Who follows a carnivore diet?

Executive summary

* A study has been published, which reported the results of a survey of over 2,000 people who followed a carnivore diet for at least 6 months.

* The study makes no claims – it merely reported the characteristics, eating patterns, health perceptions/measurements and level of satisfaction of those following a diet based on animal foods.

* People were primarily motivated to follow a carnivore diet for health/body weight reasons.

* Most people consumed red meat at least daily, if not at each meal. The high majority of people reported never consuming legumes, vegetables (even non-starchy ones), fruit or grains. They also rarely consumed alcohol, which could have been a confounder in the health results.

* Changes in health were self-reported; virtually every condition surveyed was resolved or improved. As has been found in previous studies of very low-carb diets, lipid profiles worsened in some people (although more people reported resolution or improvement in lipid profiles than worsening).

* Participants in the survey had very high levels of satisfaction with the diet and the health improvements were undeniably impressive, even if self-reported.

* The significant caveat is that only people who enjoyed and/or felt benefit from undertaking such a diet would have continued to follow it for at least six months. This research tells us, therefore, if the diet suits you, this is what you might expect to experience.

Introduction

 

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