Vegan Vs. Paleo Diet: What's the Best Diet to Follow?

Hi, Dr. Axe fans. It's Jordan Rubin here filling in for the good doctor, and we're going to talk about diet today. What diet are you on? Are you a vegan eating a plant-based diet? Are you all about the paleo craze? Maybe it's GAPS. So many diets, so little time, but I want to talk to you today about what is the best diet for us to be eating, and I believe some of the answers May surprise you. We're also going to make some great recipes helping you get the nutrients that are missing in our diets today into your system easily and efficiently. And I may have a special guest come on and demonstrate just how easy and delicious it can be to get powerful nutrients into your life. So if you're watching us today, we call this program Ancient Medicine Today, and Dr. Josh Axe and myself, Jordan Rubin—

Hi.

Are on one or the other 5 days a week, Monday through Friday. And what we want to encourage you to do, if you know anyone out there who's following a Paleo diet, following a vegan diet, or is completely confused on which way to go, there's vegetarians, there's pescatarians, there's even begans, which are vegans that eat honey. It's all over the map. If you're a GAPS dieter, if you're following a special plan due to a health concern, Or you know someone who is, press the share button. Make sure to tell everyone you know that they're going to see and learn the down-low on paleo versus vegan. And as you can see today, we have the top plant foods and the top animal foods. And what's interesting is vegans will only eat plant foods, but paleo dieters not only consume animal foods but a more omnivorous diet. So we're going to let you know what the top plant foods are, what the top animal foods are, and help you make an educated choice on what you should consume. And again, there's going to be some great simple recipes, including one that I love for my children to consume. It's a great way to sneak some of the world's healthiest foods into their diet. Now let me quickly explain what a vegan diet is. A vegan diet differs from a vegetarian diet in that a true vegan diet is one Where you do not consume anything that comes from an animal or an insect. I know you don't really always catch that, but in the old days, my parents who were vegans, I would say 30, even 40 years ago, they would use the adage, don't consume anything that comes from anything that has a face. So that means no animal foods, no meat. No fish, no dairy, and we're even talking about no honey because honey comes from a bee, which while technically not an animal, is an insect. No eggs also. Typically vegetarians can consume some dairy and maybe even some eggs, and then they go into words such as lacto-ovo or lacto-vegetarian, but a vegan is someone who consumes only plants. Plant foods. And I'm here to tell you that there is a way to make a vegan diet extremely healthful. In fact, I am somebody who is trying always to get the best quality plant foods in my diet each and every day. And I'm someone who believes that you can consume high-quality animal foods. But if you're dealing with digestive challenges and you're somebody who wants to really boost your immune system, you might find that consuming foods from one of these groups that you're already not consuming may make a big difference. In case you're just tuning in, I'm Jordan Rubin. I'm here for Dr. Josh Axe, and together we bring you Ancient Medicine Today. So if you're somebody who wants to know the lowdown on whether you should follow a vegan diet, a paleo diet, Or an omnivorous diet. Maybe it's the GAPS diet. Maybe it's another type of special healing diet. We're going to tell you the best plant foods, the best animal foods, and we'll see the winner of paleo versus vegan. So we talked about what a vegan diet is. A paleo diet is a diet that is a very first century diet. Now I want to be very clear. I am not someone. Who believes that we've been on the earth for millions or billions of years. I only use the term paleo to meet with the popular nomenclature of the Paleolithic diet, which connotes the Paleolithic age. Personally, one day I want to create the biblio diet. Frankly, if you're watching right now and you agree with me that the paleo diet has some good tenets, but we should be following a biblio diet, which means a diet that's 5,000 years old from the beginning of time according to creation of the Bible than you, let me know. Chime in and say, I'm all for the Biblio diet, and we'll kind of see how many of you are interested. The Paleolithic diet was initially developed by Dr. Loren Cordain. I believe he was a professor at Colorado State University. Dr. Cordain believes that modern foods such as dairy and grains, beans and legumes cause digestive and immune system issues due to anti-nutrients. So he believes in a time period where people hunted and gathered or foraged for their food. And so that was very, very important. So when we're talking about a paleo diet, It is typically animal foods, so meat, eggs, and