Popsugar Health & Fitness Diets Paleo Food List Doing Paleo? Get the Skinny on What You Can and Can't Eat 21 February 2018 by Emily Cappiello Image Source: Unsplash / MiracleTwentyOne The Paleo diet, based on the dietary habits of our cave-dwelling ancestors, is trending on the diet front. Although weight loss is an added bonus, the real goal of Paleo is to maximize the efficiency of the human body, body composition, and metabolic effects. It does this by eliminating things that our ancestors didn't eat, like legumes, cereal grains, refined sugar, dairy, potatoes, processed foods, refined vegetable oils, alcohol, refined sweeteners (like honey), and added salt. But the list of foods you can eat on Paleo is more extensive than one would think. This makes creating meals less daunting, although you need to prep and plan, and also allows for those on Paleo to eat a variety of foods. (Because food boredom means cravings and cravings mean hangry and hangry means . . . well, you get it.) And while there are a lot of foods that can be eaten on Paleo and are delicious when prepared the right way, be prepared to give up some of your favorites, like alcohol and peanut butter, for maximum results. If you're thinking about going Paleo, check out this complete list of things you can eat and others that you can't. Related: A Hilarious Look on What It's Really Like to Go Paleo What to Eat: Meat and Protein Image Source: Unsplash/JezTimms Poultry Turkey Steak Veal Bacon Pork Ground beef Eggs Lamb Bison Rabbit Goat Elk Emu Goose Kangaroo Wild boar Reindeer Turtle Ostrich Pheasant Quail Choose organic, pasture-raised, grass-fed meats whenever possible. 1 / 12 What to Eat: Seafood Image Source: Unsplash / Adriensala Bass Salmon Halibut Mackerel Sardines Tuna Red snapper Shark Sunfish Swordfish Tilapia Trout Walleye Crab Crawfish Crayfish Shrimp Clams Lobster Scallops Oysters 2 / 12 What to Eat: Vegetables Image Source: Unsplash / Foodism360 Asparagus Avocado Artichoke hearts Brussels sprouts Carrots Spinach Celery Broccoli Zucchini Cabbage Peppers (all kinds) Cauliflower Parsley Eggplant Green onions Yam* Sweet potato* Beets* Butternut squash* Acorn squash* *Starchy vegetables should be eaten in moderation. 3 / 12 What to Eat: Fruits Image Source: Unsplash / LukeMichael Apple Avocado Blackberries Papaya Peaches Plums Mango Lychee Blueberries Grapes Lemon Strawberries Watermelon Pineapple Guava Lime Raspberries Cantaloupe Tangerine Figs Oranges Bananas Be sure to watch your sugar intake and eat high-sugar fruits in moderation. 4 / 12 What to Eat: Nuts and Seeds Image Source: Unsplash / RemiYuan Almonds Cashews Hazelnuts Pecans Pine nuts Sesame seeds Pumpkin seeds Sunflower seeds Macadamia nuts Walnuts Chia seeds 5 / 12 What to Eat: Fats and Oils Image Source: Unsplash / Robertina Olive oil Coconut oil Macadamia oil Avocado oil Grass-fed butter 6 / 12 What to Eat: Flavorings Image Source: Unsplash / CarolineAttwood Coconut aminos Apple cider vinegar Tahini 7 / 12 What Not to Eat: Dairy Image Source: Unsplash / Furbee Cheese Cottage cheese Nonfat dairy creamer Skim milk Two percent milk Whole milk Dairy spreads Cream cheese Powdered milk Yogurt Pudding Frozen yogurt Ice milk Low-fat milk Ice cream 8 / 12 What Not to Eat: Beverages Image Source: Unsplash / Jackuback Alcohol Soft drinks Fruit juices Energy drinks 9 / 12 What Not to Eat: Grains Image Source: Unsplash / Krewellah87 Cereals Bread English muffins Toast Sandwiches Triscuits Wheat Thins Crackers Oatmeal Cream of wheat Corn Corn syrup High-fructose corn syrup Wheat Pancakes Hash browns Pasta Fettuccine Lasagna 10 / 12 What Not to Eat: Legumes Image Source: Unsplash / RachaelGorjestani Soybeans Peas Peanuts Peanut butter Miso Lentils Lupins Mesquite Black beans Broad beans Fava beans Garbanzo beans Horse beans Kidney beans Lima beans Mung beans Adzuki beans Navy beans Pinto beans Red beans String beans White beans Chickpeas Snow peas 11 / 12 Other Foods to Avoid Image Source: Unsplash / EmSmith Artificial sweeteners Fatty meats Hot dogs Ketchup Spam French fries Pretzels Chips Cookies SunChips Pastries Potatoes Yucca Batata Sugar 12 / 12 DietsDiet TipsPaleoWeight Loss