Paleo Diet During Pregnancy

We are in the middle of a four-part series on different diets that can be healthy for your pregnancy. So far, we have discussed the Whole30 and the Mediterranean diet. Today we take on the paleo diet.

The paleo diet is based on the concept that our early human ancestors ate what they could hunt or gather - lean meat, fish, eggs, vegetables, fruit, nuts, seeds, and limited dairy. They were not farmers, and they did not always have access to three square meals a day. They ate plenty of healthy fats and no processed or refined foods. Although our dietary habits have changed a lot since the Paleolithic era, our genetics have not. Our bodies are not designed to consume many grains, legumes, and refined foods.

A recent study examined the effects of a paleo diet in pregnancy. The study found that women who followed a Paleo diet were less likely to have gestational diabetes or anemia, and they tended to gain less weight during the pregnancy than women who followed a standard diet (low fat, higher carb). This makes sense since the paleo diet tends to be lower in starch and processed foods.

If you are searching for healthy recipes for pregnancy, just about any paleo recipe is worth a try. Here is a tasty recipe for crab cakes that are a hit at my house!

Paleo Crab Cakes

Ingredients:

• 1 pound lump crabmeat

• 1 cup coconut flour

• 3 green onions

• 1 egg, whisked

• 1/4 cup paleo mayonnaise (regular mayo has vegetable oil, but use it if it's all you have)

• 1 Tb Old Bay seasoning or Cajun spice blend

• Salt, pepper

• Ghee or coconut oil for cooking

Preparation:

1. Place the crabmeat in a large bowl and remove any shells that you see.

2. Add 1 tablespoon of the coconut flour, the chopped green onions, the Old Bay, and mayonnaise.

3. Toss gently to combine, then add salt and pepper to taste.

4. Now gently stir in the egg. The idea is not to break up the crabmeat too much.

5. Form patties (this recipe will make about 8) and place on a baking sheet.

6. Place the remainder of the coconut flour in a shallow bowl and gently roll each crab cake in the flour.

7. Fry the cakes in a skillet in ghee or coconut oil, 3-4 minutes per side.

8. Transfer the crab cakes to paper towels to drain.

9. Serve with lemon-garlic aioli - recipe to follow.

Lemon-Garlic Aioli

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup paleo mayonnaise

• Juice of 1 lemon

• 1 clove garlic, finely minced

• Salt

Preparation

1. Stir together the mayo, lemon juice, and garlic. Salt to taste. Serve right away with the crab cakes, or even better, make it beforehand and refrigerate to let the flavors blend.

I hope you're enjoying the four diets we're talking about. If you want to know more about each diet, grab your free copy of my PDF cheat sheet that helps you decide which diet will best for your journey with diabetes in pregnancy.