technically not dairy. So when you're consuming a Paleo diet, no dairy, no grains, which are supposedly foods of modern agriculture. You want to avoid legumes, which contain lectins, which can impact the health negatively and cause inflammation. And you want to be free, as I mentioned, of grains. Now, you can consume plant foods, typically fruits and vegetables, mostly low sugar. We're finding that a lot of people do really well on a paleo-type diet who need to lose weight, balance their blood sugar, and there are, let's say, extreme versions of that which we may touch on such as the ketogenic diet which is virtually all High protein and fat foods. So if you're just tuning in, I'm Jordan Rubin here for Dr. Josh Axe. Ancient Medicine Today is a program that brings you the latest information on health and wellness. And today, it's the showdown, paleo versus vegan. Which diet is better? Or perhaps, could there be a combination of both? We're going to have great recipes that are going to be kid-tested in just a few moments. And find ways for you to get key nutrients in your diet. On the big board, we have the top 5 plant-based foods and the top 5 animal foods. Let's get started. Number 1, green leafy veggies. Both of these 2 diets agree that green leafies are critical for your health. Why? They have chlorophyll. They've got vitamin A, more particularly Beta-carotene. They are great for detoxifying the body, providing energy, and they also do something called alkalize the body. Why? Because they have an excellent source of minerals. So green leafy vegetables are also low in calories, high in fiber, and really, really good for you. So green leafy vegetables such as lettuces. Kale and spinach, which we have right here, are great eaten raw, they're great in juices, and they're great cooked. Green leafy vegetables are the number one plant-based food, in my opinion, for you to get in your diet every day. Grandma said it, mom said it, eat more greens. So green leafies are number one. Number 2, berries. Berries are the bomb when it comes to fruits. I believe green leafies are the best vegetable, berries are the best fruits. Why? Because they're loaded with antioxidants. They protect your cells from damage. Colored berries, raspberries, blueberries, strawberries, blackberries contain pigments such as anthocyanin which helps support brain health, immune system health, can even support your gut. And cranberries are great for the urinary tract. There are many, many other berries from around the world such as Indian gooseberry, which I'm a big fan of. Mulberries are really good. So many berries. Berries are typically low in sugar and high in fiber. I told you all on a recent program that I've been trying to consume 1 pint of organic blueberries a day for their ability to support the immune system and boost the brain. I'm going to show you in a few minutes. How to get a full serving of blueberries plus other amazing nutrients in one simple smoothie. So berries are a huge benefit to the diet. Typically, the less sweet the berry, the better. Now berries have another amazing benefit: they contain seeds. The seeds of berries contain substances that boost the immune system. And transform your health. Blueberries have small seeds. We know strawberries have seeds. Raspberries have seeds and blackberries have really large seeds. Those seeds protect your body and help you have healthy cells. So if you're somebody who's dealing with something that causes their cells to struggle, what are cells? The smallest part of you. I recommend That you consume berries. Let's get to number 3. Number 3, herbs. Now, I've said this on this program before, the hierarchy of plant foods. Fruits are good, veggies are better, herbs are awesome, and spices are the best, which gives you a clue what we're going to talk about next. Herbs are awesome and we don't consume enough of them. Herbs such as lavender, rosemary, thyme, parsley can be considered an herb, horseradish. Many people consider some spices actually herbs, we'll get to that in a moment, but think of leafy herbs, oregano, etc. They usually provide antimicrobial benefits and they are very dense in nutrients. So let's get to our number 4 top plant food, it's a category, I alluded to it earlier, it's Spices. Spices are amazing. We don't get enough of them, and I'll give you probably my top four spices that should be in everyone's fridge, medicine cabinet, or even their daily tea. Let's start with turmeric. Turmeric is yellow or orange. It's great to support healthy inflammation. It's awesome for your immune system and your brain. Turmeric's cousin ginger. Is really, really amazing, especially for the gut. Turmeric and ginger are related and they're both awesome. Cook with them, juice them, use them in recipes, fresh, dried, or supplements, you can't go wrong. My third favorite spice is cinnamon. Turmeric for joints, ginger for the gut, and cinnamon for blood sugar. If you're someone out there who needs to balance your blood sugar, I recommend consuming 1/4 to 1 teaspoon