grasp the concept that certain foods cause people to get fat regardless of
their caloric and/or fat content.

What little common sense I have tells me that it's probably not an
either/or situation with the foreign substances theory on one side and the
common calorie/fat calculus theory on the other.  I do believe that it is
possible through paleo eating to increase one's fat and calorie intake and
still lose weight -- which cannot happen according to common dietary theory
can it?  I know for a fact that my fat intake has increased on paleo yet
I've lost weight, but Todd has rightly suggested that I also verify that
I've also increased my caloric intake.