In this episode, Jodi, Gio and Dr. Rolando Fulgencio react to a video about Paul Saldino's shift away from the carnivore diet. Dr. Fulgencio, a naturopathic doctor, provides his thoughts on the health implications of a meat-only diet, including concerns about fiber intake, gut health, and the potential for developing conditions like gout. The discussion highlights the importance of a balanced diet that includes fruits, vegetables, and carbohydrates. They also critique the irresponsibility of promoting a strict carnivore diet in a published book despite negative personal health experiences.
00:00 Introduction and Special Guest
00:19 Paul Saldino's Carnivore Diet Journey
01:10 Health Implications of a Meat-Only Diet
03:23 Critique of Paul Saldino's Book
05:36 Recommendations for a Balanced Diet
07:52 Conclusion and Final Thoughts
- Hello, Jody and I here with a special friend and guest. We're gonna do a little quick reaction to a video. - Hey, I'm Dr. Rolanda Fligencio. I'm a naturopathic doctor, and I'm looking forward to listening to this video here. - All right, let's get right to it. - Los Aldino is no longer carnivore, my reaction next. - I didn't really call yourself a carnivore anymore. - I guess in 2018, I cut out all the plants from my diet and basically ate meat, organs, and fat for close to two years. During that time, I wrote the carnivore code, got interested in this carnivore diet, got interested in the potential for some plant foods to trigger autoimmunity in some people, which is kind of my framework, because I had pretty bad eczema. Two years into the carnivore diet, I started noticing persistence of unpleasant symptoms. So testosterone drops down. - Wait, wait, this would have been while he was writing the book. - Long-term ketosis was not a great thing for me and probably not a great thing for most humans. When people sometimes meet me or they talk to me now, they say, "Hey, I want to go on a carnivore diet." And I say, "You mean an animal-based diet, right?" And the organs, it's grass-fed meat, it's butter, it's tallow, it's raw milk. And then I get a significant amount of calories from carbohydrates in the form of fruit, fruit juice, honey, et cetera. - What was your thoughts, Rolando, when you heard that? - Oh man, I thought about, yeah, the fiber thing is like a, it's a big deal to me. Like I've, of course, as a physician, I look at it and I'm like, I'm curious how regular he was in terms of his, you know, his bowel movements. Because the fiber is what allows things to like move through the body. When you have just meat, you have protein great. But then you have fat as well. And generally speaking, when it's just meat in your diet, like the stomach doesn't necessarily move that, all that well. So in a sense, if you start slowing down and your stomach kind of like moving, stomach emptying, it kind of decreases. Basically, it's almost like you have this flesh kind of just sitting there, just kind of rotting in a sense. And you get a whole bunch of problems with that. Your gut flora will change most definitely. And then that'll cause a bunch of other problems down the line. I'm glad he didn't go into it 'cause it's very personal. But I bet he had a lot of gut issues there at the end of those two years as well. - And is there an increase of chances of getting gout because of the increase of uric acid? - Yes, for sure. But if you have two years of that, that's definitely gonna give your chances. And I get it, kind of like meat is a hard thing to get rid of. I've had patients where they have excessive gout and it's been a problem for several years. And you just tell them, you know what? If you just cut out the meat, you'll be fine. And it's like, it sounds so simple, but they have such a hard time letting go of that aspect. And so every once in a while, do you have a patient that comes in? And then they'll be like, okay, I won't eat meat all the time, but every once in a while, I will eat meat. And I'm like, okay, go ahead and do it. And then like, that's when you see them in your office. And they're like, oh man, this gout is so bad. And I was like, okay, was it worth it? Usually they say no. But sometimes in the moment though, they think it's worth it. - Let me jump in here, 'cause look as a plant-based advocate, but one who doesn't say you have to give up meat, I just tell people, look, if it's causing your harm, add more fiber, add more veggies, add more fruit. Right? And so this guy, the one point that jumped out at me and Violaine mentioned it, is that he still put out the book about carnivore diet, even though towards the end of it, he was feeling bad. And that's what bothers me. 'Cause look, I don't care if all you eat is donuts all day. If you made a conscious choice after looking at all the evidence to eat donuts all day, then power to you, because you're making that choice. But he's still advocating for people to eat that way, even when he was feeling bad, just 'cause he wanted to publish a book. And that's what kills me, that is annoying. Go ahead, Jody. - I think he's probably downplaying what he experienced. Because to me, that's, like you said, it's wrong. It's like, so how bad were the symptoms that you're coming out and saying this now? But to me, this is worse. You're advocating to completely cut out fruits and vegetables and fiber. How is that not as severe? How is that not worse than us saying here? Try this protein powder or try this snack. And it's like, now this is medical issues waiting to happen. - I think they probably have like a disclaimer in the book saying this is just personal advice. Don't take it because it's ridiculous. Go ahead. - That's what I was gonna say too. And I also, I think about it this way, when people are publishing books, they have a contract with a publishing company. And so like, you tell them, hey, I'm gonna write this book, it's gonna be a year or two out. And so you already have this pressure on your back to publish this thing. So I can kind of see that with him. Yes, it is still irresponsible. And I bet there is a disclaimer there. But I think he should come up with another book. That says, hey, like the opposite of what he just wrote out there. Just let people know like, hey guys, not a good idea, don't keep doing this. We got three minutes left in this short reaction video. Give us each of you one recommendation to people who went down that road who are obviously not gonna stay in that road or shouldn't stay in that road. What's one recommendation? For me, obviously, more fiber. Get more fiber. Just get more fiber because meat doesn't have fiber. Get it through plants, get it through fruits. Carbs are not bad. Go ahead. Anybody, jump in. Unless you have a medical issue that you need to completely eliminate a particular food, aim for balance. Do not follow a diet that completely eliminates a macronutrient or an entire food. Again, unless you have a food intolerance or a food allergy to it. Yeah, man, if they've already kind of gone down that road, I think you gotta get back to balance. Like you said, Jody, you just gotta get back to balance and not that everything will regulate itself. I get it 'cause I'm gonna guess that he was really going for the amount of protein he was trying to build up. He wanted to do it as quickly as possible. I say research, not to say that you have to get rid of meat altogether, add in other sources of protein. There's a lot of nuts and grains and things like this. I know some people have an adversion to tofu, but it's actually not that bad. So I would say look into those 'cause they have their fiber, their other nutrients, vitamins and minerals that will help you for the long term. He got to think of it like this. If he was trying to get his protein as quickly as possible, you're gonna get gains in the short term, but you have to think long term. In terms of health, you gotta have a more balanced diet. You gotta have some veggies in there. That's for your long term. If you wanna live to like your 80s and 90s and well, that's what you gotta go and think about. I think the lesson we learned here is you gotta be balanced. Jody said it, make sure you get your fiber and make sure if you wanna live long to include lots of fruits, vegetables, carbs are not bad. It is well documented and the longest lived people consume it all, obviously, all in moderation. Hope you enjoyed this quick review. Thank you for our special guests, impromptu.