of cinnamon a day. Again, you can consume cinnamon bark, you can consume dried cinnamon, or cinnamon in a supplement. And any of these spices are amazing for essential oils. So if you're watching this today and you're interested in top essential oils, for— as spices tell us. Is it turmeric? Is it ginger? Is it cinnamon? Or perhaps my 4th favorite spice, clove. Clove is awesome as a microbial balancer. It's great for the gums and it is really, really powerful as an antioxidant. Clove by weight has more antioxidants than almost any berry, more than pomegranate and certainly more Okay. Now, you'll notice I am sans smartphone. I'm going to make a confession here. While Dr. Josh Axe and his team are techies, I am decidedly not. I love to multitask, but it's a bit much for me to try to read your questions on a smartphone while trying to make sure that I don't hit the wrong button and talk at the same time. So I have a trusty producer. Sitting slightly off camera that will relay the questions that you have on diet. Paleo versus vegan versus GAPS, what's best for you, what's best for your kids, and don't forget, we've got great recipes on how you can infuse your body with powerful nutrients that are of primary interest to vegans and paleo dieters alike. So we talked about 4 areas of plant foods. Let's go into animal foods. Now, I want to say this, I love plant foods and I eat animal foods. What I find is that plant-based dieters are very offended by animal food consumption, whereas animal food lovers are kind of fine with plant-based. So if you are a plant-based dieter, I believe there are many great things to add to your diet. We mentioned 4. Coconut is amazing. Avocado is amazing. We talk about that all the time. Nuts and seeds are amazing. There are wonderful plant foods, and if you're a plant-based diet or if you're a vegan, great. We love you. We want you to be on board with us. However, we also believe there's some powerful animal foods, and we always recommend that they are of the highest quality, free of chemicals. And nutritious. So let's get started. What are some top animal foods? Number 1, no surprise to you, I'm sure, bone broth. You know, I have seen many plant-based dieters or vegans that decided to add some animal foods to their diet start with bone broth. I have seen people with gut challenges or a need to lose weight. A need to detoxify, start with bone broth. When people have come to me over the years for coaching and they say, what do I do to jumpstart my health? I always recommend bone broth first. It's gentle, it's mild, and more than that, it builds your body. It holds you together. It supports the health of your skin, hair, nails, digestive tract. It is great for your immune system, right? What did grandma say you should consume when you're not feeling great? Chicken soup. What did the book series say that writes about all these topics to help your soul? It is Chicken Soup for the Soul. Chicken soup is bone broth, really. Bone broth is the number one food in my mind for those who call themselves paleo eaters And it is great for omnivores everywhere. If you are someone who loves the GAPS diet, if you followed my Maker's Diet, those are very similar. You know that bone broth is a critical component to regaining your health. But bone broth, one of the top animal foods if you're someone who consumes healthy animal foods. Number two. The incredible edible egg. Now, eggs were out of favor for a while because they contain cholesterol. Guess what? That's one of the things that makes them great. I'm not going to go off onto a tangent, but cholesterol in food, particularly eggs, helps your body. It builds reproductive health, hormones, etc., testosterone, estrogen, they're made from cholesterol. So eggs were out. And then the yolk was out, but guess what? If I'm going to consume an egg and throw anything away, it's the white. I think the whole egg's best, but eggs from chickens, pasture-raised, eggs from duck, and probably my favorite egg of all, really small fish eggs, caviar. Treat yourself. You might say, well, I'm not rich or famous, I can't afford caviar. Oh yeah, you can. Go to a specialty grocer. And you'd be surprised at how affordable fish roe and caviar really is. Salmon roe is awesome. It's orange, it contains not only omega-3s, it contains vitamin E and D, phospholipids which are great for the brain, and astaxanthin which is a powerful antioxidant and it's what makes salmon orange, pink, or even red. So we've got bone broth and eggs. What came first, the bone broth or the eggs? Well, in this case it's the bone broth. Number 3, organ meats. Okay, so organ meats, folks, if you can do it from a clean source, loaded with iron, loaded with B12, great source of minerals, the best source of vitamin A and D and omega-3 fats. Someone might ask, and I bet you already have, if I eat liver from an animal, isn't the liver where the body purifies toxins? You're absolutely right. But the actual liver of an animal, particularly if one is raised properly, is very, very clean.

