Dear Friends,

As I've been reading, researching, and posting about the important of ancestral eating/paleo lifestyle I have come across a number of important quotes and viewpoints of Native Peoples from the past. Here's what I consider to be one of the most  is an important views of ancestral eating and the consequences of not - that was made by a Karuk woman back in 1932. What I appreciate most is her statement about "world come to an end food:

"All did the same, the way that the Ikxareyavs used to do. And what the Ikxareyavs ate, that was all they ate. They told them: 'Ye must eat this kind.' The Ikxareyavs ate salmon, they spooned acorn soup, salmon along with acorn soup. And they ate deer meat. Andy they claimed the Ikxareyavs had two meals a day, and they also did only that way. When the whites all came, then they said: 'They eat poison, poison food, world come to an end food.' The middle-aged people were the first to eat the white man food. When they liked it, they liked it. They told each other: 'It tastes good.' They said: 'He never died, I am going to eat it that bread.' But the old men and the old women did not eat it till way late. We are the last one that know how the Ikxareyavs used to do, how they used to eat, the way our mother's told us. And even we do not eat anymore what they told us to eat. And what will they who are raised after us do?" --Phoebe Maddux (Karuk), 1932

Minding the Indigenous Mind Returning to a Paleo Native peoples’ Lifestyle to Cure the Diseases of the Standard American Colonized Diet

Greetings Mindful Relatives and Friends,

Chris Kresser, a leader in an emerging nutritional lifestyle known as the Paleo diet reported on what we know about the health of people before and after they started eating the Standard American Colonized Diet: “We know, for example, that a modern diseases like diabetes, obesity, cancer, autoimmunity and heart disease were rare (or even nonexistent) in Paleo people and are still rare in the few hunter gatherer groups around the world that have been lucky enough to preserve their traditional diet and lifestyle. We also know that when modern foods like wheat flour, industrial seed oils and sugar are introduced in these populations, the incidence of modern diseases goes up commensurately. And, even more telling, when these groups return to their traditional ways, the modern diseases disappear again. This suggests that it wasn’t some genetic vulnerability that caused them to develop modern diseases with the introduction of modern foods.”

In this column I want to share some of my thoughts about a way of eating called the Paleo lifestyle. I’ve read a great deal about it and I’m convinced that it may be one of the most important approaches to helping Native folks reverse the chronic health problems they’ve developed from eating the Standard American Colonized Diet. It is a nutritionally appropriate, balanced, and healing diet for Native folks and matches the “traditional” eating patterns of our ancestors, who didn’t have the food related health problems that we do.

I don’t want give the impression that the Paleo diet is the perfect way for everyone to eat, or that if you do not follow this way of eating you will not recover from serious chronic illnesses. Sometimes all one has to do is exercise, stop eating sugary foods and drinks, and lose weight, and their health will improve. What I’m hoping is that this column will spark some interest in this lifestyle so that folks may give it a try to see how it works for them.

History of the Paleo Lifestyle?

The idea behind the Paleo lifestyle is that if we return to eating as closely as we can to the way our ancestors did 10,000 (plus) years ago, our health will improve. The Paleolithic Age (Old Stone Age) covered a time period from 500,000-10,000 ago; before most of humanity practiced any type of agriculture. While it is hard to know exactly what our Paleo ancestors ate, most experts agree that it was a time when they lived on a diet of wild game, vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, fish, shellfish, eggs, and tasty insects. There were no processed, packaged, artificial, additive-laden foods and no sugar, with the exception of the sweetness that came from wild fruits and honey.

The foods that our ancestors ate were in a much more pristine state; the animals they dined on were not fed inferior diets of genetically modified corn, soybeans, or grains, nor were they saturated with antibiotics, and hormones, like our meats are today; every wild plant, seed, nut, fruit, and vegetable was organic and free of pesticides and other man-made chemicals. Fish and shellfish contained no man-made pollutants or heavy metals and the water they drank was clean and fresh and chlorine and fluoride-free.

