> Personally, I long ago gave up on trying to do paleo when socializing or
> in restaurants.  To me, it's just not worth it.  I make an effort to
> stay lowcarb and don't worry about it.  Food has *always* been a social
> thing, a mode of conviviality for our species, and I regard it as
> unpaleo to let food get in the way of enjoying life.  Part of enjoying
> life, as far as I'm concerned, is enjoying food with friends and even
> enjoying what *they* enjoy.  Food is not just about nutrition.  If I had
> bad reactions to specific foods, I might have to avoid them anyway, but
> I don't.  I did not find that the rigorist "orthorexia" approach to
> eating was good for my mental health, and that is a nontrivial part of
> my overall health.  Furthermore, even worse than paleo boredom is being
> a paleo bore, and in my more purist days I'm afraid I crossed that line
too.
>
> My meals at home tend to be simple and paleo, but last week at a
> restaurant I had a lovely mustard-crusted salmon fillet with -- gasp --
> bread crumbs!  And not too long ago I visited a good friend who made a
> nice batch of chili with -- shhhhh -- some beans in it.  I even threw in
> a nice dollop of sour cream!  I realize that not everyone will agree
> with this approach, but I post it to support those who, like me, favor a
> less rejectionist approach to paleo.
>
> Todd
>

Hi Todd,

Thanks for posting this. I am by no means a purist (had a small piece of
bread and some low carb ice cream last weekend) but I don't splurge on a
regular basis anymore like I used to. The reason I typically brought my own
food was not just because of paleo, but due to a dairy allergy. I was
reacting to subfractions like casein, and whey, and also things like butter.
That made it really hard to eat at parties or in restaurants. I am sensitive
to eggs, too, and that complicated things further. Dairy allergy is gone now
which makes life SO much easier.

Anyway, thanks again for your feedback. I think your approach sounds great
and I wish I could lighten up a bit more about it. :) Maybe when my health
is back to where it used to be I won't worry as much about it.

Kristina