The carnivore diet is a high-fat, low-carbohydrate diet that includes only animal foods and products. It completely restricts plant foods like vegetables, fruits, seeds, and grains — and has amazing healing effects on your body.
Eating meat is not just for men. Women thrive equally well on the foods that our bodies were designed to consume. There are many carnivore diet testimonials from women who have healed autoimmune conditions, and improved many aspects of their health, from losing weight, to improving PMS symptoms and even delaying menopause.
In this article, we explain the specific effects of carnivore eating on women’s health, and how you can easily start your carnivore journey.
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Benefits of the Carnivore Diet for Women
There is ample research on the carnivore diet that touts its benefits. The following are the positive effects that women on the carnivore diet typically experience:
Kick-Starts Easy Weight Loss
Most women shift to a carnivore diet to lose weight because it’s one of the most effective diets for weight loss.
The reason it works is that you get most of your daily energy from fat (70 to 80%), and only 5% or even less energy comes from carbohydrates. Low carbs diet help in the reduction of weight by decreasing appetite and increasing your feeling of satiety. Unlike other diets, you just won’t be hungry even though you’re reducing calories.
The high fat and protein content of the carnivore diet keeps you full, which helps to correct eating patterns and gets rid of chronic overeating. Also, when you have low blood glucose, the body starts to use stored body fat, which puts you in a state of ketosis.
Ketosis is the state of the body in which fats are metabolized and ketone bodies are produced, which serve as the cleanest energy source for the body. With fat being used for energy, the body also releases stores of water. These processes, in combination, help in weight loss.
Most women on the carnivore diet report getting incredible weight loss results within a few months.
Offers Natural Anti-Aging
The carnivore diet contains a high amount of collagen. Red meats, including lamb, beef, and pork, are very good sources of collagen.
Collagen has lots of benefits for humans, and especially for the female body. It stops bleeding in case of injuries, strengthens hair and teeth, and protects bones. It also increases muscle mass (which helps fat loss).
Collagen is also considered an anti-aging protein, preventing the skin from loosening. It helps repair tissue injury and can be beneficial in wound healing after a cesarean section in women.
Some other components of animal food, (e.g., retinol), are good for skin problems. Egg yolk and liver contain a good amount of retinol, which is why beef liver is good for acne. Retinol also helps reduce wrinkles.
Improves PMS Symptoms
A carnivore diet can increase your energy levels, making you feel more active and in a better mood.
Many women also claim that their premenstrual syndrome (PMS) symptoms improved with the diet. This is because the carnivore diet reduces inflammation in the body, and treats fatigue, irritability, and depression, which many women experience before menstruation.
Prevents Pregnancy Complications
Obesity can cause infertility in females. Obese women are at greater risk of miscarriage and other pregnancy complications.
A carnivore diet can prevent these problems by reducing weight. Low-carb diets like keto or carnivore can also manage polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS).
Helps Delay Menopause
The carnivore diet can delay menopause. A study found that consuming more oily fish and protein may delay menopause by several years.
Increased vitamin D intake also delays menopause by 17% compared to women who don’t consume it. Meat, eggs and milk are rich sources of vitamin D — and all feature prominently in the carnivore diet.
Does the Carnivore Diet Affect Your Menstrual Cycle?
The influence of the carnivore diet on the menstrual cycle is often debated.
Blood contains blood cells, including red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. Red blood cells contain hemoglobin, which contains iron along with other components. During menstruation, this iron is lost in the blood. If iron is not taken through food or iron supplements, iron deficiency anemia may result. Many women in the United States have iron deficiency.
The carnivore diet is rich in iron and can prevent iron deficiency anemia. Beef, lamb, ham, turkey, chicken, veal, and pork are all good sources of iron.
Fat cells store estrogen, a hormone that is important in the regulation of the menstrual cycle. Since body fat is burnt in the carnivore diet, more estrogen is released into the bloodstream. It is postulated that excess estrogen from fat cells can alter the normal menstrual cycle.
Your cycle may vary when you change your diet. High estrogen levels may also result in heavy menstrual bleeding or pain. However, once you are adapted to this diet, your menstrual cycle should become normal again.
Starting Your Carnivore Diet Journey
Starting a carnivore diet is as easy as cutting out all foods that are not animal-based. The carnivore diet food list is actually quite varied. You can eat:
- Meat (beef, chicken, pork, etc)
- Fish (salmon, cod, etc,)
- Organ meats (beef liver, beef heart, etc.)
- Dairy (raw milk, yogurt, cheese)
- Eggs
- Honey (in moderation)
Simply reduce the foods you’re eating until you’re only consuming the above. Alternatively, jump straight in and eat only beef and salt to start. this is the ultimate way to detox your body, and is suggested by Mikhaila Peterson, who calls it the Lion Diet.
It’s important to adopt the carnivore diet for a long time. Beginners usually find it difficult to meet their total caloric needs, so for women, fatty cuts of meat are advised to meet their energy needs.
If you are on a weight loss diet, you should burn 500 calories more than you consume daily. With this, you will be able to lose 1 pound of fat per week. You do not usually need to record your macros on a carnivore diet since most carnivore foods contain zero to very few carbohydrates.
Healthiest Foods For Women on the Carnivore Diet
We suggest that women eat extra fish on the carnivore diet, as it contains Omega 3 fatty acids, which are good for the skin and prevent inflammation.
If you can tolerate cooking and preparing them, adding any of the list of organ meats to your diet will do wonders for your health. For women who really don’t like the taste of meats like liver, we recommend taking a beef liver supplement, such as Vital Proteins Beef Liver.
At the start of your diet, we suggest avoiding coffee, but we encourage you to eat as much raw dairy as you want. Many women who can’t tolerate milk find they end up being absolutely fine with raw milk and goat’s milk once they’ve reduced the inflammation in their body.
Indeed, once you start to heal, you can add in other foods. Many women experience positive results from the various types of modified carnivore diets, such as a pro-metabolic carnivore diet with fruit.
The important part is to cut out all plant foods at the start and go almost zero-carb. You’ll find that as your body heals, you’ll crave specific foods, and can reintroduce them slowly to see how you respond.
Key Takeaways
The carnivore diet is similar to other diets like keto, but the main difference between carnivore diet vs keto is that carnivore eliminates every single harmful food, and is the next level for your health.
Eating this way has many benefits for women specifically:
- It helps with weight loss
- It makes you look younger
- It could get rid of your PMS
- It may help with pregnancy
- It might delay menopause
Remember to listen to your body, and eat what makes you feel best. Good luck on your carnivore diet journey.
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