The topics of “Paleo” and “Heart Disease” come up frequently together of late. High-protein, high-fat diets were traditionally blamed for contributing to heart disease, but research shows that high-protein, high-fat diets don’t appear to correlate with heart disease at all, in fact, the theory might just be the opposite.

The latest studies, the numerous doctors standing behind this notion, and the case studies showing evidence that high-protein, high-fat diets, like the Paleo Diet, have in fact helped many people improve and even counteract their heart condition, is making the world think twice.

A couple of months ago we had the pleasure of meeting an incredible gentleman at one of our Cooking Demonstrations. He stayed behind afterwards and chatted with us about his personal journey to health and it was so inspiring that we asked him if we could share his story with you.

His name is Rich Melrath. The three of us recently had an enjoyable morning at Starbucks chatting about health. Rich’s personal health led him down numerous paths until he found the diet that made him feel best–the Paleo Diet. Surprise!

This is the story of Rich Melrath, may it touch your hearts as much as it has ours:

Prior to 2009, Rich lived a life similar to most Americans. He ate microwave dinners and commonly consumed processed, industrial foods and large quantities of sugar.

When he was diagnosed with heart disease, Rich knew he needed to change his diet. Like most people, he thought fat was bad, so Rich turned to a purely Vegetarian Diet. He felt a little better, but lacked energy, which eventually led him to realize that something was missing from his diet.

After moving to Colorado, Rich consulted with a nutritionist who felt that he wasn’t consuming enough protein. Rich finally agreed to add animal protein back into his diet and the result was instant: he had more energy, felt stronger and his overall health began to improve.

Inspired by his newfound wellness, Rich began to cook for himself more often and realized just how much sugar and sodium is added to pre-packaged foods (including Vegetarian ones).

He began to do research on sugar and grain and found out something interesting: that it wasn’t fat but rather high quantities of refined sugar and carbohydrates that seem to correlate with heart disease.

That’s when Rich found the Paleo Diet and he remembers thinking, “Ahhh, that’s what I should be doing!”

Rich also discovered that the elimination of other food groups as advocated by the Paleo Diet, such as dairy and legumes, along with giving up grains and refined sugar, improved his overall mental and physical state, not to mention his heart health.

Rich recalls happily that he “didn’t think [he] could feel this much better.”

Fast forward a few years. Rich is now off traditional heart medication and committed to practicing a Paleo lifestyle. He began attending health discussions at Natural Grocers, where he met Dr. Daniel Cobb, a Doctor, Professor and Author of Reversing Heart Disease the Easy Way. Dr. Cobb applauded Rich’s Paleo lifestyle, reiterating that healthy fats are not in fact, despite popular belief, the common cause of heart disease.

Rich’s Paleo lifestyle has dramatically improved his health and wellbeing. He particularly likes the fact that the Paleo Diet is “easy to follow” and continues to research more about it, discovering more benefits of the diet every day.

“My enthusiasm about how well I now feel is what’s driving me to continue,” Rich told us. He then left us with an inspiring message which we hope will now inspire you:

“Your health depends on you.”

We’d like to thank Rich for his openness and willingness to share his own remarkable journey to health.

If you have a health story that you’d like to share, we’d love to hear it!

Camilla and Melissa

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