Do you only eat meat? This is how carnivore can affect your blood lipids

Eating almost only meat and other animal foods has become increasingly popular. The diet is often called carnivore and can include everything from meat, fish, eggs and dairy products to a much stricter diet that consists almost exclusively of red meat and animal fat.

Proponents describe improved satiety, weight loss and more even blood sugar, among other things. Critics instead raise questions about blood fats, fiber intake and long-term cardiovascular health.

But the question may not need to be whether carnivore is “good” or “bad”.

A more concrete question is - What happens to your values ​​when you change your diet? Blood fats can react very differently from person to person.

What can happen to your blood fats if you eat carnivore?

With a very low-carbohydrate diet, a pattern is often seen where triglycerides decrease and HDL cholesterol increases. At the same time, LDL cholesterol can react very differently between individuals.

In some people, LDL changes relatively little. In others, it can increase significantly – and in some, very significantly.

Research specifically on the strict carnivore diet is still limited. There is significantly less long-term data than for more established dietary patterns. Therefore, we still know relatively little about the long-term effects of a diet that consists almost exclusively of animal foods.

This is also a reason to be cautious about two opposing claims:

• Carnivores automatically cause dangerous blood fats
• A high LDL does not matter as long as triglycerides are low and HDL is high

The reality is significantly more nuanced. LDL and other ApoB-containing lipoproteins play a central role in the development of atherosclerosis. At the same time, the overall risk of cardiovascular disease is influenced by several factors, such as age, blood pressure, smoking, diabetes, heredity and previous illness.

The most interesting thing is therefore not necessarily what blood lipids someone else who eats carnivore has, it is what happens to your own values.

Which blood lipids are then important to check?

Looking only at total cholesterol, also known as s-cholesterol, gives a limited picture. Doctors today use several different values ​​in order to understand your blood lipids and assess your cardiovascular risk.

LDL cholesterol

LDL cholesterol is one of the most important blood lipid values ​​when assessing cardiovascular risk. Long-term elevated LDL levels are linked to the development of atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease. If LDL changes significantly after you, for example, start eating carnivores, it is therefore an important value to pay attention to.

HDL cholesterol

HDL cholesterol is sometimes called the "good cholesterol". Higher HDL is often associated with a more favorable risk profile, but the value should not be assessed in isolation. For example, a high HDL does not automatically mean that a very high LDL is irrelevant.

Triglycerides

Triglycerides are affected by, among other things, diet, alcohol, weight, blood sugar regulation and metabolism. On a low-carbohydrate diet, triglycerides usually decrease. Therefore, a person who starts eating carnivores may have lower triglycerides while LDL develops in a completely different direction.

Non-HDL cholesterol

Non-HDL cholesterol is calculated by taking total cholesterol minus HDL. The value includes several of the lipoproteins that can contribute to atherosclerosis and can therefore provide additional information about the atherogenic blood fats.

Apo-B

Apolipoprotein B, or ApoB, is found on the lipoprotein particles that can contribute to the development of atherosclerosis. ApoB can be used simply as a measure of the number of atherogenic particles in the blood. Therefore, the value can provide additional information, especially when LDL, triglycerides and other blood fat markers do not really point in the same direction.

Lp(a) – the blood lipid that is largely controlled by your genes

Lipoprotein(a), or Lp(a), differs from many other blood lipids because the level is largely genetically determined. Elevated Lp(a) is linked to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. Therefore, it may be relevant to check the value at least once in adult life. It is especially interesting if there are elevated blood lipids or early cardiovascular disease in the family.

Do you have a hereditary predisposition? Then blood lipids become extra interesting

Genetics play a major role in our blood lipids. Therefore, it is especially important to know your values ​​if close relatives have high cholesterol or have suffered from a heart attack or other cardiovascular disease early in life.

There may be hereditary conditions such as familial hypercholesterolemia, where LDL cholesterol is significantly elevated from a relatively young age. Feeling healthy does not say much about blood lipids either. High LDL usually does not cause any clear symptoms.

How often should you check your blood lipids?

