Can a Carnivore Diet Predict Remission of Type 2 Diabetes?

by Jocko Buddy

If you are concerned about Type 2 Diabetes (T2D) or you are overweight, this is a must-read study from the British Medical Journal. Your diet matters folks, and excess carbohydrates and sugars are not your friend!

In their BMJ study published on January 2, 2023, researchers concluded

A low-carbohydrate diet-based approach was able to achieve major weight loss with substantial health and financial benefit. It resulted in 20% of the entire practice T2D population achieving remission. It appears that T2D duration <1 year represents an important window of opportunity for achieving drug-free remission of diabetes. The approach can also give hope to those with poorly controlled T2D who may not achieve remission, this group had the greatest improvements in diabetic control as represented by HbA1c.

Unwin D, Delon C, Unwin J, et al
What predicts drug-free type 2 diabetes remission? Insights from an 8-year general practice service evaluation of a lower carbohydrate diet with weight loss
BMJ Nutrition, Prevention & Health 2023;e000544. doi: 10.1136/bmjnph-2022-000544

Twenty percent of the entire T2D population in their study achieved remission in their disease simply by following a low carbohydrate diet. Even those that did not achieve remission saw significant improvements in diabetic management.

Low Carb Gaining Momentum

Mounting evidence continues to back the many health claims of the low carb community. But, we shouldn’t be lulled into a false sense of hope or security with the “everything in moderation” argument either. Not everyone can tolerate carbohydrates well, even small amounts of carbohydrates–especially if they are metabolically dysfunctional and suffering from diabetes or obesity. In my experience, if you are experiencing chronic health issues, weight challenges, or autoimmune problems, eating “only” moderate amounts carbs or processed foods may be enough to sabotage your journey to better health.

Moreover, if you are suffering from autoimmune issues (like I have), then believe it or not, plants just might be the culprit. In this case, you may need to do more than lower your carbs.

Enter the Carnivore

If you have tried every type of diet to no avail and still suffer from chronic and seemingly intractable health problems, you might consider the low carb, ultimate elimination diet–the carnivore diet (aka the anti-vegetarian diet). This is what I discovered by trial an error, and it has been nothing short of miraculous.

Since 2011, I have transitioned from low carb, to Paleo, to Keto, to Cyclical Keto, to Cyclical Keto with intermittent fasting. All of these dietary strategies helped me in some way, but none of them fully resolved my autoimmune issues, gut disturbances, and severe joint problems. None of them prevented my debilitating bouts of post-strength training Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS) either. You know, debilitating as in your butt hurts so bad after a heavy squat workout that you can’t sit on the toilet for three days! Carnivore vanquished the DOMS monster, I shit you not!

Wow, what a difference carnivore eating made for me. Within days of removing plants from my diet, ALL plants (coffee too!), my numerous and pervasive skin problems vanished, my joint pain subsided dramatically, and my sleep improved significantly. I don’t get tired in the afternoon, and my mental clarity is better than it’s ever been. I’m also never hungry. I don’t count calories, and I eat till fully satiated, typically 3+ pounds of meat daily.

And guess what? Everyday I’m ready to eat meat again. Seriously, it never gets old. It’s strange, but I guess our body never gets tired of getting the actual nutrition it needs.

Carnivore and Animal-based Diets Are Shaking Up The Medical Establishment

The carnivore and animal-based dietary movement is gaining momentum, and with each passing day a few more medical professionals are becoming interested, if not advocates. It’s not just the preferred diet of a few select mega personalities like Dr. Jordan Peterson and Edward Dowd. Check out the these thought leaders in the space: Dr. Shawn Baker, Dr. Ken Berry, and Dr. Anthony Chaffee. Dr. Berry has nearly 2.8 million followers on YouTube! Along with a few other notable doctors, these guys are leading a stealth health charge, perhaps revolution, that has the purveyors of mainstream medical and pharmaceutical dogma shaking in their scrubs.

Why are they shaking? And why are so many acolytes of the medical establishment displaying such vitriol towards the carnivore movement and those reasserting their apex predator credentials? Although there are clearly several possible reasons, I think they fear that the carnivore community is right. Maybe it is indeed true that our global epidemic of chronic disease is primarily caused by toxicity–especially processed food toxicity, plant toxicity, and drug toxicity. Not because, humans are weak creatures susceptible to chronic disease and in constant need of allopathic medical and pharmaceutical interventions.

And just maybe, a proper human diet will dramatically reduce chronic disease, and a large source of income for medical industry. Commendably, Dr. Baker is trying to change the paradigm with the recent launch of his new medical model for treating chronic disease. This could be a game changer. Bravo, Dr. Baker!

Personally, I don’t believe humans really evolved to subsist primarily on plants and strangely concocted substances, like seed oils. Or big pharma concoctions for that matter. I think it’s more likely that our omnivorous capabilities are merely a backup mechanism for human survival. And, perhaps plants really are trying to kill us!

If you don’t believe me, I challenge you to try surviving two weeks in the woods, bush, desert, or even jungle without eating any animals. It’s extremely difficult, even if you have top-notch survival skills. For starters, most plants are extremely toxic to humans. The ones that aren’t acutely poisonous tend to present in very limited quantities and contain limited overall nutritional value. I will concede that fruit and honey may be ancestrally appropriate, but in the wild these food sources would likely be considered rare and/or seasonal treats, not the foundation of our survival. Thriving in such environments without consuming animals is simply unfathomable to me. Our species would be extinct if plant sustenance were our evolutionary preference.

Is Carnivore Radical or Is it a Solution?

I think these free-thinking doctors are truly on to something when it comes carnivore diets. I have been full-carnivore for the last five months, and my results have been simply extraordinary. For me, carnivore wins hands down. I don’t really see myself going back. That said, I do not claim that everyone should or must eat a carnivore diet. If you thrive eating plants, or even excess carbohydrates, do what works for you. Just thrive! However, many people are now discovering that the seemingly radical carnivore alternative is really not radical at all. In fact, many are concluding, as I have, that eating primarily animal meat is how we were biologically designed to thrive.

Please share this study and post with anyone you think it might help. Too many people are needlessly suffering poor health due mainstream dietary recommendations. They need to know that there is hope–and an alternative.