Research on ancient human diets concludes that as humans began practicing more agricultural lifestyles, health problems began to crop up (no pun intended). The theory is that the dependence on domesticated foods, rather than wild sources contributed to a decline in health because agricultural foods were not part of a natural diet that the human system had evolved to eat. In their book, Perfect Health Diet, nutritional scientists Paul Jaminet, Ph.D., and Shou-Ching Jaminet, Ph.D., reported that the adoption of farming caused the height of people to shorten while their muscles became weakened; tooth decay and osteoporosis became widespread and malnutrition, infections, inflammation became common.

In an important scientific paper about Paleolithic nutrition, scientist Dr. Boyd Eaton, M.D. concluded that pre-agricultural hunter-gatherers did not eat cereal grains, nor did they grow them. Neither did they consume milk or dairy products. And, despite the problems with grains and cereals, especially for many Native people, the USDA and the grain and dairy industries push both as healthy foods that we must have in our diets. However, Loren Cordain, Ph.D., a respected scientist and the founder of the modern Paleo food movement, has found plenty of research that shows that eating cereal grains worsened the health of early agricultural people.

Today we know that cereal grains such as wheat, rice, barley, oats, corn, and beans are not only genetically modified and treated with dangerous chemicals, they are very starchy foods that can raise one’s blood sugar very quickly. We also know that many folks are sensitive or allergic to the gluten protein that is found in grains, and for some ingesting it can result in a very serious autoimmune reaction if they have celiac disease. Non-organic milk, the most widely consumed dairy product, has measureable amounts of herbicides, pesticides, dioxins (up to 200 times the safe levels), antibiotics, and growth hormones, such as IGF-1, which is suspected to fuel the growth of cancer in our bodies. Many Native people cannot drink milk because they are lactose intolerant.

 What’s included in the Paleo Diet?

There are different versions of the Paleo Diet. One proponents of this diet, Mark Sisson, a world class athlete and Paleo diet expert, says that if we want to follow it we must concentrate on: “eating quality sources of protein (all forms of meat, fowl, fish,). It is important that your protein sources are clean, organic or free-range. Eat lots of colorful vegetables, some select fruits (mostly berries), and healthy fats (nuts, avocados, olive oil). Observe portion control (calorie distribution) week to week more than meal to meal. Eliminate grains such as wheat, corn, rice (even brown rice), cereal, bread, and pasta. Eliminate all forms of sugar and sugary drinks; and trans- and hydrogenated fats from your diet.” Free-range eggs are an important source of protein while coconut oil is an important healthy fat that can also be included.  It is important to eliminate all processed meats.

Another Paleo diet advocate Chris Kesser is very clear that some the everyday foods that we eat are toxic and should not be on our menu:    

• Avoid cereal grains (especially refined flour)
• Avoid omega-6 industrial seed oils (corn, cottonseed, safflower, soybean, etc.)
• Avoid sugar (especially high-fructose corn syrup)
• Avoid processed soy (soy milk, soy protein, soy flour, etc.)
• Avoid improperly prepared cereal grains and legumes

Kesser believes we must nourish our bodies by emphasizing saturated 

monounsaturated fats while reducing intake of polyunsaturated fat; we should favor eating deer, buffalo, elk, and beef and seafood over poultry; we should eat real food such as grass-fed, organic meat and wild fish, and local, organic produce when possible. We must avoid processed, refined and packaged food.

Benefits of the Paleo Diet

When one eats the broad variety of vegetables, select fruits, and high quality, lean meats, the Paleo diet is nutritionally sound, safe, and easy to follow. Since the Paleo is patterned after the diets of our ancestors, if we follow it, we can expect to improve our health. In fact, many proponents of the diet are convinced that returning to this way of eating reprograms our genes so that our disease causing genes get turned off and our healthy ones get turned on.

For some folks, “intermittent fasting” is an important part of the Paleo diet lifestyle. When most people fast from foods their health improves significantly and they live longer, healthier lives. For instance, in 2009, Walter Breuning (now deceased), a 112 year-old Great Falls, Montana man credited his long life to not eating too much (he ate only two meals a day and took one aspirin).

