The Carnivore Diet Explained

You’re hearing a lot of buzz about a new weight loss diet, or maybe you’ve seen its remarkable results for yourself — in a friend who used it to reach their goal weight quickly. But what exactly is the “carnivore diet,” and is it a good eating plan for you?     

At Physicians WEIGHT LOSS Centers Pompano Beach, our expert team understands the importance of optimized nutrition in every phase of weight management. Let’s take a closer look at the popular carnivore diet, including how it helps your body burn more fat — and why we don’t recommend it as a way to jumpstart the weight loss process. 

A short tutorial on the carnivore diet

As its name indicates, the carnivore diet is an eating plan that consists entirely of meat and animal products, excluding all other foods. 

Its guidelines stem from the notion that human ancestral populations ate mostly meat and fish — and that a higher intake of carbohydrates is responsible for today’s high rates of obesity and chronic illness.     

Foods it includes

When you’re on the carnivore diet, you can eat:

• Meat (i.e., beef, pork, lamb, venison)
• Organ meats and bone marrow 
• Poultry (i.e., chicken, turkey, duck)
• Eggs (i.e., chicken eggs, duck eggs)
• Fish (i.e., salmon, tuna, cod, trout)
• Shellfish (i.e., shrimp, lobster, crab)

You can also eat small amounts of low-lactose dairy products, like butter, hard cheeses, and heavy cream. You can also use seasonings like salt, pepper, and garlic. 

Water and bone broth are preferred for hydration, while plant-based drinks like coffee, tea, and juice are off-limits. 

Foods it excludes

The carnivore diet excludes all plant-based foods, from whole foods like vegetables, legumes, and fruits to nuts, seeds, whole grains, plant-based oils, milks, natural sweeteners (i.e., honey), and high-lactose dairy products (i.e., milk, yogurt).  

It also excludes processed foods like refined grains, sweeteners, desserts, snacks, fried foods, and alcohol.  

Nutrient ratio guidelines

Centered on fat and protein, the carnivore diet is a type of ketogenic (keto) diet. But while other keto diets, like the Atkins diet, suggest that about 70% of your daily calories should come from fat, 20% should come from protein, and no more than 10% should come from carbohydrates, the carnivore diet is the most ketogenic diet of all.  

Why? It cuts out carbs completely, allowing for none or only very small amounts. It also doesn’t specify portion size, calorie count, or how much fat or protein you should get. Instead, it directs you to eat what you want from the approved foods list.

How a keto diet boosts fat-burning

Carnivore diet proponents often choose this extreme keto eating plan to help jumpstart weight loss. Eliminating carbs promotes weight loss in two ways:

No new fat storage

Carbs are your body’s main energy source. When you eat them, your body converts them into glucose for immediate use. 

Whatever “carb fuel” you don’t use right away is stored in your liver and muscles. If you don’t use it within a certain period, your body eventually converts this surplus into fat.

Increased fat burn   

When you don’t eat carbs, your body converts dietary fats into ketones to use for energy. A lack of carbs longer-term places your body in ketosis, a state that induces increased fat burning and weight loss.  

Our expert take on the carnivore diet 

Proponents of the carnivore diet say that, in addition to its fat-burning benefits, going totally carb-free helps improve blood sugar control for those with type 2 diabetes. By cutting out inflammatory junk foods, they say it helps lower chronic systemic inflammation.  

Our expert take on the carnivore diet? It’s so highly restrictive — and so high in saturated fat — that its downsides likely outweigh its benefit as a jumpstarting catalyst for weight loss. 

Nutritional restriction

By eliminating carbs, the carnivore diet also eliminates vital nutrients your body needs to stay healthy, including antioxidant nutrients like vitamin C and digestion-supporting dietary fiber. 

Very high in saturated fat

Animal fats are saturated — the kind that’s considered unhealthy for your heart because it promotes higher cholesterol levels and increases your risk of heart disease. All keto diets, including the carnivore diet, are associated with higher cholesterol levels in both the short-term and over time.  

Unhealthy side effects

Keto diets are commonly associated with increased risk of constipation, kidney stones, gout, and osteoporosis. Carb-cutting can also trigger the so-called “keto flu,” or ongoing headaches and fatigue. Given that red meat is inflammatory, eating a lot of it can boost inflammation, too. 

Unsustainable long-term

Eliminating an entire macronutrient (carbs) — and entire food groups — simply isn’t sustainable long-term. When rapid weight loss is induced through strict nutrient or food elimination, weight regain is likely as soon as normal eating patterns are resumed.    

Nutritional guidance for weight loss

Instead of “going carnivore,” let us come up with an individualized nutrition plan that supports your health as it helps you reach your goal weight. 

Schedule a visit at Physicians WEIGHT LOSS Centers Pompano Beach at our temporary location in Lighthouse Point, Florida, today.