A new research study conducted at the University of London suggests that the original Paleo diet, now widely believed to be a protein rich weight reduction diet, recommended the consumption of some starches too, Dispatch Times reports.

Paleo diet is mostly believed to recommend the consumption of meats, fishes, vegetables and inhibits the intake of dairy products and legumes. The diet works on the principle that what was good for our bodies when we lived in the caves is good for us now.

According to Dispatch Times, Professor Mark Thomas, the author of the study explained, "Surprisingly, however, there is little clear agreement on what quantitatively constitutes a healthy diet, or indeed a Paleolithic diet, with much conflicting information disseminated to the public".

The Paleo diet restricts food coming from agriculture as it is based on the reasoning that a high protein diet was responsible for the large size of our brains. However, researchers believe that humans living two million years ago survived on root and tuber vegetables that converted into glucose inside the body, thus providing the energy for the cells and for other activities.

The study also noted that restricting basic food groups from the diet is harmful to health and excess of meat consumption has been linked to diseases like bowel cancer.