Yeah.

The final top animal food is fish. Folks, if you study cultures from around the world, those that consume the largest amount of fish are typically the healthiest. We know that fish can be high in omega-3 fatty acids. Fish is a great source of protein. Some fish, salmon, mackerel, herring, and sardines, tuna, particularly smaller tuna, are high in omega-3 fats. Some fish including salmon have phospholipids and astaxanthin. But fish is also a rich source of minerals, particularly iodine. And I could have easily had sea vegetables or seaweed up here as one of the most nutrient-dense vegetable foods, but seafood, fish is rich in the mineral iodine, which is good for what? Your thyroid. Iodine is an important nutrient for thyroid. You might say, but I don't like fish, my kids won't eat it. Find a way to get fish in their diet because for centuries fish has become a powerful food for those that need to consume it. So in just a minute, I'm going to have my special guest come up and we're going to show you How to get the best of both worlds, nutrients that vegans love and that Paleo dieters love. We're talking today about Paleo versus vegan, 2 of the most popular diets out there, which is best? Vegan means only plant foods. Paleo is animal foods but doesn't allow foods of modern industry or agriculture, no dairy, No grains, no beans and legumes. It's wild, it's hunter-gatherer and caveman-like. Now, I said earlier that I personally don't believe there was a Paleolithic period. If you don't like that, let us know. But if you're like me and you would rather see a 3rd diet come on the board called the Biblio diet, you need to send in Biblio rocks. What's the Biblio diet? I wrote a book called The Maker's Diet and it details thousands of years of history and the foods and the lifestyle that saw our ancestors thrive. It's not paleo, it's not vegan, it is the best of both worlds. And if you love it, maybe we'll have a biblio diet on our hands sometime soon. So Jason, what question do we have that might be interesting today?

Jordan says, Sarah writes in, I heard that eating too many cruciferous vegetables can be toxic. Is this true?

It's a great question. Now, we have kale right here. So what is a cruciferous vegetable first of all? Kale, collard, broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, watercress, cabbage, to name a few. Cruciferous vegetables contain goitrogens and if you're somebody who has thyroid issues, You may, particularly a goiter, you may exacerbate the condition by consuming cruciferous vegetables. There's ways around it. Ferment them. That's a great way to make them more friendly to the body. And there are ways to consume cruciferous vegetables in sprouted form. So if you are someone who has thyroid issues, you can still get the best of cruciferous vegetables. Eat some sauerkraut. Broccoli sprouts and watercress, those are all mildly goitrogenic, but for most of you, cruciferous vegetables containing sulfur compounds to detoxify the body are awesome. Johns Hopkins University did a great study on the benefits of broccoli sprouts. You need to check it out online because it is absolutely amazing for your immune system and your detoxification. Jason, one of our producers, is organizing your comments. We will begin to show you how to take perhaps the top 2 foods, plant and animal, combine them simply and easily, and I even have a taste tester that should be able to show you how delicious and nutritious this drink can be. So what we're going to do is take bone broth. Protein Greens. Now remember, Bone Broth Protein Greens is a brand new product. You're not even going to hear about it probably for a couple more weeks. Bone Broth Protein Greens combines bone broth protein with raw green juice in a dried form that will give you the equivalent of 2 to 3 cups of bone broth homemade, and you're going to get a shot of Juice along with it, collagen, chondroitin, glucosamine, hyaluronic acid, and 20 grams of protein plus chlorophyll, magnesium, beta-carotene. This is an alkalizing formula. If you want to alkalize your body, if you want minerals, this is for you. So we've got some purified water, okay, right here, little shaker bottle. One scoop of bone broth protein greens. This is going to be awesome. I love to show this. Okay, watch. Dr. Axe made a mess of this by not tightening the lid last week, so I'm going to tighten it extra hard. All right, so a little shake. I love these bottles. Look how green this is. Check this out. This is my breakfast, folks, every single morning, bone broth protein greens. You know what's interesting? There's not a person I meet That I don't recommend. 2 amazing foods too, bone broth and veggie juice. But guess what? I travel around the world lecturing and I ask people, how many of you think veggie juice is good for me? Everybody says yes. How many of you consume it every day? 2 to 3%. Bone broth, how many of you have heard of it and love it? Lots of people. How many of you make it every day? Not so many. Folks, imagine every day getting the power of raw vegetable juice and bone broth together for the first time ever in easy form. It's so good, it's not only been my breakfast, but I give it to my 12-year-old son Joshua, who many of you have seen last week back by popular demand from his days at homeschool. Here's what he said to my wife Nikki, Mom, can I be on today to practice my public speaking? So you are going to have to tell us how Joshua is doing. Now, he's 12, he's not used to being in front of the camera, but this will be his 3rd appearance. We're working on eye contact and smiling. So we want you to encourage Joshua and let him know how he's doing as he comes in to show all of you how good bone broth protein greens is. Folks, listen, this is just bone broth protein and greens. There's no stevia, no monk fruit, no sweeteners. This is the real stuff. It tastes mild. It's kind of like a tea. So son, come on in here. And ladies and gentlemen, this is Joshua Rubens. He's taking the place, my 12-year-old son. He loves to eat healthful foods. Go for it, buddy. It's great for his skin. You don't have to drink it all real fast. I just want you to have some because I'm making a smoothie later. So now, why don't you tell us, Joshua, why you consume Bone broth protein greens every day?

