SOTT Health & Wellness Show - The Miraculous Carnivore Diet: Interview with Phil Escott

Keyhole

Ambassador
Ambassador
FOTCM Member
So what's the deal with the carnivore diet? Many high-profile individuals have been talking about dropping everything but meat and fat from their diets and report miraculous healing benefits. Autoimmune conditions, diabetes, depression, arthritis, skin problems, weight loss - the benefits of going zero carb seem to be limitless.

Today we're joined by Phil Escott, health writer, blogger, personal trainer, novelist, drummer from the UK and author of the book 'ARTHRITIS - The Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me: Healing the pain of psoriatic and rheumatoid arthritis and how autoimmunity can heal your body and soul'. Due to a crippling bout of inflammatory arthritis in 2010, which he reversed by natural means including an ancestral/seasonal low carb diet, addressing EMFs and circadian mismatches and emotional balancing, further intense study revealed many secrets of healing normally hidden behind the misleading conventional medical and health dogma. Phil's healing journey eventually lead him to the carnivore diet and he hasn't looked back since!

Join us on this episode of the Health and Wellness Show, as Phil tells us about his own path back to health, with the many steps along the way, and the benefits of a carnivore diet for health and well-being.
 
Looking forward to this show! I'm particularly interested in his holistic approach at addressing his health issues by going beyond the purely dietary aspect, regulating EMF exposure and emotion balancing.
 
That was a great show and a nice discovery. Lots of content to dig into through his websites. About veggies, I have to agree with him, they are just fat sponges. I remember hearing about the Anderson family a while ago. I thought maybe it was a bit hardcore so it's nice to discover there's actually a community emerging.
That would feel natural to switch to this diet, I know that I can easily do without veggies when I eat alone. When I was a kid, that was also my feeling and he is right about tuning in to your intuition. I'll keep the salad, if only for the salad dressing! Thinking about no veggies at all makes me think that must lack balance, although naturally, I don't run after it. I'll check more of his content and videos, also Georgia Ede.

Thank you for the show!
 
I have just come across a website, as I was curious to learn of the origins of vegetables in UK, and whether there are any known vegetable which are native to northern/western Europe. The list is not referenced, so I am not sure whether the information is accurate or not - however I was quite surprised to see that most, if not all vegetables which are staple in today's diet are NOT native to this area of the world.

In fact, it appears that most of them were only being eaten from the 16/17th century onwards. It also mentions throughout that they became staples among the poor, which is along similar lines as what Laura has said multiple times in the past - Agricultural/plant based diets were for the poor people who could not afford meats.

This makes me genuinely wonder : How can ANYONE say that these foods should make up a large portion of the diet - and be eaten everyday???

I understand that the science and various works by health researchers on the importance of continual/heavy consumption of plants are persuasive, but using simple logic and common sense, how on earth did humans in Europe survive up until the 15th century before these plants were brought over and incorporated in the diet?

Artichokes
Artichokes are native to the Mediterranean. They were eaten by the Greeks and Romans and later by the Arabs. However after the fall of Rome artichokes were rare in Europe until the 15th century when they were grown in Italy. From there artichokes spread to the rest of Europe.

Asparagus
Asparagus is native to the Eastern Mediterranean region. Asparagus was grown by the Greeks and Romans and it became a popular vegetable in Europe in the 16th century.

Aubergine
Aubergines or eggplants are native to India. Later they spread to China and by the 15th century they were being grown in southern Europe.

Beetroot
Beetroot is descended from wild sea beet, which grew around Europe and Asia. The Romans grew beetroot but as a medicine rather than a food. From the 16th century people in Europe grew beetroot as a vegetable.

Broad Beans
Broad beans are native to the Middle East and South Asia. They were known to the Ancient Greeks and they have been eaten in Europe ever since.

Broccoli
It is not known for certain when broccoli was first eaten. The Romans ate a vegetable that may have been broccoli. It was certainly eaten in France and Italy in the 16th century. Broccoli was introduced into in England in the 18th century. It first became popular in the USA in the 1920s.

