Peak Human - Unbiased Nutrition Info for Optimum Health, Fitness & Living

Part 39 - Paul Saladino, MD on Everything You Thought You Knew About Food Might Be Wrong

May 2, 2019

Dr. Paul Saladino, MD, expert in health and nutrition, joins the host for a 4-hour series on plant and animal foods. They discuss the impact of food on health, the evolution of Homo sapiens and their diet, the importance of hunting large animals, the misconception of fiber's importance, debunking the link between meat and cancer, reevaluating the health benefits of fruits and vegetables, and the shortcomings of plant foods. They argue that a well-constructed, whole foods, animal-based diet is optimal for humans.

01:53:58

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Episode guests

Paul Saladino, MD

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Quick takeaways

Fiber intake does not protect against diverticulosis or constipation, contrary to popular belief.

There is no significant association between dietary fiber intake and the risk of colorectal cancer.

Meat consumption does not directly cause cancer, and the evidence supporting this claim is inconclusive.

Polyphenols found in plants offer limited benefits and potential dangers, challenging the perception of their miraculous health benefits.

Deep dives

Fiber and Diverticulosis

Contrary to popular belief, there is no evidence to suggest that fiber protects against diverticulosis or helps with its recurrence. Several studies have shown a lack of association between dietary fiber intake and the risk of diverticulosis or diverticulosis recurrence.

Introduction

3min

Food as Medicine: Impact on Health

8min

Evolution and Diet of Homo Sapiens and Interaction with Neanderthals

5min

The Importance of Hunting Big Animals in Human Evolution

13min

The Misconception of Fiber's Importance

27min

Debunking the Link Between Meat and Cancer

35min

Reevaluating the Health Benefits of Fruits, Vegetables, and Curcumin

17min

The Shortcomings of Plant Foods and the Optimal Diet for Humans

2min

Upcoming Topics and Contact Info

3min

Wow. Get ready for this one, everyone. Paul and I have been talking constantly for weeks and we have something special for you. This is a 2 part, 4 hour series that covers everything you can imagine on plant and animal foods.

If this is your first time listening, make sure to go back and start at episode 1. To catch people up I’m Brian Sanders and I’ve quit my job and dedicated my life to studying health and nutrition. I’m trying my best to be unbiased and to simplify the conflicting advice out there and distill down concepts into something anyone can understand. I’m not a doctor or nutritionist. I’m a mechanical engineer and I’ve lost both of my parents to chronic disease and have set off on my own path for the last 4 years to study this topic and make sure I don’t fall to the same fate. My role is the curator, the communicator, the curious mind collecting and spreading this information. I’ve interviewed over 100 of the top scientists, doctors, nutritionists, fitness experts, and other health professionals and have come to find some simple truths that I’d like to share.

Today I’m talking to Dr. Paul Saladino who received his MD from the University of Arizona and is also a Certified Functional Medicine Practitioner. He has quickly become one of the leading voices and experts on animal-based diets and nose to tail eating. He’s a good friend and a wealth of knowledge. We just got back from Paleo f(x) in Austin and are getting ready to shoot the final interview for the Food Lies film. You guys are in for a treat.

But first I have to ask for your support. I’m working almost every night until midnight these days trying to keep up with all my projects and content creation. So far I’ve done this all for free and it’s taking a toll on me and definitely my non-existent bank account. You can support me directly by joining my Patreon - you can go to http://Patreon.com/peakhuman or search for Peak Human on Patreon, or of course click through in the show notes. A couple dollars a month goes a long way. You can also support me through the Food Lies film which is still on Indiegogo. We have all kinds of great perks like your name in the credits, the Eat Meat shirt, and the Real Foods coin. Thanks so much, I really appreciate it, and it’s not possible without you. Now please enjoy the wise words of Dr. Paul Saladino.

Preorder Food Lies: http://indiegogo.com/projects/food-lies-post

Support me on Patreon! http://patreon.com/peakhuman

SHOW NOTES

Food directly contacts our body everyday
Food is a signal to the body and affects us on a cellular level, it is so much more than calories and macros
If your blood markers improve on a vegan diet your doctor would praise you, if you told them you did it with a carnivore diet they would tell you to stop
People have a very difficult time believing that plants could be bad
High D15 nitrogen values in the bones and collagen of neanderthals and early humans confirm humans were eating primarily animals
Studies referenced:

Humans evolved as facultative carnivores
Plants were our fallback foods during times of starvation
“Thriving vegans” would probably thrive more if they ate animals
If you enjoy plants eat them but animal foods are the ideal foods for humans
Study showing male height is associated with high quality animal proteins
Eating nose to tail is basically a multivitamin for humans in the most bioavailable form
There are no unique nutrients in plants that we can’t get from animals
The history of fiber and how it got associated with health
No real evidence to suggest fiber protects against colon cancer
Meat does not cause colon cancer
Major flaws in the fiber deprived mice study showing mucosal layer in the gut degraded in the absence of fiber but with no symptoms or association with disease or inflammation
Fiber and health is based on epidemiology and confounded with healthy user bias
Asian countries show opposite association between meat and all-cause mortality than western countries
Plant sources of vitamins and minerals are either in a non-bioavailable form or bound to other minerals that inhibit their absorption
Vitamin C requirements are a lot less than we think
Polyphenols are plant defense molecules
What are free radicals?
Polyphenols trigger our own antioxidant defenses but we can get these same responses with less damaging stressors like exercise, cold therapy, or sauna
Sulforaphane can be harmful even if it does trigger a hormetic response
Sulforaphane inhibits iodine absorption and can lead to hypothyroid
Herbivores co-evolved with plants and have different strategies to deal with plant toxins than humans
Fruits and vegetables have never actually been shown to have any benefit in humans in controlled studies
Curcumin shows results in a test tube but there are no double blind placebo controlled clinical trials to show that it is beneficial
When curcumin enters the body it is immediately detoxified and excreted
Black pepper inhibits the detoxification of curcumin
We should actively avoid black pepper
Plants are not going to create the ideal micronutrient or antioxidant status in humans