Intermittent fasting means one alternates the times, or days, or amounts they eat each day: some folks fast completely from food on one day and eat normally on the next day; some do a 5:2 plan where they eat for five days and fast for two - sometimes the two days are spread out in the seven day period and sometimes they are back to back; and some eat 2 meals and a snack a day between a six hour eating period and then fast for 18 hours for the rest of the 24 hour day; some people, like Walter Breuning, eat only twice a day. Most research agrees that overeating shortens our lives while intermittent fasting is looking more and more like it will increase the length and quality of our lives. One thing for sure is, fasting is a part of our nutritional eating heritage: our ancestors were very accomplished at fasting due to food shortages and for health and spiritual reasons.

Since the main sources of food in this diet are healthy proteins, fats, veggies, and select fruits, anyone that follows it will get plenty of essential nutrients, fiber, and much, much more. Research on the benefits of the Paleo Diet continues to grow as more studies examine the health of people that practice this way of eating. Some of the health benefits include: healthy weight loss, significant drops in blood pressure and cholesterol; and improved blood glucose tolerance, arterial function, LDL and triglycerides. If you’re interested in this research check out Dr. Loren Cordain’s book, The Paleo Answer: 7 Days to Lose Weight, Feel Great, Stay Young, published in 2012.

I am an enthusiastic supporter of the Paleo diet and have been working on incorporating the diet into my lifestyle for about a year. Most times I am very good at following it but at times I slip off. One of the reasons that do the Paleo diet is because I’ve developed a sensitivity to gluten, so I’ve given up eating bread, grain cereals, fry bread, pasta, etc. Eating no grains has been one of the best nutritional decisions that I have made. I also stay away from corn and legumes such as beans and lentils. Even though our ancestors ate them, I’m now convinced they were not the healthiest foods for them or us to eat. Just like grains, beans and corn contain phytic acid (an anti-nutrient in foods), which contributes to our inability to absorb the nutrients found in these foods.

If you are interested in trying out the Paleo diet check out these websites: Chris Kesser (http://chriskresser.com/); Dr. Loren Cordain (http://thepaleodiet.com/); Mark Sisson (http://www.marksdailyapple.com/#axzz2JDsgftEb), and Rob Wolf (http://robbwolf.com/). I also encourage you to read more about intermittent fasting and give it a try if it seems appropriate for you. I fast one to two times a year generally from 10 to 15 days each time and the benefits have been amazing. This year I was aiming for 21 days (three weeks), but after reading about the science and benefits of intermittent fasting I’m now interested in giving it a try to see how it works. I am on my way to becoming a “Paleo Indian.” Remember, if you give the Paleo lifestyle a try I’d love to hear about it. Wishing you a long, healthy, happy, drug prescription free life!

Michael Yellow Bird, MSW, Ph.D., is an enrolled member of the Three Affiliated Tribes and a professor and the director of graduate education  in the Department of Social Work at Humboldt State University, Arcata, CA. His teaching, writing, research, and community work focuses on social work with Indigenous Peoples, neurodecolonization, neuroscience and social work, and employing mainstream and traditional Indigenous mindfulness practices in tribal communities to promote health and well being. He leads a regular morning mindfulness practice for staff, students, and faculty in his department. He can be reached by email at:  mjy9@humboldt.edu 

Minding the Indigenous Mind: How the practice of mindfulness can contribute to Indigenous Education

        Mindful Greetings Friends and Relatives,

The Buddha once said, “We are what we think. All that we are arises with our thoughts. With our thoughts, we make the world.” In this column I want to advocate for the use of mindfulness practices in schools that serve and educate Indigenous youth. I believe that mindfulness is an activity that teachers, administrators, school boards, parents, and students should regularly engage in; it can be easily incorporated into the health and wellness curriculum of the school. Mindfulness is a practice that enables one to improve their thinking and to train their mind and attention to attain greater levels of awareness, stability, concentration, and calm. In this column I will define mindfulness, its significance, and its linkages to neuroscience and Indigenous cultural traditions.

An Exercise in Mindfulness

            Before launching into the reasons why mindfulness is appropriate in schools that education Native youth, I want readers to experience for themselves a simple breath counting exercise that is commonly used in mindfulness practice. It is an exercise that helps establish a foundation for deeper attention and awareness.  If you start to fall asleep or find it difficult to concentrate due to racing thoughts, twinges of anxiety or restlessness, pleasant or unpleasant memories, and body aches and pains during this exercise, just remember that this is normal when you are beginning to learn how to “tame” your mind. However, as you gently press yourself into a consistent routine of practice, you will find yourself entering into deeper and more sustained states of awareness, calm, and well being. The distractions in your life will gradually become quieter and less troublesome.   