Brussel sprouts
Brussels sprouts became popular in most of Europe in the 16th century. They became popular in England in the 17th century. Brussels sprouts were grown in the USA from the 19th century.

Butter Beans
Butter beans are native to Central America. They were first recorded in Europe in 1591.

Cabbages
Cabbages are native to southern Europe. They were grown by the Greeks and the Romans and in Europe they have been a popular vegetable ever since. Cabbages were brought to North America in the 16th century.

Carrots
Carrots are native to Asia and spread to the Mediterranean area. Carrots were grown in Europe in the Middle Ages they and have been popular ever since.

Cauliflower
Cauliflower is believed to come from Asia Minor. In Europe they were first eaten in Italy. However in the 16th century the cauliflower spread throughout Europe. Cauliflower was first grown in North America in the late 17th century.

Celery
Celery is native to the Mediterranean. Wild celery was known to the Greeks and Romans. However cultivation of celery only began in Europe in the 16th century.

Chickpeas
Chickpeas are native to the Middle East. They were popular with the Romans and they have been eaten in Europe ever since.

Chilies
Chilies are from Central America where they have been grown for thousands of years. The Aztecs were fond of chilies and the Spanish brought them back to Europe. Chilies came to England in 1548.

Cucumbers
Cucumbers are native to south Asia. They were grown by the Greeks and Romans. Cucumbers were also grown in England in the Middle Ages. The Spaniards introduced cucumbers into the New World in 1494.

Kale
The Greeks and Romans ate kale. It was also eaten in Europe in the Middle Ages. In the 17th century colonists took kale to North America.

Kidney Beans
Kidney Beans are native to South America. They were common in England by the mid-16th Century.

Leeks
Leeks are believed to be native to central Asia. They were grown by the Egyptians. The Greeks and Romans also grew leeks and the Romans are believed to have introduced them to Britain. The leek is the symbol of Wales. According to legend Welsh soldiers wore a leek in their caps to distinguish themselves from their Saxon enemies during a battle.

Lentils
Lentils are a very ancient vegetable. They have been eaten since prehistoric times. Lentils are native to Asia and they were eaten by the Egyptians, the Greeks and the Romans. They were also eaten in India.

Lettuce
Lettuce is an ancient vegetable. It is native to the Mediterranean area. The Egyptians, the Greeks and the Romans ate lettuce. The Spaniards took lettuce to the New World.

Olives
Olives are native to the Eastern Mediterranean and people have grown them since prehistoric times. Olives were very important to the Egyptians, the Greeks and the Romans.

Onions
It is not known for certain where onions come from but it was probably Asia. Onions were one of the first vegetables grown by people. They were eaten by the Egyptians, the Greeks and the Romans. During the Middle Ages onions were one of the staple foods of people in Europe.

Parsnips
Parsnips are thought to be native to the Mediterranean region. The Romans grew them and they were a popular vegetable in the Middle Ages. However in England parsnips became less popular once potatoes became common in the 18th century.


Peas
Peas are native to Asia and they were one of the earliest vegetables grown by human beings. The Greeks and Romans grew peas and during the Middle Ages peas were an important part of the diet of ordinary people in Europe.


Potatoes
Potatoes are native to South America and they were grown by the native people for thousands of years before Europeans discovered them. The Spaniards took potatoes to Europe in the 16th century and they were first introduced to England in 1586. However at first potatoes were regarded as a strange vegetable and they were not commonly grown in Europe until the 18th century. In the 1840s potatoes in Ireland were afflicted by potato blight and the result was a terrible famine as the people had come to rely on potatoes for their staple food.


Pumpkin
Pumpkins are native to central America. The Native Americans used them as a staple food. Pumpkins were adopted as a food by European colonists. Meanwhile Christopher Columbus brought pumpkin seeds to Europe.


