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I don’t think so. Not much of it at least.
The current zeitgeist is that fruits and veggies are not only necessary, they are the most important form of food we can eat. But are they really? Do we need plant matter or just the micronutrients that plant matter offers?
Lately I’ve scaled back on my intake of plant matter considerably. A typical daily diet for me is the following:
Breakfast
2 tins of wild caught mackerel in olive oil or the same volume amount of pickled herring or eggs or…
Tablespoon of coconut butter
Handful of blueberries from my blueberry bushes (which will end soon as the season is almost over)
Cup of coffee with unhomogenized heavy cream (sometimes raw cream when I can get it)
Lunch (if I have it. If I eat a bit more protein in the morning, I often am not hungry for lunch)
Fatty sashimi or rare fatty roast beef 1/2 to 1 pound of either
Tablespoon of coconut butter
Dinner
Steak, fish, lamb, organ meat – whatever my wife buys – eaten till I’m full
Maybe a bit of salad or a peach or a slice of onion (usually not)
Glass of red wine or two (or three, ahem)
This is how I feed my kids too (sans the wine).
I have been eating like this for a few months now – ever since I saw Dr. Barry Groves presentation. I feel perfectly fine. Better in fact. One thing I have noticed is that I don’t need to go to the bathroom as often and when I do, a lot less comes out and it’s a lot less smelly. I now have no gas, bloating or other intestinal quirks. (Was that too much information?)
The fact is that meat and other protein rich foods are the most nutrient dense foods available. I wrote about this last month. If in addition to these you eat a smattering of nuts, seeds, seasonal fruits and veggies you’re not missing out on anything you need in the micronutrient department (this assumes you are healthy and do not have any genetic issues whereby you need more of something due to malabsorption or other issues). But you can take supplements if this is the case.
I know many people like plant matter. Fine by me. But plant matter is hard to digest – we don’t have the enzymes to digest cellulose which is mostly what plant matter is – and thus it’s rough on the intestines. They call it roughage for a reason!
What we need is nutrients – not plants. Thoughts?
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{ 23 comments… read them below or add one }
Eat that Michael Pollan
I have been eating this way for a long time now. I am on a diet that I like to describe as being on the ‘carnivorous side of omnivory’! I have also noticed all of the changes you mention such as less toilet visits (number 2!) with less volume, odour, gas or bloating. I don’t miss fibre at all and although the frequency is a lot less, I do not suffer from constipation.
I actually eat no fruit or veg and the only plant matter I get are the small amounts of herbs and spices I add to meat dishes. I don’t even eat nuts and seeds any more. In fact, for the first time in ages I tried so raw coconut shavings as a snack (high fibre) and felt very uncomfortable afterwards! I think that HAS bunged me up a bit!
I think I will be sticking to my usual meat, fish, poultry and eggs supplemented with cheeses and cream!
Alden -funny!
Alex – I agree and eat very little plant matter at all. Coconut seems ok with me however. But it’s the butter I eat not the actual inside meat.
Sounds like Peter’s diet (from Hyperlipid).
I agree that plant matter isn’t as important as commonly thought. That said, butyrate is very important to human health and it is produced by the fermentation of fiber. This, as it turns out, may be why some amount (although still probably not much) of plant fiber is important in the diet.
We don’t need the veggies for nutrients. As you said, meat (and especially organ meat) is far more nutrient-dense than plants.
The reason I continue to eat them is variety. I admittedly get a little bored with a “meat only” diet.
Alex: coconut meat is extremely high in fiber, which of course can cause gas and constipation.
I can go days without vegetables, I only eat them because sometimes I really enjoy them. Sautee’d mushrooms, creamed spinach, grilled zuccinni – all good stuff. And a little bit of fruit sure makes a high fat and protein smoothy taste good. Come to think of it, I go through a lot of coconut milk, in the form of home-made smoothies.
I touched on the same topic awhile back:
http://beefandwhiskey.com/?p=351
Don’t think I mentioned it, but I have noticed the same thing about the lack of stink in my poo. And quite the opposite after I’ve gone on a cheating bender. Enuff said there, ahaha…
i find i like everything with lots of olive oil/butter/coconut oil…my wife’s a great cook and anything we eat is cooked in fat…so i don’t think about eating plants, its flavoring the fat
my wife has even start drinking the fat left over like i do…she used to get disgusted by it…but its so tasty!
I don’t mind putting aside the veggies….but what I always wonder about is the long term effect. It may be fine for 10 20 30 40 years and then some heatlh issue may come up.
I wouldn’t mind but would need more long term science about this. The SAD diet is awfull, lowcarb seems better, Paleo sounds interesting, and yours is …..