Well, bone broth has 20 grams of protein in it per one serving and a shot of green juice as my dad said. And I think it tastes really good, so that's why I drink it every morning.

And Joshua does love eating healthy, but he also loves delicious food. Last night, we were out and Joshua and the kids made a gluten-free pizza, right? High antioxidant pizza, really, really good. Now, I will say this, you were a little concerned about the green mustache, we do have a Paper towel, it's not too green right now but you can go ahead and get it. Every morning, I feel great that my son gets the equivalent of 2 to 3 cups of bone broth and a shot of greens. You can go ahead and have another sip. I want people to know it really tastes good. And how would you describe the taste after you're done drinking, Mr. Green Mustache over there?

Well, to me it tastes like a combination of bone broth with a little wheatgrass in it, so it's not that bad.

Okay, but kind of like a tea, you know, pretty mild. Excellent. We're excited to give you tools to transform your health. So I'm going to have you scoot over and maybe drink a little bit more of this. Folks, if your child or you want to get the power of bone broth, fruits and veggies, this whole list, green leafies, berries, herbs, spices all together, I'm going to show you how we do it in the Rubin household. This is called the Paleo Vegan Super Green Bone Broth Smoothie. Don't quote me on that because I'm just making the name up on— that's a little long, isn't it? Yeah.

A little long.

Paleo Vegan Super Green Bone Broth Smoothie. I usually like names that are less than 72 syllables, but this is a smoothie that gives you great nutrition and it's a little sneaky because we're going to put some things in there that your kids normally don't eat. So we're going to take some organic apple juice. Now, I would prefer juice it yourself or buy a bottled juice that is HPP or cold-pressed The other option is we used to go and do this, we'd make juice or go to the store, a juice bar, say, I want fresh apple and kale combo. So we've got 12 ounces of apple juice in our paleo vegan super green bone broth smoothie. You're going to come up with a name as we're going here.

Okay.

1 banana, organic is always best. Okay, so 1 banana, so it's going to be a little bit sweet. Thank you, son. Then we're going to add 1 cup of blueberries. These are frozen, you can also add fresh. Now, blueberries, remember, are a great source of anthocyanins. It's what makes them purple. And this also makes the smoothie sort of icy. You can add ice, but I prefer to use frozen fruit. I've added frozen strawberries, frozen pomegranate. You know, I like to go to the health food store or even the club store and get one of those antioxidant fruit bags. You like those, don't you?

Those are awesome.

All right, so now we're going to add a little bit of kale. How much? 1 to 2 cups. I'm good at measuring on the fly. But add some raw kale in here, okay? I always like to use high-speed juicers, so we're going to see if this one works. I've already got a note to bring a higher-speed juicer. So this is spinach. So we've got raw spinach and kale going right in there. This is the sneaky part, and voilà, bone broth protein greens. So this is... The paleo vegan, and you may think I'm teasing, but I've met people that say they're paleo vegans. I think they're just kind of confused.

Sure.

All right, we're going to use this blender. Admittedly, this is not my blender, this is someone else's blender. It doesn't come out perfectly. I absolutely take no liability and this has nothing to do with me. I've only chosen the ingredients. So we're going to power it up here and—

not bad.

It works. It's working. You want to make sure the fiber is completely dissipated. It's getting there. All right, all that hating on this poor blender, I'm really sorry. Now folks, remember, this is the— who said I could get it off? That might be the issue. All right, got it. Okay, so now Joshua, who already Consumed much of a bone broth protein and water. Now he's going to consume something that contains blueberries, banana, apple juice, spinach, kale, and bone broth protein greens. And truthfully, what does it taste like?

Oh, it's awesome.

It's awesome. So what are you getting from that?

Well, it tastes like banana, apple, and blueberry. You can't taste the green or the bone broth powder.

