I love doing the Carnivore Diet Success Stories, I find it very rewarding to share peoples progress. So I am going to try to catch up with people once a year to see how they are getting on.
Will they all still be Carnivore, probably not. However, I believe they will have an appreciation of the benefits of a meat-heavy diet and will use that knowledge as a tool to further their health.
How would you currently describe your current way of eating.
I pretty much eat similarly to a year ago. I focus 90-100% on the animal kingdom and from time to time, I do have a little bit of dark chocolate or a Keto meal/recipe, especially if I am travelling or staying with friends/family. The important thing is to focus on health and not being too rigid and being more flexible when uncontrolled life situations occurs. This overall approach has allowed me to continue to live a Ketogenic lifestyle and still enjoy a few “keto” treats from time to time. I do consume some coffee, I do implement Swiss water press decaf coffee, as to reduce my caffeine intake overall, so I may have about .5-1 cup of coffee per day. For now, this amount of caffeine does not bother me, this may change down the road and I always like to experiment. My diet consists overall of meat (80%), the rest can be a mixture of other animal products: eggs, fish, poultry, etc. From time to time, I have a bit of dairy products- like cheese and heavy cream- but this is minimal and I take collage peptides.
What have you learned regarding nutrition over the last year.
I have learned that food can truly heal your body and mind. When you see food as the fuel you can give your body, so it runs efficiently, you realize that the focus lies on the quality macros that will make your body the best that it can be and heal all sorts of ailments without medication or surgery. You focus on health- rather than just aesthetics. I also learned that we are constantly being fed misinformation from the media, medical and nutritional advice that is outdated and so flawed that people are adopting plant-based diets and/or reducing fats and meat. I know this is an upward battle, but it is worth the fight!
I love seeing so much new research being conducted, and having advocates like Dr. Baker, Dr. Champ, Dr. Ede, Dr. Eenfelt, Dr. Westman, Dr. Peterman, Dr. Gustin, Dr. D’Agostino, Dr. Volek, Dr. Phinney, Dr. Mason, Dr. Scher, Dr. Fettke, Dr. Noakes, Dr. Fung, and many more!…to provide research-based information that is contrary to what we have been told, and healing people along the way! These pioneers are healing cancer, diabetes, neurological diseases, autoimmune disorders, metabolic syndrome, arthritis, inflammation, heart disease and much much more! Also seeing so many success stories is a hopeful step! So many ex-vegans and people adopting a Keto/Carnivore diet have increased twofold in the last few years, that the data in these case studies have value, and will hopefully change the status quo- which is evidently not working, as we realize that we are getting sicker, fatter and advancing our ageing process with the standard medical/nutritional advice. Research shows that 80% of people who go vegans/vegetarians go back to eating meat and leaving such a lifestyle. I just recently connected with an ex-vegan pioneer in Australia- Katya Arbusoff- who was a vegan for over 30 years, has now adopted a carnivorous lifestyle focusing on ancestral eating- eating from the animal kingdom. She has a Facebook group called “Katya’s Raw Wisdom”- where many ex-vegans from different walks of life can support each other in the transition, and it is just amazing to see how many stories of deficiencies tally up. There are many other such groups on Facebook, such as “Restoration health vegan recovery group”- was my support group as I transitioned out of veganism. Also, with so many baby deaths occurring from their parents feeding them a vegan diet, more restrictions are being talked about with regards to babies, and young children eating a vegan diet, which have shown to damage their health, brains, developmental milestones, causing severe malnutrition and even death! Many vegan parents have gone to jail and is such a sad situation that can easily be prevented. Therefore, no child or baby should be fed a deficient vegan diet. Therefore, this whole notion of a vegan agenda is truly preposterous, because there are many people who could not follow a vegan/plant-based diet without damaging their health and even cause death. Who are those people? People with autoimmune disorders, Hashimoto’s Disease, graves disease, Crohn’s Disease, diabetes, heart disease, IBS/Gut issues, joint issues, mood, people with lymes disease, neurological disorders, babies, children and the elderly. I always recommend people to read more research studies, data coming from many physicians seeking to bring the truth to light.
