Diet fads come and go, from the grapefruit diet to the cabbage soup weight loss gimmick. Now there’s a new diet trend folks are eager to jump on board with…the all-meat plan, a food plan that simultaneously nauseates vegetarians and gives carnivores a reason to whip out the Worcestershire.
Bring on the beefunsplash.com
But is an all-meat diet doable, healthy, and can it help you lose weight? As per the New York Post, “Carnivory, the millennia-old practice of surviving solely on meat, is experiencing a resurgence among health nuts, tech guys, and conspiracy theorists.” The virtually carb-free menu, chock-full of beef, poultry, fatty fish, pork, eggs, and a dollop of dairy has followers feeling great, losing weight, and getting healthy…or at least they think they are.
Keep in mind, so much meat can cause cholesterol levels to spike. Not to mention the fact that the diet lacks essential vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients the body needs to function at its finest. According to Popular Science, “You need 13 vitamins in order to live, and though you can actually get most of them from eating a variety of meats, you’re going to miss out on some crucial ones if you totally forego flora. Folate, along with vitamins C and E, pretty much only come from veggies, mostly green leafy ones and citrus. This is why sailors used to get scurvy—not enough vitamin C in their largely fish- and other meat-based diets. Plus, if you don’t get enough vitamin E your body can’t use vitamin K as well, so even though you’re getting enough from fish, liver, and beef you won’t actually be able to make use of it.”
Another steak supper…pexels.com
And as for fiber? An all-meat menu lacks the roughage that helps us “go,” so to speak. Being backed up with beef sounds pretty antithetical to feeling healthy and slim. As Popular Science points out, “Eating lots of red meat has long been linked to colorectal cancer, along with pancreatic and prostate cancers to a lesser degree.” Is the weight loss worth the risk?
Put the negatives aside and you’ll find proponents of the all-meat diet singing its praises as they marinate another brisket and throw a couple more burgers on the grill. Take orthopedic surgeon, Shawn Baker. As reported by The Guardian, he consumes about four pounds of steak per day. Obviously, he’s got the dough to afford all that meat, but the price is worth the payoff. He says, “The diet is easy. I just have to think: ‘How hungry am I and how many steaks do I want to eat?’ My joint pain and tendinitis went away, my sleep became excellent, my skin improved. I no longer had any bloating, cramping or other digestive problems, my libido went back to what it was in my 20s and my blood pressure normalized.” Baker gives the beef his blessing.
Betcha want fries with thatpexels.com
Others cite an uptick in energy, better overall performance, a boost in mood, and increased strength. Sure, the meaty meals may be monotonous, but for those who prefer burgers over bread and poultry over pasta, the all-meat diet is like a dream come true.
Expensive? Can be. Limiting? To a degree. Healthy? Depends who you ask. But for those piling their plates with ribeye and round roast with a pork chop in place of pecan pie for dessert wouldn’t have it any other way. Where’s the beef?