12-year-old kid, out of the mouth of babes. Good job. So is this something I can start making? Oh yeah, I'll drink this. Check this out, 20 grams of protein, just the bone broth protein greens alone, the equivalent of one shot of wheatgrass, but it's gluten-free. Folks, no sweeteners, no thickeners, just raw organic greens and bone broth protein. We added a banana, we added frozen organic blueberries, kale, spinach, kid-tested, Blender and dad approved, voilà. So Joshua, any final words on bone broth protein greens? You've been consuming this in test phase for 6 weeks?

Yeah, about 6 weeks.

So those of you who saw Joshua on our special On the Road with Dr. Josh and Jordan at Natural Products Expo East showing all the great products that we were finding, Joshua earned his trip to Baltimore, Maryland. By consuming 1 serving of bone broth protein greens in the morning and 1 serving of bone broth protein turmeric in the afternoon. And I have a little secret for you. Not only did Joshua consume bone broth protein greens today, he consumed another bone broth protein right after as I was leaving the house, but we're going to talk to you about that in a couple of weeks. Pretty cool. We got all kinds of new bone broth protein.

Oh, yeah.

It's spreading out through the entire country, you're going to find it. Not only right here on the Dr. Axe store but in health food stores nationwide and worldwide. We're very excited about it. So what do you say about all this paleo vegan stuff, bone broth protein greens? What were your observations of today's program?

Yeah, well, it's very interesting the difference between vegan and paleo and how paleo is talking about old times and all that stuff. But yeah, I love bone broth greens. I've been drinking it for 6 weeks and after a while I can't even— I mean, at the beginning it tasted a little weird to me because I wasn't used to wheatgrass. But I mean, after about 3 times I got used to it and now I love it.

Absolutely. And he's definitely one of the biblio, in the biblio camp, right? All right, buddy. Love you. Props, hugs. You can hug on camera. We're hugging on camera. Smile, look up, chin up. Good job, buddy. I appreciate it. Paleo versus vegan, what's the verdict, folks? My personal opinion, having been a vegan and having gone on a diet that is mostly meat and fat, I've done both. I believe that the best is a combo. Now, I know some of you will be insulted by that. Remember, if you're a vegan, I think you can do a lot of great things with your diet. I'm going to shut this off, but then I've had a little accident before, so in case I was really turning it on. I believe that if you're a vegan, by consuming green leafies, berries, herbs, spices, chia, flax, coconut, avocado, you can have a wonderful healthy diet. I personally believe an omnivorous diet is better. If you're a paleo dieter, consuming bone broth, eggs, organ meats, and fish are wonderful, but so are all these. And anybody who lives, breathes, eats, thinks, or drinks, get your greens and get your bone broth because the clear winners, bone broth and green leafies, are awesome. They're here to stay and almost every health enthusiast, nutritionist, and Jewish grandmother agrees. That bone broth and greens are awesome, folks. My son Joshua is here today, and my other children are at home. Hi, Emma! Hi, Samuel! Hi, Alexis! Hi, Isabella! And hi to my wonderful wife Nikki. They watch our program Ancient Medicine Today as part of their homeschool nutrition and science course. Of course, Joshua said, "Mom, can I be on the set today? Because I want to practice public speaking." What better way to do it than in front of? Tens of thousands of you. So we did say that somebody could ask questions about any kind of diet.

Yeah, Janet asked, if you follow a vegan diet, what are the top 3 foods you recommend to ensure a complete nutritional profile?

Great. If you're a vegan, what are the top 3 foods you need to ensure complete nutrition? Now, you've probably heard that vitamin D and vitamin B12 are difficult to get in a vegan diet. So let me say this, the way to get vitamin D without eating foods that contain it is to get sunlight. Make sure to get sun in the times of year that the sun is out, which is really most of the year. Get sun from 12:00 to 2:00 p.m., that's when the sun is right in the middle of the sky and the rays are the longest and the best for vitamin D. I know that's not a food, but it's really good. Anything fermented. Will help your gut produce B12 and spirulina has a B12 analog. So I'm going to throw that in there, spirulina, fermented foods. I always say this and I'm going to go longer than the 3. If you're going to be a vegan, I recommend coconut foods, avocado or olives, any of the monounsaturated fat foods and chia flax hemp, so a plant-based omega-3. Chia, flax, hemp seed, avocado, olive, macadamia nut, particularly avocado and olive, and as we said, coconut. Coconut is really, really important. You need fats if you're on a plant-based diet, highly recommend it. Let's get another question here. Let's get a hard question.