1. To begin with find a quiet place where you won’t be disturbed.

2. Get into a comfortable position sitting in chair or cross-legged on the floor. If you choose the floor you can sit on a pillow or a cushion to help support you and to reduce the strain on your knees. As you get into your sitting position make sure that you keep your back straight but relaxed and your neck aligned with your spine. Your head should be held as if you are balancing a ball on top. If you choose to sit in a chair make sure that both feet are resting flat on the floor.

3. Relax your shoulders and rest your hands, palms down, on the top of your legs if you’re sitting in a chair. If you are on the floor rest your hands on your lap, knuckle side down. One hand can rest inside the other, with palms facing upward, fingers slightly and gently curled up, and thumbs lightly touching. Take a deep breath and settle into a relaxed, balanced position that feels grounded and calm.

4. Close your eyes and bring your attention to your breathing. Settle into your breath but don’t force it. Just allow it be as natural as possible. Allow yourself to experience what this natural, relaxed breathing feels like for a bit.

5. When you are ready begin counting silently to yourself: Count 1 on your first in-breath, 2 on the out-breath, 3 on the in-breath, and 4 on the out-breath. Repeat this pattern and continue counting for the next five minutes.  

6. If any thoughts come up that distract you away from your counting. Observe their content and how they make you feel, but do not get attached to them or judge them. Just allow them to be and as soon as you remember return to counting your breaths. It’s important not to get frustrated or judge yourself when you get distracted. Just stay relaxed and continue to return to your breathing and counting, remembering that it is your anchor.

7. When you are ready gently open your eyes, continue to let your breathing be relaxed and natural. Take a deep, cleansing breath and observe how you feel and what your surroundings look like. Write down what this experience was like. Was it pleasant, difficult, or relaxing? How did it make you feel? If you are an educator or parent, after you try it, you might help your students or child(ren) practice this exercise.

 What is Mindfulness?

Mindfulness refers to being deeply aware of what is happening from moment to moment outside and inside us, without judging or attaching to the content, feelings, and emotions that arise. It refers to living deeply and richly in the present moment and not responding to life in a distracted and mechanical manner. For instance, when a student learns how to mindfully count his or her breaths, she or he will develop a greater awareness of his or her breathing. She or he will notice if the breaths that are taken are long, relaxed, and deep or short, rushed, and shallow. With this awareness she or he can make adjustments to  so that their breathing more tranquil and efficient.  After some time the student and teacher will notice that the deeper calm, awareness, and ability to concentrate that is acquired can be carried over to other activities in and out of school.

The Significance of Mindfulness

Mindfulness is one of the fasting growing approaches in the helping and healing professions. In a book entitled “The Clinical Handbook of Mindfulness,” (2008, edited by Fabrizio Didonna) several of the contributors to this text share how mindfulness approaches are becoming well-known in the field of psychology due to growing body of evidence that shows the positive effects these interventions have when treating a number of behavioral and psychological conditions. In the book, “Mindfulness-based Treatment Approaches,” (2005, edited by Ruth A. Baer) mindfulness-based treatment approaches are credited with successfully treating anxiety, depressive relapse, eating disorders, psychosis, and borderline personality disorder. In a paper entitled, “The benefits of being present: Mindfulness and its role in psychological well-being,” (2003, written by Kirk Warren Brown and Richard M. Ryan), mindfulness is credited with improved self-regulated behavior, positive emotional states, and declines in mood disturbance and stress.

A growing number of K-12 schools in the U.S., with students from many different ethnicities and socioeconomic backgrounds are using mindfulness practices to improve academic performance and deal with student stress and behavior. For instance, The Garrison Institute, an organization dedicated to transformation of society through contemplative methods, compiled a major report in 2005 on the use of mindfulness in grades K-12. Several schools participated in this study and reported that students who learned mindfulness practices developed a number of noble qualities: emotional balance and intelligence, peacefulness, well being, compassion, gratitude, empathy, confidence, a sense of safety, forgiveness, and love.  Teachers also benefited: reduced stress, more alertness and patience, and less reactivity.