Hi Guy –
I understand your concerns. However, my one word answer is:
Eskimos.
You’ll be fine so long as you are eating grass fed meats, wild caught fish and eating organs, eggs, etc.
You’re pissing off a lot of vegans with this kind of talk. And you know how angry these supposedly peace loving people get when you knock their way of life!
I’d also like to add, I enjoy a bowl of oatmeal and heavy cream with my eggs for breakfast.
I am not pissing anyone off. Getting pissed off at someone who disagrees with you is that person’s own fault and indicates a serious lack of information. No one makes anyone do anything.
Liking oatmeal is fine. I like wine but I know its not good for me. Like isn’t the issue.
I eat veggies because I like them, especially from my garden. Fruit is a treat, my dessert, I eat fruit in very small amounts. Some days, I go without either; I feel fine and my diabetes stays under control. Too much of either and the aforementioned bathroom issues arrive (no need to describe those again!)
In addition to Eskimos, there have been Native Americans living on all meat diets living to around 100.
You aren’t pissing anyone off? Post this blog as a comment on a You Tube page owned by a vegan. Watch what happens. That is a lifestyle choice, just like this is your choice to eat this way. They think they’re right. You think you’re right. Watch the sparks fly with those people. You cannot tell them anything. Worst thing I ever did was become a vegetarian. Nothing made me feel worse. I eat plenty of eggs, red meat, poultry, fish, and they think I am going to die of a stroke. While my cholesterol is in the 270 range (and I do not care), my BP and heart rates are both normal. I know one vegan whose cholesterol is 140. That’s a catastrophic disease waiting to happen.
BTW, my previous post was facetious. I take it you lack a sense of humor.
And I know one that just had a heart attack. So now he’s trusting his heart to Lipitor. You would think that it would be a wake up call, but no. When you eat for ideology, reason and logic and all the well done studies in the world don’t make a diffrence. I have a neice who’s vegan. Dollars to donuts once she gets married she’ll have fertility problems…
Hello fredrik
Thanks for the reply, here’s a link to a long informative discussion on the eskimo diet, which at one point explains how these people got their vitamins from, and why we should be careful about choosing to eat fruits and vegetables
•We are not eating seals or their organ meats, so get your fruits and vegetables (as we need them for sources of vitamins that are not in our meats)
http://www.fitnessspotlight.com/2008/04/13/the-inuit-paradox-high-fat-lower-heart-disease-and-cancer/
Thanks Guy
Guy – remember that I didn’t say to eat no veggies or fruit. I said “not much of it.” As you see from my personal diet I do eat some plant matter but it does not make the bulk of my caloric intake.
Veggies are just my excuse to eat butter!!! (and drink what’s left over on the plate)
If someone gets made at your posts, then true, it’s their problem, not yours.
Have you ever seen a bodybuilder go from a workout straight to a salad bar?
Ummm… Inuits have a very poor life expectancy and have more cancer and heart disease than the average person in the US (which is already pretty bad.) Granted, there are other factors involved in their poor health… but you cannot look at their health and say, ‘hey, eating only meat is healthy.’
Guy you are referring to the Inuit AFTER they adopted a Western diet.
The evidence they were healthy before adopting a more western diet is anecdotal at best. There wouldn’t be extensive studies on their health over a hundred years ago.
What evidence makes you believe the Inuit were healthy 100 years ago?
Ok… here is some evidence.
http://wholehealthsource.blogspot.com/2008/07/cancer-among-inuit.html
It doesn’t seem too bad to go all meat.
Guy – there is scores of evidence from the work of Stefansson.
And I never said ALL meat – I said mainly meat. Take a re-look at my pyramid from the previous post.
Firebird you said:
“You aren’t pissing anyone off? Post this blog as a comment on a You Tube page owned by a vegan. Watch what happens. ”
Like I said, if a person gets pissed off that is their problem. I am not trying to piss anyone off. People need to take control of their own feelings. Read The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand.
“That is a lifestyle choice, just like this is your choice to eat this way. They think they’re right. You think you’re right. Watch the sparks fly with those people. You cannot tell them anything. Worst thing I ever did was become a vegetarian. Nothing made me feel worse. I eat plenty of eggs, red meat, poultry, fish, and they think I am going to die of a stroke. While my cholesterol is in the 270 range (and I do not care), my BP and heart rates are both normal. I know one vegan whose cholesterol is 140. That’s a catastrophic disease waiting to happen.”
You’re right! It’s a good thing you stopped eating vegan.
“BTW, my previous post was facetious. I take it you lack a sense of humor.”
Yes I was born without one. It’s a rare disease found mostly in people named Fred.