Radish
Radishes are native to Asia. They were grown by the Egyptians, the Greeks and the Romans. Radishes were taken to the New World in the 16th century. The word radish comes from the Latin word radix, meaning root.


Runner beans
Runner beans are native to central America and were grown there long before they were discovered by Europeans in the 16th century. Runner beans were first grown in England in the 17th century.


Spinach
Spinach is native to Asia. However it was unknown to the Greeks and Romans. It was first grown in Persia. Later it was grown by both the Arabs and the Chinese. Growing spinach spread to southern Europe and by the 14th century it was eaten in England.


Tomatoes
Tomatoes are native to South America. The Spaniards came across them in the 16th century. However tomatoes were unknown in England until the end of the 16th century.

Turnips
Turnips are native to northern Europe. They were grown by the Romans and during the Middle Ages turnips were a staple food of poor people in Europe. In the 18th century Charles 'Turnip' Townshend pioneered growing turnips to feed cattle.

This reminds me of Ray Peat's take on things, where fruits are considered far superior to vegetables. Tearing away the fruits which have been bred for their sugary content, we are left with few such as berries. It is interesting that the C's also advised people who could not tolerate ketogenic diets to include root vegetables and berries. These seem to be the least detrimental.

What seems clear here, and is backed up by history, is that plants were always used as medicine. Their ability to induce NRF-2 (such as sulforaphane) is due to their inherent toxicity. This applies to practically any herb and plant food with health benefits. With this taken into consideration, do people want to consume poison all day, everyday, in heavy amounts as a staple food source? I am leaning toward thinking not - at least in many cases. Whereas the odd bit here and there makes sense, maybe.
 
In this video, taken from a longer presentation, Phil says "I think plants are a medicine, and I think animal products are a food." To me, this seems to make sense. Seems like a good baseline to consider. He uses the example of garlic, which has antibacterial properties. But would you want to take an antibacterial every day?

This makes me genuinely wonder : How can ANYONE say that these foods should make up a large portion of the diet - and be eaten everyday???

I understand that the science and various works by health researchers on the importance of continual/heavy consumption of plants are persuasive, but using simple logic and common sense, how on earth did humans in Europe survive up until the 15th century before these plants were brought over and incorporated in the diet?

I agree. It makes sense that vegetables weren't a necessary part of the diet for our paleo ancestors and were probably mostly eaten in times of scarcity. But if many of the plants eaten today weren't even around in Europe until relatively recently, did they even bother with plants at all? If so, which ones? Given that most vegetables are rather unpalatable on their own (in my mind, they basically REQUIRE butter and salt to make them even moderately tolerable), it makes sense that they were only eaten as a last resort or used medicinally. Starchy roots and tubers might be different in this respect (although they're still rather boring without fat and salt).

This reminds me of Ray Peat's take on things, where fruits are considered far superior to vegetables. Tearing away the fruits which have been bred for their sugary content, we are left with few such as berries. It is interesting that the C's also advised people who could not tolerate ketogenic diets to include root vegetables and berries. These seem to be the least detrimental.

There's also the fruits we don't generally think of as fruits, like tomatoes, cucumbers, avocados or eggplant, which aren't sugary. Some of these are problematic for their own reasons, however, like the nightshades which some people find inflammatory and avocados seem to cause allergic reactions in many.
 
Phil says "I think plants are a medicine, and I think animal products are a food." To me, this seems to make sense. Seems like a good baseline to consider. He uses the example of garlic, which has antibacterial properties. But would you want to take an antibacterial every day?

He said it in the podcast too, and I had the same feeling about it.

I came across this video which is quite a good presentation too. I wasn't aware Mikhaela Peterson went onto the carnivore diet, I thought it was keto. The website meatheals.com has a great amount of testimonials too.

 
Escott said of veggies, they were just "sponges for butter" :-D

Pretty down to earth guy. Thanks for the show!
 
Back
Top Bottom