Linking Mindfulness Practices with Neuroscience

 The value of mindfulness practices such as meditation is supported by a wealth of scientific findings. One important discovery linking mindfulness and the brain is neuroplasticity, which refers to our brain’s ability to change its neurons and reorganize its networks and functions due to new experiences. When a student learns something his or her brain forms new connections between brain cells. As she or he practices and memorizes what was learned, networks become stronger, enabling the person to become more accomplished at whatever task has been undertaken.

When a student practices mindfulness a number of important circuits in the brain are positively affected. For instance, the Amygdala, a region in the brain that is associated with fear, anxiety, and aggression, quiets down and the left side of the prefrontal cortex of the brain, an area located approximately behind and above the left eyebrow, is activated. Research has shown that this area is associated with happiness, well being, and an enhanced immune response.

 In the book, “How God Changes Your Brain,” (2009) neuroscientists Andrew Newberg and Mark Robert Waldman state that “As neural functioning begins to change, different circuits become activated, while others become inactivated. New dendrites are formed, new synaptic connections are made, and the brain becomes more sensitive to subtle realms of experience.” Newberg and Waldman report that the research has consistently established that mindfulness practices such as meditation, positive thinking, and visualization change the structure and function of our brains and improve our health, optimism, and performance. In one study, renowned neuroscientist Richard Davidson and colleagues (2007) concluded that, “When the framework of neuroplasticity is applied to meditation, we suggest that the mental training of meditation is fundamentally no different than other forms of skill acquisition that can induce plastic changes in the brain.”

The Linkage between Mindfulness and

 Indigenous Cultural Traditions

Although many people associate mindfulness and meditation with eastern spiritual traditions, almost all human cultures have engaged in practices that include the use of deep, focused thought, listening, and attention. This is particularly true of Indigenous Peoples throughout the world. When spiritual leaders taught sacred rituals to the uninitiated members of the tribe (mainly the youth), it was required that the novice engage in concentrated, uninterrupted attention to what was being presented, its meanings, and how it was connected to the traditions of the people. Among some tribes, before youth would be introduced to certain sacred practices they might be required to undergo a purification process where they would be spiritually cleansed so that their minds and hearts would be in a good place (without negative thoughts or feelings). Children were reminded that bad thoughts and lack of focus would taint their experience and their ability to learn. 

            When young people were passing into adulthood many would be guided into the formal process of “vision-seeking” to understand their purpose in life and how their actions would contribute to the well-being of the tribe. The preparation for vision-seeking was long, intense, and challenging. It required deep mindfulness and long periods of meditation, which focused on what was being sought (a vision, special healing powers, or insights). It also required one to focus on the process: an uninterrupted, steady focus and awareness of the special prayers and songs that were to be used, and an interpersonal humility and maintenance of pure, compassionate thoughts. 

In closing, many Indigenous youth are not given the opportunity, nor are they pressed, to engage in formal mindfulness practices to improve their well being. While it may not be appropriate for school personnel to direct students in cultural mindfulness practices, they can implement mindfulness into the school setting. Developing mindfulness is not easy but it is worth doing since it is culturally appropriate, easy to implement, low cost, and it works. Mindfulness involves systematic training and practice and is a process that takes place over time. However, dramatic, positive changes can occur when one gently and consistently practices mindfulness. It is a journey that is well worth it for native students and those that teach them; for when they are invited to enter into states of deep awareness and concentration their worlds, experiences, and lives become much richer, less fearful and angry, more vivid, creative, peaceful, and healed. Raising the educational success and well being of Indigenous students is just one mindful breath away.

Michael Yellow Bird, MSW, Ph.D., is an enrolled member of the Three Affiliated Tribes and a professor and the director of graduate education  in the Department of Social Work at Humboldt State University, Arcata, CA. His teaching, writing, research, and community work focuses on social work with Indigenous Peoples, neurodecolonization, neuroscience and social work, and employing mainstream and traditional Indigenous mindfulness practices in tribal communities to promote health and well being. He leads a regular morning mindfulness practice for staff, students, and faculty in his department. He can be reached by email at:  mjy9@humboldt.edu