Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

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I was wondering if the following are acceptable for a Paleo eating plan?

Vanilla extract Coconut sugar (palm sugar) Dried fruits (no added sugar) Guar gum Xanthan gum Xylitol

Thanks!

flag	asked Oct 11 at 1:49 Tiffany 73●3

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I think that marksdailyapple.com is the best place to find out about all of these, plus heaps more, it's a very useful resource for paleo/primal eating. Plus people have different opinions on what's paleo, some are super strict and would be hunting and gathering if they could, others are happy as long as its not processed food. To me none of your mentioned items are paleo, but to cut yourself some slack and find ways to make the move over to paleo easier Im sure you can include some of these on occasion. – bethaneyjayne Oct 11 at 2:07

Honey can be used in baking to help sweeten things up. – Craig Oct 11 at 19:38

Patty · Answer 1 · 2012-10-11 23:22:02Z UTC

From my understanding none of those items are paleo

Please visit sites like paleoparents.com nom nom paleo http://www.chowstalker.com/ http://www.dessertstalker.com/

Read recipies and you can find what paleo bakers use in their goods. I also listen to podcasts and have invested in a couple cook books as I know this is a lifestyle change for me.

Alan · Answer 2 · 2012-10-11 02:21:27Z UTC

Sounds like you are looking to satisfy your sweet tooth. Also not quite paleo/primal but if you get organic Stevia that might be a more suitable solution.

I still crave sweet things and do every now and then indulge in some organic liquorice from my local organic store so if it is a sometimes only thing don't stress too much.

If you are looking to satisfy your sweet tooth on an ongoing basis id recommend against it, you are just setting yourself up for failure. Most people can train the sweet tooth right out of them. And my hat off to those people :)

jake3_14 · Answer 3 · 2012-10-11 03:00:00Z UTC

If your sweet tooth is nagging you, and you're truly eating paleo, then in the long run, that is likely to stop your craving. In the short run, read this thread for some suggestions on coping. Also, here are some short-term suggestions on supplements:

L-glutamine (powder - a teaspoon several times a day) and 4,000 mg of gymnema sylvestre 3 times a day.
chromium picolinate; use the dosage suggested on the bottle

Some members report that a craving for sweets is satisfied by something high-fat. You could try a quick "paleo shake":

4 oz full-fat coconut milk
4 oz. water
1/2 t cinnamon
1 packet/1 g stevia
1/3 c mixed berries

Heat the liquid in a microwave for a minute, then pour into a glass that has the other ingredients. Stir and fish out the berries with a spoon, and drink the liquid.

For holiday baking, I have no suggestions, since I don't bake. Have you tried googling "paleo baking"?

Tiffany · Answer 4 · 2012-10-11 03:14:17Z UTC

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I'm just trying to figure out holiday baking for the most part. Not crazy about stevia. I get too much of an aftertaste. Also wondering if fruit juice is okay as long as it's 100% juice. As you can tell, I'm really new to this.

answered Oct 11 at 3:14

Tiffany
73●3

	Fruit juice is definitely not paleo. It's a huge dose of sugars (sucrose and fructose) not bound to any fiber. It will spike your blood sugar level, casue a huge release of insulin, which will crash your blood sugar level, making you hungry for something to quickly raise it again. – jake3_14 Oct 11 at 22:45
	Stevia comes in raw, refined, and blended forms. The raw stuff has a licorice taste. The refined and blended forms have no aftertaste to me, but this is an individual thing. – jake3_14 Oct 11 at 22:46

Janknitz · Answer 5 · 2012-10-11 03:24:40Z UTC

Xylitol is definitely NOT Paleo but it sure tastes better than stevia and I've read nothing suggesting that its harmful in reasonable quantities.

Sometimes a little sweetness goes a long way. If you are choosing xylitol over sugar in holiday baking just to get through the season, then so be it. Next year you may find you don't need it.

There's a new book out called "joy of gluten- free, sugar free baking" the recipes are all based on home ground nut flours but call for Stevia or Splenda. I think xylitol would work fine.

meta · Answer 6 · 2012-10-11 11:25:49Z UTC

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Xylitol:

Encourages inappropriate gut flora

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/4076932

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17484374

Deadly to dogs

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22381181

answered Oct 11 at 11:25

meta

	Pretty sure the OP is not a dog. – Matt Oct 11 at 11:45
	i have xylitol in my toothpaste. i don't swallow it obviously but is there still a risk to using this? – joanna Oct 11 at 19:00
	The abstract of the first study you provided the link to has this statement: "All animals were capable of adapting to 20% dietary xylitol and an accompanying enhancement of the ability of caecal and faecal flora to utilize xylitol was observed." The second study was about how much xylitol you could eat in a single dose before you got diarrhea. For a 150 lb man, that's 25.22g, or about 1 oz (weight, not volume). For a 130-lb woman, the threshhold was 24.8g, or about 1 oz (weight, not volume). Considering that most people will eat about .7g of xylitol to sweeten a cup of tea, (cont.) – jake3_14 Oct 11 at 22:53
	xylitol was fairly benign. – jake3_14 Oct 11 at 22:53
	In Australia, any food containing xylitol must include the following warning on its packaging: "Excess consumption may have a laxative effect". This is what must be declared by law. – meta Oct 11 at 23:06

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nada · Answer 7 · 2012-10-11 17:36:27Z UTC

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is there a particular reason you're wanting to use an artificial sweetener?

edited Oct 11 at 17:36

answered Oct 11 at 17:31

nada
1,027●1●10

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