Babies thrive under a ketogenic metabolism

Some people, even some scientists who study ketogenic metabolism, have the idea that ketogenesis is somehow abnormal, or exceptional; an adaptation for emergencies only. We disagree. One reason we think a ketogenic metabolism is normal and desirable, is that human newborns are in ketosis. Despite the moderate sugar content of human breast milk, breastfeeding is […]

Language Barriers: Preferred Fuel

by Amber Wilcox-O’Hearn As a linguist, I am often struck by the way phrasing and word choices not only reflect biases, but can actually create them [1]. Again and again in my researches into dietary science, I come upon expressions and turns of phrase that make Low Carb, High Fat diets seem intuitively unhealthy or […]

Being, Having, and Doing: The Metaphysics of Disease

This is a copy of an article I wrote for Highbrow Paleo in 2011. I have not edited it. Several years ago, I had an acquaintance who had previously been diagnosed with diabetes. He began a low carb diet, against the advice of his doctor, (this was in the dark 90′s), and over a period […]

Recent changes

I’ve been at this carnivory lifestyle for years now, and I’m still learning how to improve it. Here are two examples: I stopped eating dairy products mid-November. I already knew I couldn’t eat cottage cheese or yoghurt, without experiencing cravings, but I also gave up hard cheese (which I didn’t eat a lot of, but […]

How much protein is enough?

It seems, from clinical claims and numerous anecdotes, that protein intake has to be below some threshold for ketogenesis to continue, all else being equal. (Conditions are rarely equal: the effects of fat intake, calorie intake, the profile of amino acids in your diet, the type of fat in your diet, exercise, and frequency of […]

Wait — why eat only meat?

I want to briefly clarify our position about the 30-day trial. Although we hypothesise that there may be benefits to avoiding or minimising plants, it is definitely not necessary to avoid plants to gain the benefits of ketosis!None of the studies that form the basis of our beliefs about ketogenic diets had any such restriction. […]

Biochemical Warfare

In response to the 30-day trial that Zooko and I recently recommended, one correspondent argued about the importance of plant foods. He made several points I’d like to address, but the one I want to talk about here is one I’ve heard many times before. The statement is to the effect that plants are full […]