In March 2019 the first ever Carnivore Conference was held at Boulder University, Colorado with a great list of speakers.
THE BOULDER CARNIVORE CONFERENCE
…a day of leading-edge talks on the science
of plant-free diets!
Although plant-based diets are being promoted with incautious zeal via actors, chefs, cookery shows etc (which all appear to be on message that meat is ‘bad for your health and bad for the planet’), some brave souls are turning that idea on its head and removing the plants whilst retaining the animal based foods. This has had remarkable effects for many of those who had either run out of other options, or just ‘given it a whirl’ for the fun of it.
And now that has become a movement which has garnered sufficient attention that the first Carnivore Conference has been held in which scientists (of various stripes) along with those saved by the diet, explore their findings so far, and the theories they are formulating to explain them. No doubt they have been stimulated by the recent surge in success stories coming from early adopters of what’s being called ‘the Carnivore Diet’. Whilst anecdotal claims about the incredible healing potential of a high-meat, no-plant diet are fascinating, I was excited to hear from the researchers and clinicians who are focused on explaining this phenomenon.
Fortunately, many of the talks from that conference are now available on YouTube enabling anyone to start to understand the clinical and nutritional rationale behind not only the extraordinary successes of this diet in diabetes and autoimmunity but also the science-changing implications.
Below are some of my favourite videos from the event…
Dr Paul Mason – one of Australia’s finest communicators.
This presentation covers a number of vital aspects of food reactivity and autoimmune processes, in a steady, easy to grasp way, that nevertheless takes us deeper into this tricky and complex area of medicine. Everyone will come away feeling better informed after watching Paul Mason.
Dr Shawn Baker, orthopaedic surgeon and world champion sprint rower has gained athletic prowess since going carnivore, which is unheard of in athletes over the age of 50, so he’s breaking even more records.
Dr Baker may have moved the carnivore diet forward more than any other individual, and is a prominent voice on Twitter and Instagram, and especially on his excellent site Meat Heals in which individuals present their own experience on a plant free diet. As you will appreciate, each one is unique, and really, really interesting.
George Diggs PhD gave a great talk on the chemical toxins in plants and their defensive properties (against us).
We previously posted a very well received article called The Chemical Warfare On Your Plate, which looked into the role of plant toxins in human health (good and bad). In the above talk, Dr Diggs goes further, explaining why removing plant toxins from the diet might be at the root of why so many seriously ill people regain their health when they eat only animal products.
Dr Clemens runs the only clinic using the PKD (paleo-keto-diet) i.e. zero plant diet, and here she shows some results. Very interesting!
Paleomedicina is a clinic in Budapest, Hungary treating people with autoimmune diseases, diabetes and arthritis. They claim to successfully treat these conditions with a Paleo-Ketogenic diet. In this video Dr Clemens explains how a high-meat and high-fat diet can restore immune integrity and not only treat, but cure these conventionally irreversible conditions.
Dr Georgia Ede, Psychiatrist, on why The Brain Needs Meat
Dr Ede’s talk at the Carnivore Conference was actually featured in Psychology Today, where she has many interesting articles on low-carb diets, as well as a good takedown of the Eat-Lancet study, which I recommend you read.
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My greatest fear is trying and then losing bioma and enzime to digest certain plants compounds for ever.
How long do you think we can try a diet without this happening? And then, would this time be long enough to notice healing?
Hi Ana, that is a perfectly reasonable question, but from the evidence I have read and experienced it is not a problem. People who have removed all plants from their diet for three months or more have, without hiccough, re-introduced them, in various forms (vegetables mostly) have tolerated them just fine.
The cases I know of directly have been able to re-introduce vegetables without any problem after months on a plant-free diet. I have not read of any individuals who found that they couldn’t, only those who continue to have the reactions that initially drove them to remove the plants from their diet (like Mikhaila Peterson). She simply continues to be super-reactive to all plants and is only healthy with none at all.
Thank you very much for answering!
Do you happen to know if to start all I have to do is just swicht diet or do I need fasting before?
Nothing special needs to be done. Simply leave off the vegetables, just eat the non-plant foods. Easy! Make sure you eat enough fat though or you’ll probably be hungry. Let me know how you go, and take a look at Dr Shawn Baker’s site: http://meatheals.com
It’s my 7th day of carnivore and I am a little disappointed… Nothing improved (although I didn’t have serious digestive issues) but my eczema on my leg and my “lupus look” face is back again. (It.s not like I have lupus but I don’t know how to say it in English). If those things I use to have before lowcarb reappeared I Wonder if I should continue…
The people that are currently promoting the use of the carnivore diet seem to suggest that a trial should be for at least 6 weeks, though some say 12. Clearly 1 week is a lot less, so listen to your body, obviously, but consider sticking with it for at least 4 months, in order to let the adjustments take place.