There is no one-size-fits-all check-up interval. A healthy person with no known risk factors does not necessarily need to check their blood lipids every year or every two years. However, regular follow-up becomes more relevant if you:

• have close relatives with high cholesterol.
• have cardiovascular disease in your family, especially at a younger age.
• have previously had high LDL or other abnormal blood lipids.
• have diabetes or high blood pressure.
• have cardiovascular disease yourself.
• have other cardiovascular risk factors.
• have made a major and long-term change in your diet.

For people with heredity, previously abnormal values ​​or other risk factors, it may be relevant, for example, to monitor blood lipids about every two years or according to an individual recommendation from the healthcare provider.

In the case of severely elevated blood lipids or, for example, familial hypercholesterolemia, more frequent monitoring may be needed.

Is it better or worse to eat only red meat?

Here the diet debate quickly becomes polarized. Red meat is a nutrient-dense food. At the same time, there is significantly less research on the long-term effects of eating almost only red meat than on more varied dietary patterns. It is therefore more relevant to look at both possible advantages and disadvantages than to divide foods into “good” and “bad”.

What are the benefits of red meat?

Red meat contains several important nutrients, including:

• complete protein.
• highly bioavailable iron.
• vitamin B12.
• zinc.
• several B vitamins.
• creatine and other naturally occurring substances.

A diet that contains red meat does not necessarily automatically mean bad blood fats or poor health. It also matters a lot what kind of meat you eat and what the rest of your diet looks like.

Lean, unprocessed meat that is part of a varied diet is different from a diet where large amounts of fatty meat, butter and processed meat products account for almost the entire energy intake.

What speaks against a diet that consists almost only of red meat?

A diet with large amounts of fatty meat and animal fat can mean a high intake of saturated fat. In many people, a high intake of saturated fat contributes to higher LDL cholesterol. A very one-sided diet also means that several other food groups are excluded. This reduces or eliminates, for example, the intake of dietary fiber and many of the substances found in vegetables, fruit, berries, legumes, nuts and whole grains.

There is also significantly more knowledge about the long-term effects of varied dietary patterns than about strict carnivory.

Red meat and processed meat are not the same thing

When discussing meat and health, it is also important to distinguish between unprocessed red meat and processed meat. Processed meat includes, for example, many types of sausages, bacon, cured meats and other meat that has been processed by, for example, smoking, salting or canning.

In observational studies, the associations between processed meat and negative health outcomes are generally clearer than for unprocessed red meat.

What speaks in favor of a more varied diet?

The advantage of a varied diet is primarily its breadth. A diet that includes, for example, fish, meat, eggs and dairy products together with vegetables, fruit, berries, legumes, whole grains, nuts and vegetable oils can contribute a greater variety of:

• protein
• fiber
• unsaturated fatty acids
• vitamins and minerals
• polyphenols and other bioactive substances

There is also significantly more long-term research on established, varied dietary patterns. The Mediterranean-style diet is an example of a dietary pattern where there is extensive research on, among other things, cardiovascular health.

This does not mean that everyone needs to eat the same or that red meat must be excluded. However, it does mean that the evidence for a varied diet is significantly more extensive than for a diet that excludes almost all plant foods.

Measure instead of guessing

Nutrition can easily become a matter of camp.

Carnivore vs. vegan.
Animal vs. plant-based.
Fat vs. carbohydrates.

But your body doesn't care about the diet debate.

Measure instead of guessing.

If you have started eating carnivorous, eat almost only meat, or have significantly increased the amount of animal fat in your diet, it can be valuable to know your blood lipids and follow how they develop. This is especially relevant if you have a hereditary predisposition to high cholesterol or early cardiovascular disease.

A blood test with total cholesterol, LDL, HDL and triglycerides provides a good basic picture. Non-HDL can be calculated from these values, while ApoB can provide additional information about the number of atherogenic lipoprotein particles.

Blood fats – lipid status

Lp(a) is also a value that many adults may have reason to check at least once in their lives. You don't have to choose a side in the diet debate to want to understand what's happening in your own body.