Is Paleo or Plant-Based Better for Autoimmune Diseases?

This is a common question on the internet ~ so, I’m going to delve into it a bit!

The Paleo diet was introduced in the 1970s by Dr. Walter L. Voegtlin, but became much more popular in the last few years. It is an eating plan based on foods likely eaten by pre-historic Hunter-Gatherers that lived during the Paleolithic Era (2.5 million to 10,000 years ago, which pre-dates agriculture and animal husbandry). The theory is that our bodies evolve slowly and haven’t evolved enough to eat a modern diet – and, that we are still stuck in the Hunger-Gatherer stage.

The paleo diet typically includes lean meat (grass-fed / pasture-raised), fish, vegetables, fruits, nuts, and seeds (eggs sometimes included).

It excludes foods not available during the Paleolithic Era – grains, legumes (beans, peas, lentils), and dairy.

Also, excluding sugar, salt, and processed foods.

Plant-based diet focus on foods primarily from plants. This includes not only fruits and vegetables, but also nuts, seeds, oils, whole grains, legumes, and seeds.

They are not necessarily vegetarian or vegan. Some meat, eggs, and dairy can be included. In order to follow a plant-based diet – you proportionately choose more of your foods from plant sources.

There are many different types of plant-based diets: from vegan to vegetarian and all the various types of vegan and vegetarian diets to those that eat dairy and meat and fish occasionally.

Paleo diets tend to focus their meals on meat – some as much as 60%.

Plant-based diets do tend to focus their meals more on vegetables.

2013 and 2014 peak interest in the paleo diet.

Plant-based popularity – sharp uptake at the end of 2019 – coinciding with a Netflix documentary, “The Game Changers” about plant-based diets.

There was another peak around Jan 2021 – when people were again interested in improving their health.

Arguments for Plant-based diets over Paleo:

Ethical / Moral
Anti-Inflammatory
Positive effects on the gut microbiome
Better recovery post workouts
Increased Energy
Protein? There is still much mis-information around this notion –

But – Yes! It is entirely possible to get enough on plant based diets – and, particularly VEGAN DIETS!

Think about a horse or an elephant. These are big muscular animals. What are they eating? PLANTS!

*Check out the other articles on my site where I thoroughly discuss all the protein of plants and – the “Protein Myth”!

The AIP (Auto Immune Protocol) is a modification of the Paleo diet. It is plant-based – but, proponents still eat meat. It was developed by the Paleo diet community to deal with autoimmune disorders.

The paleo autoimmune protocol (AIP) stems from Dr. Loren Cordain a scientist who discovered that certain foods can sometimes trigger inflammation in people with autoimmune diseases (dairy, eggs, nightshades nuts and seeds). In his book, The Paleo Solution, Robb Wolf introduces it as an elimination diet – where you eliminate certain foods for 30 days and then reintroduce them one at a time, to test your body for food intolerance.

Dr. Sarah Ballantyne (The Paleo Mom) is a scientist with autoimmunity and was very interested in the autoimmune protocol. She eventually expanded the AIP to the version detailed in her book, The Paleo Approach. She is the leading expert on the autoimmune protocol. She advocates eating 9 – 12 cups of veggies a day.

The Wahls Diet was created by Dr. Terry Wahls, who was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in the year 2000 and within 3 years was dependent on a wheelchair – in spite of being treated conventionally with chemotherapy and immunosuppressant drugs.

The medication did not halt the progression of her disease, so she looked elsewhere for answers.

In 2007, she developed a diet that focused on feeding her mitochondria (the cell units in the body that provide the energy for nerve impulses) – imperative In MS, where nerve conduction is impeded. After one year on the diet, she no longer needed the wheelchair and was able to bike for 18 miles. The diet’s central focus was – copious amounts of vegetables, to meet the body’s optimal nutritional needs through food – specifically, she advocates for 9 cups of vegetables a day.

There are other diets associated with autoimmune disease healing:

The Gaps diet

At it’s core is that a damaged digestive tract cannot break down specific types of carbohydrates (grains, starches, and refined sugars) which leads to an overabundance of harmful bacteria that can further irritate the digestive tract, leading to further difficulty in digesting food.

By eliminating these carbohydrates from the diet, the digestive tract can heal, and with it, associated digestive disease. This diet is linked to numerous incarnations – but is associated with alleviating symptoms related to autism and related disorders, on one hand and autoimmune conditions, such as ulcerative colitis.

Dr. Brooke Goldner

Reversed her own disease (Lupus) through diet and nutrition with her vegan, raw foods protocol. She lived with lupus for 12 years, she had kidney failure, blood clots, and mini-strokes.

She started eating a plant-based diet, lots of salads, green smoothies, and she became Lupus-free – with normal blood tests, normal kidneys, and was able to get pregnant and have two kids (when she was told she couldn’t).

The protocol emphasizes green smoothies filled ¾ with greens, raw veggie meals, and lots of omega 3’s (flax and chia seeds). She talks widely of the “Protein Myth” created by the meat and dairy industry, stresses the high protein amounts of veggies and fruits and how easy it is to get all your needed protein from veggies.

“high animal products, meat, dairy and highly processed foods, fast foods, that as people around the world are eating a diet more like ours, they are now getting higher and higher levels of autoimmune diseases as well,” Goldner notes.

The Vegan AIP (Autoimmune Protocol)

This is a modification of the AIP diet developed by vegans dealing with autoimmune conditions and chronic illnesses. It is a vegan diet that takes incorporates the “Elimination” (of inflammatory foods and ingredients) and “Reintroduction” Phases of the AIP. Since – every person’s case is different – and troubleshooting is many times essential – many of us have incorporated other protocols, as well. Centrally – we advocate for even higher quantities of veggies than the Terry Wahls Protocol ( 9 cups) or Dr. Sara Ballantyne (9 12 cups). We advocate for 12 – 16 cups.

Many of us also integrate Dr. Brooke Goldners nutrient-dense green smoothie regimen, without the addition of flax and chia seeds (when can be reintroduced later). Many of us also advocate for incorporating raw veggie meals. We also incorporating drinking a lot more water – as Dr. Goldner advocates.

In Summary ~

When the Paleo Diet was modified to become for a healing diet – specifically for autoimmune conditions – the modification was in incorporating a lot more plants.

People have put autoimmune conditions into remission using the Paleo diet alone, while some need to go a step further to implement the AIP. People have also healed their autoimmune conditions from Vegan diets alone – while some of us need to go a step further to implement lifestyles like the vegan AIP.

But– if you can get past the “Protein Myth” created by the meat and dairy industry, so frequently talked about by Dr Brooke Goldner – it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see that –

more plants equals more health!

Thus – it is not much of a leap to see that: The Vegan AIP will decrease even more inflammation than the standard AIP diet!

As I stated above – every person’s case is different and unique and troubleshooting and tweaks are usually necessary along the way. Some healing takes place quickly and some take place slowly.

We all need to personalize our eating plans. It is important that we seek out health practitioners to support our journey – that we can trust and will listen to us. And, it is important that we not compare ourselves to others. Patience is necessary to just allow healing to occur.

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