I always recommend documentaries such as “The Perfect Human Diet”, “The Magic Pill” and “That Sugar Film”, so people can learn the truth behind nutrition and health and re-learn what is the BEST and optimal way for humans to heal and thrive. Since switching from a vegan diet, I received so much hate and nasty messages- it was a war against the vegans! It is interesting that people take such labels to heart, to the point of aggression. Many vegans love to claim that Einstein was a vegan and little do they know, that Einstein was a vegetarian (not a vegan), the last couple years of his life- when he was in his 70s-, decades after many of his most important scientific breakthroughs. Thus, all of his scientific breakthroughs occurred when he ate meat! The only reason he followed a vegetarian diet was due to chronic digestive distress and he received the same outdated, flawed misinformation that I received from my own GI doctor that actually worsened my GI issues- of eating more vegetables and fiber! So there you have it, so much misinformation still circles around, but if you are interested, you can find the truth with a little searching.
Another interesting study out there that compares vegan brains vs. meat-eater brains- The study said those on a meat-free diet are six times more likely to suffer brain shrinkage as the most vitamin B12 is found in meats, liver, fish and milk. According to the study, vitamin B12 protects older people against brain shrinkage. Deficiency of vitamin B12 can cause inflammation of the nervous system. These brains were not only smaller but experience cognitive decline. Another similar brain study highlights that choline is an essential dietary nutrient, but the amount produced by the liver is not enough to meet the requirements of the human body. Choline is critical to brain health, particularly during fetal development. It also influences liver function, with shortfalls linked to irregularities in blood fat metabolism as well as excess free radical cellular damage, writes Dr. Derbyshire. Therefore, eating a vegan or plant-based diet can be bad for your brain health, especially if you already have a low choline intake, researchers report. The primary sources of dietary choline are found in beef, eggs, dairy products, fish, and chicken, with very low levels found in nuts, beans, and cruciferous vegetables, such as broccoli. Many of the studies concluded, that many of the cognitive deficiencies/decline and atrophy may be restored after adopting a meat diet, but many faculties may not be reversed or restored.
This is exactly what I experienced as a vegan- I was constantly lethargic, had mental fog, very slow to process information, I had many errors writing reports and took me twice as long. I felt I was in a constant haze and I felt irritable, depressed, irrational and experienced mood swings. I just could not function, and my kids were scared of my emotional reactions! I was out of control.
What health & Fitness improvements, and/or setbacks have you experienced in the last year.
I have had no setbacks at all- quite the contrary. I have continued to heal. My gut-issues have healed 100%, my skin, hair, and nails have restored from the damage of veganism. I actually have much fewer wrinkles than when I was a vegan! This is saying a lot- since I am going against the clock, so I definitely feel more youthful, energetic and strong. My face is plumper and has a healthy glow.
There is also research on the damaging effects of sugar on your skin and that includes fructose (sugar derived from fruit). This is due to “Advanced glycation end products” (AGEs) are proteins or lipids that become glycated as a result of exposure to sugars. They can be a factor in aging and in the development or worsening of many degenerative diseases, such as diabetes, atherosclerosis, chronic kidney disease, and Alzheimer’s disease. Research has shown that aging is accelerated by sugar. Without getting too technical, at the end of each strand of our DNA is a little cap, called a telomere, which protects our DNA from damage. Every time our DNA is read and duplicated, those telomeres shorten. While our bodies normally replace those telomeres, sugar quickens that shortening, and thereby, advances the aging process (Increased acne, Appearance of wrinkles, Sagging in neck and chin, Development of dark spots, Slower healing of cuts, scraps, etc.). To reverse the effects of sugar, Dr. Nish (one of many researches) says we can reduce the metabolic consequences of sugar (diabetes, obesity, metabolic syndrome) and possibly some of the aging aspects. But, unfortunately, we’ll be stuck with some of the skin changes associated with ingested sugar. This occurred firsthand to me when I became a vegan. I have a post on IG where I show this damage in pictures- I aged so much! I have a twin sister who was never vegan and during this time, I looked almost 10 years older than her. Wrinkles cut my skin, I lost all the youthful fat, I had hollow depressions around my eyes, gaunt cheeks and I looked so bad. Therefore- I am staying AWAY from sugar! I do not want to accelerate the aging of my skin. You can see this in many vegans- they have premature aging- and their skin is the first sign you see this. Dr. Nish encourages people to start getting rid of sugar early in life. This is particularly important in pregnant mothers. Remember, what’s going on in your skin is going on everywhere in your body. Our skin is just an external display of everything that’s happening inside our bodies.
