Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

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Paleo bread/muffins seems to be a common recipe in Paleo cookbooks, made from nut flour. The flour used seems to be primarily Almond flour, which is high in Omega-6 fatty acids. Are these really better than just using a gluten free flour?

flag	asked Oct 16 2011 at 1:37 balor123 5,985●3●17●61

Kewpie · Accepted Answer · 2011-10-16 13:49:52Z UTC

There are definitely issues with the nut flours--including the high Omega-6 content. However, I think they are the flour of choice for paleo because they are still a whole food--not so much with the low-carb flours. And, although nuts have phytates and high Omega-6s, having a nut flour cake once a year on your birthday is not going to cause you any problems.

I understand why the recipes appear in paleo cookbooks, since there are occasions where you might want to have a treat and there is nothing wrong with doing that once in a while. However, I worry that too many people will miss the point and make these foods a regular part of their diet. There seem to be more and more recipes popping up on the popular paleo blogs for replicas of SAD food. The same thing happened in the vegetarian community and now there are lots of junk food vegetarians (did you know Oreos are vegan?). I'd hate to see the same thing happen in the paleo community.

Again, I'm not saying there is anything inherently wrong with these recipes--as an occasional birthday or holiday treat--but I think they are problematic when they are a regular part of the diet.

miked · Answer 2 · 2011-10-16 04:30:02Z UTC

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I like the Whole 30 approach on this one: if your food starts with "paelo-", it's not food. Eat real food, not fake substitutes for your bad neolithic foods. You don't need paleo bread, just have a good hunk of meat cooked in lots of fat and add some veggies. Real Food.

answered Oct 16 2011 at 4:30

miked
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	O great its the paleo police. Better not eat nut flours, the geniuses at whole 30 have decided it is not real food!!!!!!!!1111111!!!!!!!!!!!!!111 – cliff Oct 16 2011 at 14:09
	I'm not trying to be the paleo you police, I was just giving my opinion on "paleo baking". I don't agree with everything the whole 30 people say, and if you look at all my posts, you'll see that I'm a big proponent of thinking for yourself. I just happen to agree with the whole 30 gang on trying to make paleoized versions of bad food. – miked Oct 16 2011 at 14:29
	Mike that's one way to view it but you could say that about any paleo recipe then and you'd be stuck with eating plain meat and veggies which is great for some but not for others. It seems to me Whole 9 and others who look down on "recreation" are highly inconsistent in how they apply this mindset. Can I not add coconut milk to my coffee because it's a Starbuck's recreation of some sort? What about "meatza"? This idea would seem to prohibit the use of any recipe for anything at all because it's a recreation of something else and I, for one, don't want to live like that. – Shari Bambino Oct 16 2011 at 15:05
	I disagree with you, miked. I think that trying to paleo-ify foods we all miss from our pre-paleo days to have once in awhile is a great idea. I love certain baked goods, and I do make paleo versions every now and then so I can indulge without too many of the ill side effects. – Sarah Oct 16 2011 at 16:03
	I don't look down on recreation. I just get tired of hearing from people who "eat paleo" and "can't lose weight". And every time it's because they eat paleo pancakes, and paleo bread, and paleo muffins. I have no problem eating a treat once in a while. I had flourless chocolate cake last night, but it was three months since the last time I had any. There's also more leeway to people who don't have an unhealthy relationship with food. If you're one of those people who associates food with every activity, then no paloized stuff. Other people, it's ok. It's all who and what, no strict rules. – miked Oct 16 2011 at 19:56

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cliff · Answer 3 · 2011-10-16 01:50:10Z UTC

They have different issues.

The nut flour is high in omega 6 like you said which is inflammatory and unstable.

The gluten free flour has gums which create endotoxin in the gut which can lead to all types of health problems.

If you can make a baked recipe with rice flour and no gums that would be your best option.

Shari Bambino · Answer 4 · 2011-10-16 06:08:32Z UTC

I'm not big on nut flours and don't use gluten-free mixes or flours because I can't tolerate most of them. I really prefer coconut flour or at least coconut flour mixed in with nut flours. Lots of good recipes here I will make the drop or cheese biscuits when I need a bread fix and it does the trick.

Paleo bread/muffins

4 Answers