What a Dietitian Wants You to Know About the Carnivore Diet

Have you heard of the carnivore diet? It involves eliminating all plant-based food from your diet and exclusively eating meat, fish, eggs, and small amounts of low-lactose dairy products.

People all over social media claim that the carnivore diet leads to weight loss, improved mental clarity, and relief from various chronic and autoimmune diseases.

As a registered dietitian, I'm here to "dish out" the meaty details you need to know about this animal-based diet fad!

Is The Carnivore Diet Nutritious?

The carnivore diet advocates for exclusively eating animal products, completely cutting out all plant-based foods. Animal products are undeniably rich in several essential nutrients, which is the basis of this diet's logic.

For instance, they provide high-quality proteins that contain all nine essential amino acids necessary for muscle repair, immune function, and other critical body processes. They are also excellent sources of vitamin B12 and heme iron (a form of iron that is most readily absorbed by the body).

Most nutrients actually can be found in animal products, but there are a few important exceptions that you need to know before going carnivore.

What nutrients are missing from the Carnivore Diet?

Vitamin C, dietary fiber, and phytonutrients are primarily found in plant-based foods and are virtually absent in an all-meat diet.

Vitamin C is essential for immune function and skin health, dietary fiber is crucial for digestive health and preventing chronic diseases, and phytonutrients offer various health benefits, including anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects.

So completely excluding these nutrients from your diet long-term can lead to deficiencies and various other health issues.

Curious about what daily nutrients you might not be getting? Click here to book a free 1:1 consultation with a Loop Registered Dietitian.

Why are people trying the Carnivore Diet?

The carnivore diet, despite its extreme nature, has garnered attention for several potential benefits. One of the most commonly reported advantages is weight loss.

Proponents argue that the high-protein and high-fat nature of the diet promotes a feeling of fullness, which can lead to a reduced overall calorie intake. Additionally, many people report improved mental clarity and focus, potentially due to the stable blood sugar levels maintained by a low-carb, high-protein intake.

Another proposed benefit is reducing inflammation, as the diet eliminates processed foods and sugars, which are often linked to inflammatory responses in the body. Lastly, the Carnivore Diet functions as an extreme elimination diet.

Elimination diets are designed to help you identify foods causing adverse reactions by removing specific foods and/or food groups. If you eliminate just about every food group, a food causing you problems will likely follow.

So, with all of these proposed benefits, is there any harm in giving it a try?

Why you should NOT try the Carnivore Diet.

While some people report feeling good on the Carnivore Diet, it poses several risks that should not be ignored.

The diet is deficient in dietary fiber, which is crucial for digestive health and preventing chronic diseases such as colorectal cancer. According to one study, as dietary fiber intake increased, the overall risk of death from any cause decreased (1).

Another risk is the high intake of saturated fats, which can elevate LDL cholesterol levels and increase the risk of cardiovascular disease(2)(3). Someone might feel good on the Carnivore Diet, but people don’t really feel the plaque building up in their arteries.

Lastly, the restrictive nature of the diet can make it challenging to maintain long-term, potentially leading to disordered eating patterns or a yo-yo dieting effect.

Takeaways…

It is a good recommendation to limit your intake of ultra-processed foods, but there are less restrictive and more sustainable ways to accomplish that besides the Carnivore Diet.

If you suspect that you may have food sensitivity or intolerance, it’s recommended that you work with a qualified health professional to determine the root cause.

While the carnivore diet might offer short-term benefits like weight loss and improved mental clarity, its restrictive nature and exclusion of essential nutrients pose significant long-term health risks!

If there's a diet you've been wanting to try, talk with a Registered Dietitian! We can help you understand the goal of the diet and find a long-term solution that will fit your lifestyle and your goals.

Sources

1. Yang Y, Zhao LG, Wu QJ, Ma X, Xiang YB. Association Between Dietary Fiber and Lower Risk of All-Cause Mortality: A Meta-Analysis of Cohort Studies. American Journal of Epidemiology. 2015;181(2):83-91. doi:https://doi.org/10.1093/aje/kwu257
2. Borén J, Chapman MJ, Krauss RM, et al. Low-density lipoproteins cause atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease: pathophysiological, genetic, and therapeutic insights: a consensus statement from the European Atherosclerosis Society Consensus Panel. Eur Heart J. 2020;41(24):2313-2330. doi:10.1093/eurheartj/ehz962
3. Schoeneck M, Iggman D. The effects of foods on LDL cholesterol levels: A systematic review of the accumulated evidence from systematic reviews and meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials. Nutrition, Metabolism and Cardiovascular Diseases. 2021;31(5):1325-1338. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.numecd.2020.12.032