My mental fog is non-existent, no more depression, or mood swings. I am always happy, positive and calm. I do not get sick! I have had only 1 cold (that lasted 2 days), this past year and a half, since I went back to a Keto lifestyle. I work in schools, as a Speech Pathologist, so I am constantly working with sick kids and my immune system is strong, keeping illness at bay. My pre-diabetic state is gone, no more inflammation and healthier than ever. My body has overall improved (even with less exercise), I am naturally curvy- a small waist and curvy hips/bottom, and strong/lean abs, so it is nice to keep a lean, curvy, flat stomach, yet strong, frame, which is a size 0, XS-S, and keep a weight between 115-119. Sure, there is always room for improvement, but I am overall happy with my figure, especially after having 3 kids, and being a 40 year old active mom! ☺ Best of all I do not have to kill myself at the gym. People think I have good genetics, which I do believe is 50% of my success, the other 50% is definitely leading a Carnivore/Keto lifestyle. I have found the Holy Grail! I am enjoying the best health possible and will continue eating this way indefinitely. I ate a low carb diet for 12 years, prior to the 6-year interruption following a vegan diet, which caused so many health issues and have now regained my health with a Ketogenic/Carnivore diet the last year and a half. Therefore, I am totaling eating a Ketogenic diet for over 13.5 years.
What are your health and fitness goals in the year ahead.
My fitness regime was not as consistent as in previous years. We had many life changes that required more time spent with my children and family and that hurt my consistency at the gym. I still train in the gym, do Pilates and cardio (as running, walking, or HIIT), perhaps 2 times per week. However, this is something that I will continue to focus on this in 2020- and be more consistent. I plan on adding an extra day or two and keeping a steady consistency, even if it is just for 30 minutes at the park with my kids. I continue to mediate and work on spirituality- and this is another area I have had so much growth in, which is another misconception that vegans make- that you must be vegan to have success in ascension/meditation/spirituality/yoga practice. A few people know that the Dalai Lama is actually a meat-eater. He tried a vegetarian diet in the 60s and he got very sick and got hepatitis. So there you have it, another misconception.
This is something that actually opened up for me this past year and a half- my intuition/spirituality/mediumship abilities have increased so much, so I am able to lead a truly 100% holistic lifestyle- where all the areas that make up who I am, are at its best! This is the best gift- to be able to live my best life and attain my highest self.
Anything else to add? and where can people follow your journey.
I always remind people, to do their own research. To not just believe something as truth. By taking this approach, you will do your own research to learn the truth. I even urge you not to believe what I say- go out and do the research yourself and experiment on yourself. All I can say is that this lifestyle is what saved my life and gave me back my health. I got a second change to live my best life and I am part of the collective who is trying to make a change. I love helping people! In the past year and a half, I have helped so many friends and family regain their own optimal health and are living a healthy and happy lifestyle by adopting a Keto/Carnivore lifestyle. My sisters, and mother follow a Keto/low carb diet and we are all experiencing optimal health.
Do the work- the information is out there. I challenge you to make the change for yourself. I feel that this way of life is what allows me to do it all! I work as a Speech/language pathologist, a writer, actress, spiritualist, and of course a loving mother and wife- and being able to lead an active and healthy life! You too can change your life for the better and you can lead by example- such as I have.
You can follow my journey at:
https://www.instagram.com/mariela_n_stewart
https://www.facebook.com/MarielaNStewart/
Mariala’s original carnivore diet success story can be found here
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