Just convinced my wife to go primal. But, she has restrictions. (religious) page 2

[Rasputina]

Thanks for the replies! She is Sikh from the Punjab region of India. Which is normally based on being vegetarian. However, a lot of the people in the culture have accepted chicken for meals on a sparingly basis. This is the only meat that is acceptable according to her and her family. I've tried telling her that turkeys are just big chickens but, she isn't buying it. Maybe, in time, I will convince her to try new things but, it isn't looking good. I think I will try the different preparation method as suggested above.

Well, maybe the best thing for her would be to focus on getting enough paneer, ghee, and properly soaked and prepared lentils. Check out Weston A. Price website for more info. A grain-free, veggie heavy, higher fat diet may be right up her alley

[magicmerl]

She sounds like a lacto ovo vegetarian. And since you are primal, you want to be wheat free.

Google is your friend. Here's something that took 5 seconds to find.

[kbn1]

Eat the WHOLE chicken. Livers, hearts, gizzards, etc... That would open up more options for variation. And as Rasputina said, properly prepared legumes are not the worst things.

[jhailey]

Cool, thanks! I wil begin the research!!

[Forever Young]

I'll never ever understand the concept of having someone else tell you what you can and can't eat, much less listen to them. But, before anyone gets crazy here, its just my opinion and not an indictment of anyone or their beliefs.

[magicmerl]

I'll never ever understand the concept of having someone else tell you what you can and can't eat, much less listen to them. But, before anyone gets crazy here, its just my opinion and not an indictment of anyone or their beliefs.

Are you talking about her religious beliefs, or people asking for advice on eating primally?

Because you know, sometimes there doesn't seem to be a whole lot of difference.

[palebluedots]

I'll never ever understand the concept of having someone else tell you what you can and can't eat, much less listen to them. But, before anyone gets crazy here, its just my opinion and not an indictment of anyone or their beliefs.

Well, I think if you're referring to religious beliefs, there's usually some practical reason behind seemingly odd food restrictions.

For example, jewish folks who keep kosher, I wouldn't be surprised if that originated as a way to get everyone to steer clear of foodborne pathogens. Vegetarians in India, perhaps because cows were needed for their dairy producing abilities more than they were for their meat? Those are just the first two examples that come to mind, not sure if my reasoning is correct, but if not, I'd bet there is some similar reason.

I suspect that many dietary rules in religions were an official backing of healthy and/or practical actions that most people already followed at the time. I think it's pretty smart of religions to impose "divine rules" about such issues, what a great way to mobilize and enthuse a large group of people! Especially if it's a rule that will substantially improve the health/economy/quality of life for your followers. I suppose it would be nice if some rules would get updated as time goes on, but religions by necessity have to stick to their guns about basic tenets, so it is what it is.

[Forever Young]

Well, I think if you're referring to religious beliefs, there's usually some practical reason behind seemingly odd food restrictions.

For example, jewish folks who keep kosher, I wouldn't be surprised if that originated as a way to get everyone to steer clear of foodborne pathogens. Vegetarians in India, perhaps because cows were needed for their dairy producing abilities more than they were for their meat? Those are just the first two examples that come to mind, not sure if my reasoning is correct, but if not, I'd bet there is some similar reason.

I suspect that many dietary rules in religions were an official backing of healthy and/or practical actions that most people already followed at the time. I think it's pretty smart of religions to impose "divine rules" about such issues, what a great way to mobilize and enthuse a large group of people! Especially if it's a rule that will substantially improve the health/economy/quality of life for your followers. I suppose it would be nice if some rules would get updated as time goes on, but religions by necessity have to stick to their guns about basic tenets, so it is what it is.

As I said, its only my opinion. I'm not a follower by nature. Never have been. I don't need anyone or any organization to tell me what to do or eat. I simply don't understand the concept. I'm also sure that there may well have been good reasons for some of these things where food quality was concerned. That makes sense to me. All of this said, I do things my way and others do it their way and I have less than zero problem with that and that's how it should be.

[GeorgiaPeach]

As I said, its only my opinion. I'm not a follower by nature. Never have been. I don't need anyone or any organization to tell me what to do or eat. I simply don't understand the concept. I'm also sure that there may well have been good reasons for some of these things where food quality was concerned. That makes sense to me. All of this said, I do things my way and others do it their way and I have less than zero problem with that and that's how it should be.

Where do you get the information you live by? Everyone has someone they listen to, even if it is MDA. Around here, science is popular. But from studying world history, people have been listening to others for as long as history has been recorded. Some used gods and myths to explain things such as why the Nile River floods or why the sun comes up slowly. Some people believed these myths and some just didn't want to be outcasts or lose their heads for going against the mainstream. Today, for the most part, we won't lose our heads for speaking against CW. But everyone has someone they listen to or get info from...even if it is just to get a pay check or go not go to jail. Unless you have your own lab and run your own experiments and taste all the foliage and check by trial and error which ones are poisonous or not, you listen to someone who says don't eat such and such because it is bad or unhealthy or will kill you. If not, go eat some Dart frogs for dinner.

[Lewis]

Thanks for the replies! She is Sikh from the Punjab region of India.

That's interesting. It made me go back and look up Sir Robert McCarrison's writings again. At the time when he was researching, the Sikhs had one of the healthiest diets of the different Indian populations and physiques to match. McCarrison used a modified version of the Sikh diet as the standard diet for his rats, since rats were healthier on that than on most other diets he tried.

It's an interesting story:

McCarrison - Nutrition and National Health - 1

The Sikhs in the 1920s did eat wheat in the form of chapatis -- which is obviously not a Paleo food-choice. (I'd guess a 1920s population probably had better gut health than modern populations do, so that it would not have been as much of a problem for them as it seems to be for us.) McCarrison does speak of the dangers of a diet that contains too much "farinaceous material" -- pointing to the peoples of Southern India (who ate rice and not much else) -- but thinks that what was "protective" for the Sikhs was their high intake of vegetables and of dairy products.

I had thought that the Sikhs were eating meat -- just not frequently. (McCarrison gave his rats on the modified "Sikh Diet" meat on the bone once a week.) But perhaps I was mistaken there. I guess the main source of first-class protein would have been dairy products. Then they would have eaten daal, made from beans, which would supply some of the amino acids missing in the proteins in the wheat.

I dunno. It's good that she eats chicken and chicken eggs.

Since dairy products are acceptable to Sikhs, seemingly being a large part of the diet in 20s, perhaps include those. Mark calls dairy products a "gray area". They do seem to be problematic for some people in at least some forms. But I should think eating them is the lesser of two evils for vegetarians, because there you have the problem of otherwise not having enough good protein sources. Dairy from sheep or goats seems to be better.