The carnivore diet, a restrictive eating plan centered around animal products, has gained traction on social media, with influencers touting its supposed benefits. At the core of this diet is the consumption of animal-based products like meat, fish, eggs, and dairy, while excluding plant-based foods altogether. Some carnivore dieters are even encouraging others to eat sticks of butter as part of their low-carb eating plans. Proponents claim that this approach aids weight loss, promotes feelings of fullness, improves mood and energy, and offers other well-being benefits. However, health experts are sounding the alarm, warning about the potential dangers of this butter-heavy, meat-centric approach.
Understanding the Carnivore Diet
The carnivore diet is a type of keto diet and consists of cutting carbohydrates and eating nothing but meat and animal products. The aim is to consume zero carbs. The idea is that by cutting carbohydrates, the body will use fat for energy and people will lose weight. When carbohydrates and sugars are abruptly decreased, the body starts using fat as the main fuel for energy. The body then goes into a process called deep ketosis, which is when it produces ketones. Without using carbohydrates, there is a very stable energy level in the body. The ketones are very good steady energy or fuel, and there is dehydration. Patients are not retaining water, and they are losing fat and people usually feel great after starting a carnivore diet.
The Allure of Butter on the Carnivore Diet
Within the carnivore diet, butter functions as both a delicious dietary fat source along a fundamental nourishing component that sustains your energy and culinary joy. Eating a carb-free diet isn’t a new idea. Scottish military surgeon John Rollo, MD, first used a meat-only diet to treat patients with diabetes in the late 1700s. Cutting carbs helped lower his patients’ blood sugar levels.
Butter is packed with essential fatty acids and fat-soluble vitamins like A, D, E, and K2. Because the carnivore diet excludes carbohydrates, fats become the body’s primary source of energy, helping maintain satiety and reducing the need for constant snacking. Butter’s fat also helps your body absorb fat-soluble vitamins better, which are vital for everything from bone health to immune function.
Why Dietitians Are Concerned
The trend of snacking on butter is concerning because butter is very high in saturated fat and calories, which can contribute to weight gain and other health problems. While fat is an essential part of our diet, it’s all about moderation. It’s important that our meals are balanced, and we consume food in the five main food groups to ensure that we get all the essential nutrients that our body needs to stay healthy. A 2014 study found that higher saturated fat intake was associated with higher obesity and body mass index (BMI) scores.
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Moreover, many people are already over-consuming saturated fat, and snacking on butter won’t help matters. Men should not eat more than 30g of saturated fat a day, and women should not eat more than 20g.
Potential Health Risks
Heart Disease
The high saturated fat content found in butter may increase your LDL cholesterol and, therefore, your risk of heart disease. Eating large amounts of red meat has been linked to increased risk for colorectal cancer, which can be divided into colon cancer and rectal cancer, as well as several other types of cancer.
Nutrient Deficiencies
A diet consisting of just animal foods may be low in vitamins that are often obtained from plant foods. A 2018 study showed a high-animal protein and a low carbohydrate diet was low in B₁, D, E, calcium, magnesium, and potassium, nutrients that contribute to your overall health. Meats are not a good source of vitamin C, and if you aren’t consuming enough of it, it can result in scurvy.
Gut Issues
Without enough fiber in your diet, you might experience constipation. Low-fiber diets are also linked to increased prevalence of gut diseases such as inflammatory bowel disease, obesity, type 1 diabetes mellitus and metabolic syndrome. The absence of dietary fiber can negatively impact gut microbiota and digestion, leading to constipation and, in more severe cases, colon cancer, which is on the rise in young people.
Kidney Problems
Eating a diet high in animal protein can place added stress on your kidneys, which may affect their long-term filtering function. Eating more meat also may contribute to kidney stone formation.
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Cholesterol Deposits
A man who told doctors he ate nothing, but 6-9 pounds of butter, cheese and hamburgers every day for eight months ended up at Tampa General Hospital with yellowish lumps of cholesterol developing on parts of his body. Doctors diagnosed him with xanthelasma, a rare condition that impacts about 1% of patients with high cholesterol. Xanthelasma is yellow raised deposits of cholesterol that appear under the skin because the body cannot process it. It’s usually seen in people with familial hyperlipidemia, a condition in which patients cannot process cholesterol.
