Macro partitioning
Adopting a hunter-gatherer-style macronutrient profile (approx. 35% fat, 35% carbs, 30% protein) with high polyunsaturated fat intake and minimal refined sugars improves metabolic health markers compared to the standard Western diet.
To align with your evolutionary biology, structure your diet to include roughly equal parts fat, carbohydrates, and protein by energy. Prioritize polyunsaturated fats (like those in wild game and plants) over saturated fats, and keep added sugars to a minimum (under 3% of energy). Aim for high fiber intake (>100g/day) from fruits and vegetables, and maintain a high potassium-to-sodium ratio. This approach is associated with lower serum cholesterol and reduced risk of chronic degenerative diseases compared to the standard Western diet.
The best available estimates suggest that those ancestors obtained about 35 % of their dietary energy from fats, 35 % from carbohydrates and 30 % from protein... Polyunsaturated fat intake was high, with n-6:n-3 approaching 2 :1 (v. 10 : 1 today)... Honey comprised 2–3% energy intake as compared with the 15 % added sugars contribute currently.
Why this rating
The evidence is based on retrojected estimates from modern hunter-gatherer groups and evolutionary theory, not direct RCTs on the ancestral diet itself.
Source
The ancestral human diet: what was it and should it be a paradigm for contemporary nutrition?
S. Boyd Eaton · Proceedings of The Nutrition Society · 2006
DOI 10.1079/pns2005471
More from this paper
- An ancestral diet high in fruits and vegetables and low in grains and dairy is net base-yielding, which prevents the chronic metabolic acidosis associated with modern acid-producing diets.Moderate
- Ancestral diets provided significantly higher micronutrient intake (1.5 to 8 times) than modern diets, with the exception of sodium, which was much lower in ancestral times.Moderate
Related findings · Macro partitioning
- Total daily protein intake of 1.6 g/kg/day is sufficient for maximizing resistance training-induced muscle gains, with an upper confidence interval of 2.2 g/kg/day.Strong
- Resistance exercise training combined with sufficient dietary protein intake acts synergistically to maximize skeletal muscle hypertrophy, with protein intake saturating around 1.6 g/kg/day for general populations and potentially requiring 2.0-2.2 g/kg/day for resistance-trained individuals.Strong
- Trans fats should be completely eliminated from the diet, as they increase LDL cholesterol, decrease HDL cholesterol, and are directly associated with increased coronary risk.Strong
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