Why eating like a caveman helped women lose more weight and feel fuller
Postprandial levels of GLP-1, GIP and glucagon after 2 years of weight loss with a Paleolithic diet: a randomised controlled trial in healthy obese women
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Two groups of women ate different diets without counting calories — one ate like ancient humans (meat, veggies, nuts), the other ate standard healthy food. Both lost weight, but the caveman group lost more.
No biological mechanisms were identified in this study. This may be an epidemiological, observational, or survey-based study that reports associations rather than proposing causal biological pathways.
Systematic Reviews & Meta-Analyses
Max 100Randomized Controlled Trials
Max 90Cohort Studies
Max 72Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional Studies
Max 44Case Reports & Case Series
Max 30Expert Opinion & Narrative Reviews
Max 560 / 90
Evidence Score
Participants are randomly assigned to treatment or control groups, minimizing bias. Considered the gold standard for testing whether an intervention causes an effect.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Two groups of women ate different diets without counting calories — one ate like ancient humans (meat, veggies, nuts), the other ate standard healthy food. Both lost weight, but the caveman group lost more.
No biological mechanisms were identified in this study. This may be an epidemiological, observational, or survey-based study that reports associations rather than proposing causal biological pathways.
Systematic Reviews & Meta-Analyses
Max 100Randomized Controlled Trials
Max 90Cohort Studies
Max 72Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional Studies
Max 44Case Reports & Case Series
Max 30Expert Opinion & Narrative Reviews
Max 560 / 90
Evidence Score
Participants are randomly assigned to treatment or control groups, minimizing bias. Considered the gold standard for testing whether an intervention causes an effect.
Publication
Authors
Otten J, Ryberg M, Mellberg C, Andersson T, Chorell E, Lindahl B, Larsson C, Holst JJ, Olsson T
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Claims (6)
GLP-1 and GIP are hormones that increase insulin production and decrease glucagon production when nutrients are consumed, which helps control blood glucose levels.
When postmenopausal women with obesity lose 10-11% of their body weight over two years, their bodies produce more glucagon-like peptide-1 after eating, a hormone that helps signal fullness.
After 24 months on a Paleolithic diet, healthy postmenopausal women who are obese show a 23% higher rise in the hormone GIP after meals compared to those on a different diet, even when weight loss is accounted for.
In healthy women who are obese and past menopause, losing weight is linked to higher glucagon levels during fasting, less suppression of glucagon after eating, and higher ketone levels, indicating a metabolic shift toward breaking down stored energy.
Among healthy women who are obese and past menopause, following a Paleolithic diet for two years leads to more weight loss than following a typical diet, even when both diets allow unlimited eating without counting calories. This suggests that the types of foods eaten, not just how much, affect weight changes.