Carnivore Diet for IBD

Have you ever wondered what diet is best to follow if you have IBD?  I am creating a new series where I profile, discuss, and explain various diets that can be used to help manage IBD.

This series is meant to explain in detail about each diet.  So that you can make an educated decision about which one will work best for you.

This week we are going to take a deep dive into the carnivore diet for IBD management.

We will discuss

• What is the carnivore diet?

• History of the diet

• Potential benefits

• Potential drawbacks

What is the Carnivore Diet?

The carnivore diet is a diet that solely consists of animal products.  It is similar to the keto diet, but more extreme, because it does not allow any carbohydrates at all.

History of the Diet

The carnivore diet stems from the argument that ancient humans would have eaten a largely meat based diet. Although I do think that ancient humans consumed meat, getting that meat was a lot more difficult than it is today.  And often plant sources of food may have been easier to source.

There has never been any scientific studies into whether or not the carnivore diet can be beneficial for IBD.

All evidence in support of this diet comes from personal claims, usually on social media.  There have been a few key players in popularizing this diet for IBD.

Paul Saladino is one of the key players in the carnivore diet game.  But it should be noted that he does not follow a strict carnivore diet.  He includes most fruits, and raw honey to his diet. 

There is evidence presented in all Facebook groups that I could access, of people finding relief from IBD symptoms using a carnivore diet. Although not widespread, some people have successfully used a carnivore diet for IBD management.

Benefits of the Diet

There are some benefits of following a strict carnivore diet. 

One of the main benefits is that this diet eliminates processed foods, which is the single best thing you can do for the management of IBD.  Ultra processed foods are not good for anyone; they cause disease.  

The carnivore diet also eliminates all refined sugars which are harmful to health.

In the argument of a carnivore diet for IBD, there is also another major benefit.  The carnivore diet eliminates all fiber from the diet.

As fiber can be difficult for IBD sufferers to digest, a carnivore diet will provide relief from fiber. 

During a flare, eating a low fiber diet has been proven beneficial in the short term in easing the worst symptoms of an IBD flare. A carnivore diet can provide you with high calories for weight management.  And low fiber which may help with flare symptom management.

Potential Drawbacks and Health Concerns

The main drawbacks with a carnivore diet for IBD is when using the diet long term. 

The main issue is that a true carnivore diet does not contain any fiber.  So what is the importance of fiber in the body?

Fiber does a lot for overall human health, and prevention of diseases.

Fiber helps create regular bowel movements.  It helps firm up the stool, without making it bulky and difficult to pass.

A high fiber diet is also strongly associated with a lower risk of heart disease, diabetes, and certain types of cancer. 

This includes a lower risk of colon cancer, which IBD patients may at a higher risk of developing.

Fiber is also the favourite foods of the healthy bacteria in your gut. Without these fibrous prebiotic foods, it may be impossible to maintain true gut health.

Plants also provide other nutrients in high quantities that may not be found in a purely carnivore diet.  Including vitamin C, which is not found in useful amounts in cooked animals products.

Flavonoids are antioxidants found in high quantities in plants.  These flavonoids provide a whole host of benefits to the human body.  Including lowering blood pressure (quercetin), and preventing heart disease (hesperidin).

And of course the antioxidants found in plants protect cells from free radicals that cause aging.

There are also environmental and ethical concerns if a carnivore diet was eaten on a large scale.  We all know that animals have to die for their meat to be eaten.  And in modern society, animals grown for meat often live in shocking conditions.  And eating less meat (not more) will help reduce the effects of climate change.

The Verdict

After collecting the data, we have to ask ourselves.  Does a carnivore diet make sense for IBD management?  In my opinion, it does not. 

Most humans throughout history would not have eaten a solely meat diet.  In many areas of the world edible plants were easier to find than meat.  We also need prebiotic foods found in plants to feed the good bacteria in our gut.  This maintains gut health, which leads to good overall health.

Plants have been put on this earth for many reasons; and one of them is to feed all types of animals.  Including humans.

Although a short term carnivore diet may be beneficial during an IBD flare. I would be concerned with the long-term health implications of eating a diet completely devoid of fiber.   This lack of fiber may not help with IBD management long term.  As IBD is often related to gut dysbiosis.

 

There are so many diets out there for the management of IBD.  This series is hoping to spotlight each of the popular diets used.  That way readers can learn about each diet, and make an educated decision, on whether that diet may work for them.

The carnivore diet for IBD management may help ease symptoms while in a flare.  But it may worsen gut dysbiosis, and it may cause other health issues related to a low fiber diet.