Honestly, I don't understand "run-ins" or "backlash" over Paleo eating. I rarely discuss the way I eat, and I don't worry about what it's called. In my own theoretical framework, I subscribe to the Darwinian evolutionary paradigm, and believe that the way I eat has a solid basis in our evolutionary history. But importantly, even if I discovered that it did not -- if it turned out, for instance that the 30BAD people are right (lololol), I would still eat this way. That's because my health has improved so spectacularly since walking down this road, that that's the only real evidence I require. Everything else is just a bunch of words.

I haven't- I actually talk nutrition a lot with a lady in my office who is very religious; when I talk about my diet with her, I try not to get into the evolution stuff because I'm pretty sure she's a creationist, & I don't need to go there. Also seen quite a few folks on the internets that believe in creation and eat paleo, and that's great; I'm pretty sure I've read on Free the Animal that Richard is friends with Jimmy Moore, and they have some very different ideas about religion! I took an evolution class last spring, and was surprised to learn that most of my fellow students believe in creation- I thought it was really cool that they were interested in exploring it (I don't think it was required for at least most of them). For me, my success (and that of others) on paleo re-inforces my belief in evolution.

Whether evolutionist or creationist, we Paleohackers can all bond over our love of healthy eatin' :)

I am a Christian and believe in Creation, and we follow a Paleo diet. I don't care about all of the "millions of years ago" crap, I just know that this eating lifestyle is right for us. We feel great and perform better (CrossFit). I believe you should be eating real foods in their most natural form. Not chemically altered or messed with in any way. That just makes sense, regardless of your religious beliefs!

I think agreeing to disagree is the only way to go in a situation like that. You will not be persuaded to their side and they will not be talked into yours - NO MATTER WHAT either of you say. So in my opinion that's a good place to end the conversation - especially if you still want to be friendly.

Remember that the whole "paleo man ate X and not Y and we haven't had time to properly adapt to Y to negate various detrimental effects, and we have evolved to be dependent upon eating X for optimal health" thing is only the basis for a hypothesis. It is a big ol' assumption and no more. Then we actually have to go look at the empirical evidence. Not exactly something creationists are accustomed to doing, but at least biochemistry and physiology don't conflict with their religion.

Well,I am a creationist and I also see the benefits in eating Paleo/Primal. Just remember, better eating should not be a matter of creation vs. evolution...many of us creationists are educated and do have at least as much empirical evidence for what we know to be true. Evolution is, in fact, a theory. Better eating is not a theory.

Although I do believe in evolution I do not view what/how I eat as being tied to any Religious beliefs, it is just the most natural way to eat. I do not cater to man-created religious beliefs, I have my own views about the Universe, which to me, like my paleo lifestyle, is continuously evolving and changing.

As a former literal 6 day creationist, I think the big difficulty whether it comes to "knowns" in healthy diets or bible understanding, is the willingness to revisit one's assumptions.

Assumptions for the creationist: the bible dictates a sequential timetable for the age of the earth, life, human race, etc. There should be charitable inquiry into the matter for any Christian who has adopted something like "the bible says it, I believe it, that settles it". My first suggestion for a creationist who is coming from this point of view is to take a significant amount of time reading journals and articles over at asa3.org. There they would find a wealth of knowledge and thoughtful writing by Christians who do not necessarily take on those same assumptions, and they are well argued. In particular they are taking seriously the consensus findings in many realms including human genomics, astronomy, archaeology, etc. There is not in fact a widespread conspiracy in the scientific community to discredit the first few chapters of Genesis, but there is a need to rethink how we read the text; what it actually implies and what it does not.

Another point to make is that even the likes of C.S. Lewis held to theistic evolution, as best I can tell. That's something for most evangelicals to consider.

Beyond that, most people no matter their theology will eventually see the sense in adopting foodways that are grounded in pre-modern tradition and predate the era of industrialized food commodities.

"There can only be one consistent truth i.e. think about nutrition from an evolutionary perspective because knowledge is frail and wisdom is scarce." Patrik http://paleohacks.com/questions/55444/is-paleo-a-one-hit-wonder/55644#55644