“Think like a plant,” Paul Saladino, known on the Internet as Carnivore MD, tells me from a range of YouTube videos.
As he often does, he’s trying to convince the world that vegetables are probably not good for us, and a diet that consists almost entirely of meat is the best way to “thrive.”
“If you think about this intuitively at a high level without going into science…plants are trying to put all their defense chemicals into those parts of the plant,” says Saladino.
This is one of the few video posts of him wearing the shirt. In fact, it’s customary among carnivore influencers to go shirtless, barefoot, and generally look as much like “our ancestors” as possible.
Another influencer known as Liver King calls his followers “primal” and yells at the camera about the benefits of not wearing shoes.
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“You are connected, anchored to the earth, [because] Why do you allow your environment to rule you?” says River King.
Content like this is the most extreme representation of carnivore culture online. Many of these influencers monetize their social media presence and sell their own nutritional supplements.
It’s a dizzying sucker of raw testicle-slurping macho, diet pseudoscience, and original researchism.
The uncompromising rhetoric of the online carnivore community is a far cry from the dieting reality of Curtis Sironen, a professional rugby league player who describes himself as a “convert.”
“I was basically completely carnivorous for maybe eight months when Sydney hit with COVID-19,” says Curtis.
At the time, he was playing for the NRL’s Manly Sea Eagles and was battling chronic injuries.
“I got to the point where I was willing to try anything, and I was desperate,” he says.
The owner of the recovery center he was involved in pitched him on a meat-eating diet, but Curtis was skeptical at first.
“I was like, ‘No way.’ It just sounded silly. I didn’t feel full enough, I didn’t have the energy.”
Eventually, they got in touch with a self-proclaimed “ancestral nutritionist” who convinced him to try it and sent him some meal plans.
“[They] It seemed a little wild, like fasting from 8pm to noon basically every day, eating three or four ribeye steaks with bone broth and fasting,” he says.
But according to Curtis, the results were immediate and significant.
“Honestly, within maybe two weeks, I started to feel the effects…and those painful little pains started to go away. [was] It’s kind of my goal. “
What Nutrition Experts Are Saying About Meat Eating
Emma Beckett, a nutrition and food scientist at the University of Newcastle, like many in her field, has strong concerns about diet.
“Eating too much meat has potential consequences. If you’re eating only meat, you’re very likely to eat too much meat,” says Dr. Beckett.
“Too much meat brings risks such as too much saturated fat, which increases the risk of heart disease and cardiovascular disease.”
She also warns that you may be missing out on important things like vitamin C, fiber, and vitamin K.
Australian Dietary Guidelines recommend eating from five different food groups, including vegetables and legumes. fruit; meat, poultry, fish; and dairy products.
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Dr. Beckett was the first to admit that any diet can or will not work.
The problem with poor diet, however, is that the worst effects may not be felt for decades.
“The body is very good at something called homeostasis… keeping things in order,” she says.
“So we’re not just eating for health today, we’re eating for health 10 or 20 years from now.”
The carnivore community often talks about how mainstream nutrition and food science is dominated by orthodoxy and proper research is hampered by vested interests.
But Dr. Beckett says this view stems from a misunderstanding of what nutritional science is.
“We don’t take a single study or divide people into different groups to make nutritional decisions,” she says.
“We base our decisions on the body of evidence, the mass of evidence, the mass of studies.
“That’s why we don’t usually study carnivore diets because that’s unethical. There’s already a body of evidence that feeding people a carnivore diet can be harmful.” because I know from
And if that sounds like a catch-22, chances are you’re just starting to get a sense of the persuasive power that makes this move come to life.
extreme moment
We spoke with US-based cultural strategist Matt Klein about what’s driving the craving for meat at this moment in history.
“I mean, we’re in an extreme moment,” he says.
“Culture exists as tension…so when you see the rise of veganism, you see the pull or vice versa, and it’s all carnivorous.”
He points to the democratization of health information online.
“We live in the true metaverse or multiverse, don’t we? You can choose your own adventure.”
In general, trust in organizations is declining and conspiracy theories are on the rise, says Matt.
“And while this isn’t calling dieting a conspiracy theory, it’s a matter of people’s power to… decide what’s best for them,” he says.
Of course, that doesn’t describe everyone starting a meat-eating diet, but for Matt, there’s a larger cultural sentiment underpinning the exercise.
“In moments of cultural instability, we seek solutions, morals, and like-minded people who surround us.”
Ange Lavoipierre is an award-winning journalist, writer and comedian. She’s the host and EP of her new ABC culture podcast, Schmeitgeist.
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