Column #112

Why are Ketogenic and Paleo diets so popular yet the world’s healthiest meats are not?

In 2004 Google Trends started keeping track of the daily relative popularity of specific search terms. That data provide real world measures of the public’s interest in all kinds of subjects. For example, from 2004 through 2008 the average comparative rankings were 31 for grass fed beef, 28 for Ketogenic diet, and 22 for Paleo diet. That was following the 2003 peak in the Adkins diet when one in eleven Americans tried it. But interest in Adkins imploded to nearly zero during 2004.

In 2009, the Paleo diet fad started growing exponentially leaving grass fed beef and Ketogenic diet in the dust. At its peak in January 2013, Paleo diet’s relative ranking was 100 compared to 6 for both grass fed beef and Ketogenic diet. In January 2014 Paleo diet had another spike at 97 with Ketogenic at 9 and grass fed beef at 8. Following that, interest in the Paleo diet steadily faded while the Ketogenic diet gained ground, moving ahead of grass fed beef.

From 2015 through late 2017 interest in the Paleo diet plunged. It’s now 25 while Ketogenic diet is 32 and rising yet grass fed beef is only 4. Amazingly, actual searches for grass fed beef are lower now (October 2017) than in December 2009.

The nutritional principles of the Paleo and Ketogenic diets call for low glycemic foods, grass-fed meats, fats high in Omega-3 and low in Omega-6, and vegetables. And true to the cause, a search of Paleo and Ketogenic websites reveals that most have at least one page extolling the superior nutritional characteristics of grass-fed meats compared to grain-fed meats. So, if those diets are so popular, why are their “preferred” meats lagging in popularity?

It all comes down to what is actually being recommended and why. The Paleo and Ketogenic sites I reviewed are targeting broad-based markets with recipes, supplements, books, and foods typically offered in health food stores. To reach that large market, marketers recommend socially acceptable foods because they are convenient, affordable, have familiar flavors, textures, and appearance, and are perceived as healthier than common fare. Those tactics work because most people aren’t interested in making the required food and sensory changes needed to follow science-based nutritional guidelines.

Unfortunately, that’s why most Paleo/Ketogenic foods and recipes end up ignoring the following essential guidelines:
●    Be low glycemic;
●    Have 1:1 ratios of Omega-6 and to Omega-3s essential fatty acids (EFA);
●    Be nutrient dense with a proper balance of most, if not all, nutrients required for optimal body function.

The basic tenants of Paleo and Ketogenic are well grounded. But marketers continue to abuse science for the sake of profit. That’s why after trying these improperly marketed new age fad diets, people eventually turn away in disgust. Meanwhile, their skepticism of nutritional science is reinforced.

Bamboozling means to deceive by underhanded methods. We find this all too often in the food industry with the worst offenders, unfortunately, being marketers of health food. I don’t mean to imply that all marketers are guilty. But our industry is overloaded with them. The goal of maximizing sales and profits is why the marketing efforts for Adkins, Paleo, and Ketogenic have similar recommendations. Which begs the question: why aren’t grass-fed and Omega-3 meats, which Paleo and Ketogenic supposedly promote, going up in popularity instead of down?

To your health.

Ted Slanker

Ted Slanker has been reporting on the fundamentals of nutritional research in publications, television and radio appearances, and at conferences since 1999. He condenses complex studies into the basics required for health and well-being. His eBook, The Real Diet of Man, is available online.

For additional reading:

Grass Fed Beef, Ketogenic Diet, Paleo Diet 2004 to 2008 by Google Trends

Grass Fed Beef, Ketogenic Diet, Paleo Diet 2009 to 2014 by Google Trends

Grass Fed Beef, Ketogenic Diet, Paleo Diet 2015 to 2017 by Google Trends

Grass Fed Beef, Ketogenic Diet, Paleo Diet 2004 to 2017 by Google Trends

Grass Fed Beef 2004 to 2017 by Google Trends

Many Paleo Recipes Are Nutritional Disasters by Ted Slanker

The Importance of the Ratio of Omega 6 Omega 3 Essential Fatty Acids by Artemis Simopoulos, M.D.