Addressing the Concerns
It’s essential that anyone following this diet add micronutrient-rich foods or supplements to reduce the risk of deficiency in this diet. That will mean taking a less rigid approach to the carnivore diet, but it could be better for your health in the long term. It’s a good idea to swap out that stick of butter for a nutrient-rich snack, like carrot sticks, crunchy bell peppers, or even an orange, to up your intake of vitamin C. You shouldn’t ever use butter as a meal replacement. Instead, healthier swaps like oily fish and eggs are recommended. Eggs provide choline, folate, vitamin D, iodine, B vitamins, and high quality protein, while oily fish is a healthy source of omega-3. Snacking on nuts and seeds instead is another option. A handful of mixed nuts and seeds, such as almonds, cashews, and pumpkin seeds, offers a convenient, portable snack option that’s rich in beneficial fats. Unlike the saturated fats found in butter, the fats in nuts and seeds are the healthy type of fat that actually supports heart health.
A More Balanced Approach
If you’re someone who likes to eat a predominately animal-based diet, how can you do so in a healthier way? The Australian Guide to Healthy Eating recommends up to three serves of meat or meat alternatives a day. Having meat once a day for most people would actually tick their requirements, meaning a lot of us actually exceed our requirements for meat.
Is the Carnivore Diet Dangerous?
Some of the benefits influencers claim might actually be red flags. For example, one influencer claimed that she never farts and only poos once a week. This is not normal, because we need to fart and we need to poop, and if you are not farting, then there is something not right in your gastrointestinal tract.
Is the Carnivore Diet Worth Trying?
The carnivore diet is a very restrictive way of eating. It doesn’t align with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which recommends eating fruits, vegetables, and whole grains along with lean protein from animal sources. Cutting out entire food groups could leave you short on the nutrients you need to stay healthy.
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While this diet can probably help you lose weight, it also can lead to nutrient deficiencies and is not sustainable. You just can’t stay on it very long. The carnivore diet is too restrictive - and too boring - to follow long-term. Eventually food cravings are going to kick in. You’re going to want a sandwich. You’re going to want a piece of whole-grain bread. And you’re going to want to have some cereal, some fruit, or a salad.
Butter on the Carnivore Diet: A Closer Look
Butter is an important role in your carnivore meal plan. Butter is packed with essential fatty acids and fat-soluble vitamins like A, D, E, and K2. Because the carnivore diet excludes carbohydrates, fats become the body’s primary source of energy, helping maintain satiety and reducing the need for constant snacking. Butter’s fat also helps your body absorb fat-soluble vitamins better, which are vital for everything from bone health to immune function.
Grass-Fed vs. Grain-Fed Butter
Grass-fed butter is made from the milk of cows that have been primarily fed grass. It has more omega-3 fatty acids, which are anti-inflammatory and beneficial for heart and brain health. In contrast, grain-fed butter comes from cows that have been fed a diet primarily made up of grains like corn and soy.
Salted vs. Unsalted Butter
Given that many people on the carnivore diet need to replenish their electrolytes (particularly sodium), salted butter can be a better choice. On the other hand, unsalted butter is pure butterfat without any additives. Unsalted butter also works better in recipes where you want the flavors of the food to shine without being overpowered by salt.
Ghee
Ghee is made by heating butter and removing the milk solids, which contain lactose and casein, making it nearly free of these common allergens. It’s easier on the digestive system since it’s free of lactose, making it perfect for those who may have trouble tolerating regular butter.
Raw Butter
Raw butter retains more of its natural enzymes, vitamins, and beneficial bacteria since it hasn’t been heat-treated. For example, those with compromised immune systems, pregnant women, or young children may be exposing themselves to harmful bacteria like E.
Potential Benefits of the Carnivore Diet
Supporters of the high-protein (and high-fat) diet argue that it can help you lose weight and protect against chronic diseases by eliminating carbs and plant-based foods. Influencers promoting the carnivore diet share many potential benefits, usually supported by anecdotal accounts. Scientific research specific to the eating plan is in short supply.
The carnivore diet claims to promote weight loss. Its other supposed benefits are for improving heart health, autoimmune issues, blood sugar control, and mood. Yet Baker only links to “success stories,” not medical research, to confirm these benefits.
One study surveyed more than 2,000 people who said they’d followed a carnivore diet for nine to 20 months. People in the study reported improvements like: Lower body mass index (BMI), More energy, Better sleep, More strength and endurance, Improved memory and focus. Most people with diabetes in the study were able to lower the dose of their diabetes medicine or go off it entirely. Overall, they said they were happy with this way of eating. One problem with this study was that the researchers didn’t know exactly what people ate. They also didn’t measure their nutrient levels or check their health. They based their results on survey answers alone. The authors say we need more research to better understand the carnivore diet.
A Word of Caution
Butter isn’t a healthy snack option, and consuming it regularly as part of the carnivore diet can increase your risk of heart disease, nutrient deficiencies, and other health problems. If you must consume a predominately animal-based diet, it’s better to take a more flexible approach, swapping sticks of butter for healthier snacks like nuts, fruit, and vegetables.