The Carnivore Diet: A "Provocative" Exploration into Nuance

Delve into the carnivore diet as we challenge dogmatic beliefs and uncover the importance of nuance, root cause analysis, and the influence of seasonal eating.

In 2019, my journey into biohacking began when I stumbled upon Dr. Paul Saladino's appearance on the Joe Rogan Experience podcast. Years of battling severe Crohn's disease had driven me to explore "alternative" treatments.

When I discovered the carnivore diet, I was filled with excitement. Having previously experimented with veganism, which turned out to be a detrimental mistake, I understood the significance of a proper diet.

Veganism had taught me the importance of quality food. I realized that factory-farmed products had no place in my life, and I completely eliminated processed junk from my diet.

Carnivore got me excited about eating a wholesome diet rich in grass fed meats, pastured eggs, raw milk & cheeses. Foods God made, not man!

I vividly remember visiting Whole Foods and just completely geeking out in the butcher section, I would happily leave the store with a hefty 30 pounds of grass-fed meat.

Meat became a staple in my daily nutrition, and I became resolute in my belief that nothing could sway me from this course.

I changed my mind - Kinda

If you knew me in real life, you would know how often my protocols are ever changing. What might be the devil one week, could very well be a powerful tool used in regeneration the following week. I have an ever evolving mindset when it comes to health.

While I still think carnivore is an amazing diet, I acknowledge that there are certain health considerations that carnivore enthusiasts need to take into account.

Addressing root cause

While diet guru’s love to pinpoint diet as the #1 cause of illness, I would say that is outright false.

• Have you addressed metal or mold toxicity?

• What is your light environment like? Are you exposed to excessive blue light, and do you get enough sunlight?

• What is your EMF exposure like? Have you thought about how it might affect your health?

• What is your gut health like? Do you have SIBO (Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth), SIFO (Small Intestinal Fungal Overgrowth), or leaky gut?

• Do you prioritize sleep hygiene and get proper sleep?

The list of factors goes on and on. The point is, while diet certainly has an impact on our health, and can be used as a tool of healing, 90% of the time, it does not address the root cause.

Eating toxic food all day unquestionably contributes to poor health, but we should avoid being tunnel-visioned and dogmatic when it comes to our overall well-being.

Diet Variability

While it's true that there are certain foods, such as kale, that should be avoided, wouldn't a healthy individual be capable of tolerating a wide variety of foods?

The gut microbiome of a resilient and thriving individual should possess the ability to ferment and digest a diverse range of nutrients. I'm not referring to consuming processed and artificial products like pop tarts and soy-based glop.

Instead, I'm advocating for the consumption of foods created by God that can be cultivated in one's own backyard, which is precisely what I do on my regenerative farm.

As with most things, this concept ties back to the principles of circadian biology, particularly the practice of eating seasonally. Our entire planet revolves around the sun, and without it, life as we know it would cease to exist on Earth.

Certain seasons like summer and early fall would imply a higher intake of carbohydrates compared to late fall, winter, and early spring when a more ketogenic diet would be more common.

Food is more than Macros

Our bodies are capable of handling different foods at different times, based solely on the influence of the sun. If we consider food as an electromagnetic barcode of sunlight, where captured photons are converted into carbohydrates, wouldn't aligning the captured photonic energy of our food with the sun enable our bodies to process it more efficiently?

See, food isn’t just carbohydrates, fat, or protein, rather its captured sunlight. The only reason you are eating that ribeye is because the grass that cow ate was capturing photons, turning it into nutrients.

The base input to ATP is electrons and oxygen, meaning addressing the root cause comes down to correcting things from a subatomic level. We are walking talking human batteries with an electrical charge strong enough to maintain a body temperature of 98F for 24/365.

Nuance

Like any multifaceted subject, there is always nuance to consider. If you find yourself facing health challenges and have exhausted all options except for a carnivore diet, it may feel like the ultimate discovery!

Utilize the diet as a valuable tool, but also delve deeper into the underlying root causes of your health issues, otherwise you are not acutely fixing the likely contributor.

While this perspective may provoke some frustration, permanently restricting an entire category of foods is not the key to achieving optimal health. Granted, certain foods should generally be avoided, but there remains a vast array of other options to explore.

Throughout my own health struggles, I have personally experienced the benefits of a ketogenic/carnivore diet in reducing inflammation. However, I recognize that relying on a state of ketosis indefinitely won't resolve all of my problems. Instead, I view it as a temporary strategy, a tool in my arsenal rather than a lifelong commitment.

Dogma!!!!

Consider the case of Mikhaila Peterson, a fervent advocate of the carnivore diet. Often parroting the narrative that carbs will kill you and they should never be eaten!

Recently she discovered she had severe mold toxicity.

Could the mold have been the primary cause of her issues? Did she investigate other potential factors such as heavy metal exposure or conditions like SIBO or SIFO? What about her light environment? Was she suffering from toxic blue light exposure and a lack of outdoor activity?

You see, the point is not to approach health with a one-dimensional answer, because it's far from that. We were created as complex creatures living in a complex universe. Dogmatic beliefs have no place in matters of health, especially considering the history of allopathic medicine.

Your allopathic doctor might dismissively shrug off your claim that your diet has improved your health, but likewise, you might find yourself rolling your eyes at someone who suggests that health is solely determined by diet alone.

Recognize that true health encompasses a comprehensive approach that accounts for the intricacies and interplay of various factors.

My Pillars of health

Finally, I will leave you with a simple list, that I will expand upon in coming newsletters, giving you an idea of how to address your health level from level.

1. Sunlight

2. EMF - grounding into natural good EMF, while protecting from man made EMF

3. Optimizing mitochondrial water with light and temp

4. Movement

5. Supplementation & Diet

- Hope this helped, Scott