A hard question, okay.

Not about—

What is ketosis? I hear it a lot in relation to Paleo, not sure what it means.

Okay, the ketogenic diet or ketosis is a state where the body is not burning carbohydrates for fuel but burning ketone bodies and then using your own fat. Most people say that you need to get between 20 and 50 grams of carbs a day to be in nutritional ketosis. Ketosis is a state where you're not burning sugar anymore and many people with serious health conditions or that want to lose weight or children with brain imbalances have done well on a ketogenic diet. Ketogenic diet is pretty much protein on a moderate level, fat at a high level, and very low carbohydrates. Paleo is not keto, but keto is almost always paleo. Go figure that out. And I'm not going to ask you if you're a paleo keto vegan. I don't even have time to figure out what that means. Probably someone out there.

In relation to one of the top animal foods, Cheryl asks, what about mercury in fish? Where do you fall on that and what are the guidelines you recommend?

Mercury in fish, heavy metals in fish, here's what I say. Now, this might sound argumentative, but people say, why do you eat fish because there's mercury? The environment got worse over the last few hundred years. I would argue and say that the lettuce has more mercury than it used to as well, but it's a great question. Tuna is the poster child for high mercury fish, but I still eat tuna. When I eat tuna, I try to consume young or small tuna. Oh, wait a minute, I don't see young tuna in the store. If you consume high omega-3 or low mercury tuna, it's in there. You can actually find tuna from brands such as Wild Planet or there's a couple of other brands, Henry and Lisa's. They are low mercury tuna, also high in omega-3s. The way you know if tuna is young is it contains high fats in a base of water. So you know how tuna comes in olive oil, comes in spring water. Tuna in water that has 3, 4, 5 grams of fat is made from smaller fish because as the tuna age, they get bigger and they have less fat. Isn't that a cool thing? Young tuna, low mercury, and there's other fish. that are lower in mercury naturally, always wild fish. And I believe that the fat in fish helps to detoxify the body of mercury. So you may be getting metals, but you're also discarding them. And guess what else helps to detoxify metals? Greens, bone broth. As long as you're consuming those, fish can be really, really healthy. Next question, sir.

This question's come in from probably dozens of commenters, but essentially, what is the GAPS diet? And where does it fall in this vegan paleo discussion?

Absolutely. The GAPS diet is named for the Gut and Psychology Syndrome, really talking about the fact that your gut is the second brain. Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride out of the United Kingdom, who I worked with years and years ago, created the GAPS diet which involves gut rehabilitation starting with bone broth, then adding fermented foods and keeping starches or disaccharides low. So the GAPS diet, the Gut and Psychology Syndrome, recommends bone broth and it is commonly used for people with gut issues or brain issues. And while I'm on the gut issue side, tomorrow I'm going to be sharing a very special program here at 10:30. If you know anyone who's dealing with IBS, Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, I'm going to share a powerful story you will not want to miss and even if you're someone with leaky gut, constipation, or any gut issues, 10:30 a.m. Central Time. You don't want to miss it. This information has never been shared before the way we're going to present it. Last question.

Lori asks, can essential oils give as much benefit as the herbs or the spices themselves?

That's a great question, Lori. Essential oils are awesome, but they're oils. Plants have benefits from multiple fractions. Oils are the lipo— soluble or fatty portions. For example, if you consume lavender oil, it's amazing. If you use it, it's amazing. But the lavender plant does have some additional benefits. So when consuming my 4 favorite spices, turmeric, ginger, cinnamon, and clove, I recommend make a tea or a decoction and use essential oils. And I'll give you a little secret, we're working on some things that combine all of that together. Herbs and spices are great. The oils truly are one of the very best parts. And by the way, here's what's great about essential oils. If you're a paleo dieter or a vegan or ketogenic or GAPS or if you're everything in between, you can use essential oils topically and orally. So folks, I want to thank you for being here today. We got bone broth greens right here. We've got an amazing smoothie. And we've got all of you championing our message that food is medicine. I'm Jordan Rubin on behalf of Dr. Josh Axe and with our special guest Joshua Rubin wishing you amazing health.

Hi, Dr. Axe here. I want to say thanks so much for checking out this YouTube video and also don't forget to subscribe if you want to get more great content on things like herbs, essential oils, natural remedies, and how to use food as medicine.

As medicine.

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