You can combine the weight loss and anti-aging health benefits of the Paleo and vegan diets into a hybrid plan called the “pegan diet,” say health experts.
In their bestselling cookbook Paleo Vegan: Plant-Based Primal Recipes, Ellen Jaffe Jones and Alan Roettinger couple the dietary principles of the Paleo and vegan plans by eliminating animal protein and replacing it with plant-based proteins.
The result is a super-healthy, delicious Paleo vegan (or “pegan”) diet that can satisfy the discerning palates of both Paleos and vegans. The Paleo and vegan diets have more in common than most people realize, Jaffe Jones told Examiner.
Both diets are largely plant-based, and have been touted for accelerating natural weight loss, preventing disease and promoting anti-aging health.
The Paleo diet emphasizes high-quality animal proteins, healthy fats, vegetables, and excludes gluten, sugar, dairy, legumes, starches, alcohol and processed foods. The vegan diet excludes all animal products but allows grains.
According to Jaffe Jones, people who say a Paleo-vegan diet isn’t possible overestimate how much animal meat caveman actually consumed.
Culinary genius Alan Roettinger, author of Extraordinary Vegan, said substituting hemp seeds, nuts, and protein-rich vegetables for animal protein makes a Paleo-vegan diet nutritious and delicious.
Alan has been a vegan for the past eight years and has never felt better. Most people think you can’t get enough protein on a vegan diet, but Roettinger said this is completely false, as Celebrity Health Fitness previously reported.
The main sources of protein on a Paleo vegan diet are nuts, seeds, and protein-rich vegetables, said Alan. Despite what people may think, the respected chef said hemp seeds and chia seeds can build and sustain tissue, even in active athletes.
Roettinger said creating recipes that are “pegan” for Paleo Vegan was surprisingly easy.
“The fundamental principle of a Paleo diet is 99% identical to my own approach to a vegan diet, which is simply to adhere as much as possible to nature’s standard for food: fresh, whole, raw, organic, local, and diverse,” said Alan. “No processed foods (especially sugar and refined oils), no dairy products.”
Chef Roettinger continued: “Where we differ is minimal. A vegan diet excludes meat and includes beans and grains. So aside from the meat, we’re really on the same page. That’s something to celebrate!”
Both the Paleo and vegan diets have a huge celebrity following. Famous Paleos include Tim McGraw (who credits it for his jaw-dropping 40-pound weight loss) and Megan Fox.
Fitness expert Robb Wolf said the Paleo diet, which is largely plant-based, prevents disease, boosts energy and aids natural weight loss.
“The Paleo diet works with your genetics to help you stay lean, strong and energetic,” said Wolf, author of The Paleo Solution.
Celebrity vegans include Demi Moore and Beyonce. They credit the plant-based diet for giving them more energy, helping them lose weight, and staying youthful-looking.
The weight loss and anti-aging health benefits of a vegan diet are not surprising to medical experts like obesity expert Dr. Joel Fuhrman.
“The more greens you eat, the more weight you will lose,” said Dr. Fuhrman, the author of The End of Dieting.