Stop Drinking Sweet Liquids – Eliminate juice, soda, sweeteners, sports drinks, coffee drinks (known as milkshakes with espresso), alcohol, diet drinks, protein shakes, etc. Focus on water, herbal tea, sparkling water, kombucha, kefir, and even unsweetened coffee and teas. Coconut water is an option if weight-loss is not a personal goal (has natural carbohydrates with electrolytes, ideal for cardio sports). It doesn’t take long to start appreciating the real flavors of food once we’re less accustomed to consuming sweet substances.

Soda is ubiquitous in our culture and devastating to our health; it’s also addictive and can be a difficult habit for some to break. For addicted soda drinkers, try transitioning to healthier options gradually: choose flavored carbonated water like La Croix, Klarbrunn or Spindrift brands. If you crave something sweet, try sodas sweetened with stevia like Xevia brand; If you’re at a convenience store looking for a soda substitute, try Vitamin Water, Bubbler or Bai brands that use stevia in place of sugar. *Note that stevia is a crutch and not a long term solution.*

Go Gluten-Free – Eliminate all sources of gluten: wheat, barley, rye, triticale, and sometimes oats due to cross contamination (look for specifically labelled gluten-free oats). This also includes products made from these ingredients such as baked goods, soy sauce, beer, brewer’s yeast, seitan (vegetarian mock meat), veggie burgers, cream sauce made with a roux, malt products like vinegar, etc.

Beware: Replacing favorite gluten products with the store-bought gluten-free products is not recommended. Not only are they expensive but those products are only a step healthier than the gluten-laden item – they’re still made with other processed starches and chemicals. Instead, focus on using vegetables as a replacement such as lettuce wraps, sweet potato pie without a crust, pumpkin porridge, red pepper slices instead of sandwich bread, zucchini noodles… the possibilities are endless and truly steps you into a Paleo diet. There are many online resources devoted to a strict gluten-free lifestyle for those with celiac disease, but they also offer beneficial information for those of us just looking for better health in general.

Commit to a Paleo Breakfast – The hardest meal to change is often breakfast with all the sugar and starch in traditional choices of cereals, baked goods, juices and jams. Get in the habit of eating a vegetable, a protein, and a healthy fat for this meal. Omelets or scrambles are a great option, but also consider having tuna salad on greens or sweet potato hash with sausage or last night’s leftovers. No one said breakfast has to “look like breakfast.” That being said, there are numerous Paleo breakfast recipes that replicate muffins or pancakes for when you want to recreate a favorite (for a special occasion perhaps).

Eliminate Flour-Based Foods – Take all baked goods, or foods created with flour, out of your diet. This includes crackers, bread, pasta, pancakes, bagels, seitan (vegetarian mock meat ingredient), cookies, muffins, waffles, pretzels, bars, etc. If it was made with flour, leave it at the store.

Remove Industrial Seed Oils – The chemically processed oils we regard as “heart healthy” are actually NOT healthy at all. They’re not available through nature and they are highly sensitive to light and heat, meaning they oxidize quickly and become rancid. Avoid all forms of canola, safflower, cottonseed, peanut, sunflower, corn, soybean, vegetable, and partially hydrogenated oils. Eliminate shortening and margarine immediately! Focus on using health-promoting oils (ones that you could potentially make at home) – coconut oil (see below), olive oil, avocado oil or ghee (clarified butter); be sure the olive and avocado oils are in dark bottles. Sesame, macadamia and other nut oils are acceptable, but purchase in small amounts and use them up quickly as they, too, tend to oxidize with light and heat.

Avoid Chemicals in Your Food – Start reading your labels to avoid food colorings, MSG, carrageenan, or preservatives including sodium benzoate and BHT. We also need to mention that personal care products contain toxins as well. Carefully choose products free from colorings, gluten, fluoride, SLS, and other chemicals, or again, make your own.

Eliminate Store-Bought Sauces and Seasoning Packets – Homemade tastes so much better and you can eliminate multiple poor quality ingredients by making your own salsa, dressing, hummus, ketchup, mayonnaise (try blending olive oil with avocado, coconut or macadamia oils – straight olive oil can be too strong), guacamole, and other condiments. Online recipe sites tell you how to blend spices to replicate your favorite seasonings such as onion dip, seafood seasoning, taco spice, ranch seasoning, all purpose seasoning, and more. 

Say “NO” to GMOs – Corn, soy, sugar beets, canola, cotton, and zucchini are likely to be Genetically Modified Organisms (genes from other species have been spliced into the plant’s DNA in order to promote growth or provide resistance to certain pesticides). You can make an argument for or against GMOs, but we notice that we feel better without them in our diets. The above plants, especially corn and soy, can be manufactured into many different ingredients such as oil, starch, sugars, syrups, hydrolyzed proteins, lecithins, etc. Carefully read labels to eliminate all the possible derivatives (find lists online by searching corn- or soy- free lifestyles). Additionally, animal feed often contains GMOs, so in order to completely avoid the influence of those you will need to find sources of organic, wild or pastured meats, fish, and eggs.