Have you been to Shawn Baker’s ‘MeatHeals.com’ site? You can read what other people say about their experience there.
Good luck.
Today makes 2 weeks since I started.
No benefits so far… Still have the redness in my face and the eczema that I got back since I started.
It is true that is very easy to follow the diet. I never thought that meat with just salt would be so tasty. I have always used many spices and garlic in my roasts.
My body smell changed… It’s like it’s not me 🙂
I have plenty and noisy bowl movements but seldom defecate… I had diarrhea in the 2nd day, this week I woke up one night hurrying to the bathroom and that’s it…
I lost weight on the first week but now seems to have stabilized.
What upsets me most is my lack of energy… I feel very weak all the time, I have no strenght…
What worries me most is the fear of loosing the “vegetable bacteria” that I will need once I start reintroducing veggies again.
Obviously, you are not a patient of mine, so I don’t know what changes you are looking for, but most of the carnivore docs and patients suggest that maintenance of the plant free diet needs to be for at least 6 weeks, before all the physiological adjustments that will necessarily take place following such a change, so you might want to stick with it longer, and see. Thanks for keeping us updated.
This week has been the worse of them..
Very, very low energy; my bowels move so much that I almost have faecal incontinence. I sleep very badly. This week I ate no dairy at all (ghee included). All grassfed beef! No wild salmon nor wild boar, not even the organic ham I mentioned.
My face still has the redness (and now itching) and my pain is still here.
I don’t know if I should continue…
Meat seems to taste tastier everyday though…
My husband, that has been eating the same but with salad and occasional fruit, says that he feels much better! His all life knee pain is gone!
I am jealous! 🙂
I don’t think my body is enjoying this.
Yesterday, just because and for the 1st time, I decided to make an urine strip test to see my ketones. They were high, of course but I noticed to have lots of proteins in my urine. Maybe it’s normal,maybe it’s not… I didn’t like to see it.
So I’ll probably give up in 2 days (to reach the 4 weeks) and then I’ll start reintroducing vegetables.
Gosh, Ana, that all sounds horrible. What made you try the plant free approach? Do you have a medical practitioner working with you? I hope you feel better soon.
No, I have no doctor working with me. All tests I make are always all right (except for my cholesterol 🙂 ). No inflammation, no imagiologic alterations…
Aboutt 10 years ago I began to see in me some typical autoimmune symptoms.
I didn’t want to take pills so I took my chance of trying something different. A friend told me about paleo diet so I studied and decided to give it a try, although very, very afraid because I KNEW FATS WERE SO BAD..
My turning point was reading the Jaminet’s book “Perfect health diet”. It made me look at nutrition so differently and with much more logic. On the way I found your blog that I like to read so much 🙂 It made me feel secure of my decision because no doctor I work with would ever agree.
I got much better! My terrible tailbone disappeared, digestive issues got much better and no more pharyngitis. I realized I was gluten intolerant too,
I still have pains in my hands and elbows so I wanted to give a try on carnivore. After all testimonials are so great.
Tomorrow I’ll start reintrodicing vegetables.
Thanks for the background info, and well done for taking your body into your own hands. Sounds as though you have really reaped the benefits, for the most part. I don’t think going plant-free is for everyone, but there is no doubt that some people thrive on it, and indeed, would not have survived without it (I’m thinking of Mikhaila Peterson). I hope you keep notes on how things change as you re-introduce vegetables, noting which ones have which effect.
Tomorrow it will be a month since I started reintroducing vegetable food.
I started slowly. In my first day I ate a raw carrot and it miraculously calmed my bowels! For 3 days I did not defecate but it was only normal because after the almost incontinent defecation I had, in the last days, my bowels had to be empty.
My strength was achieved very, very slowly. I have never felt so low in energy in al my life. I’m still not a 100%.
I am already eating the way I used to (moderate low carb paleo friendly). Seems like I have no problems with dairy which makes me very happy. It’s not like I have milk daily but I like to use it on recipes now and then. The same applies to nightshades. And I did not find very problematic foods either. Well, maybe fruit sometimes gives me uncomfortable stomach if I should eat it with nothing else.
My face still looks reddish and skin itches from time to time but my eczema is gone!
I hoped this could be a solution for me and unfortunately ended up a not very pleasant experience. But we can never tell if we don’t try it!
I remember Dr Noakes saying that not all athletes could stand the same low quantity of carbs and maybe that was it for me…
Your experience is further proof, if it were needed, that we are all individuals, and one size does not fit all. It supports the evidence that clinicians like me are no fools when they spend time with each patient such that we can grasp their unique medical story. It is only in this way that resolution can be achieved.
Thank you for sharing your very interesting story!