Allergic to beef? Weight loss? Vitamins when eating meat??

First AMA of 2025 - Let's GO! ​

#1 Do we need vitamins if we are eating primarily meat?‍

No, you absolutely do not need additional vitamins if you're eating meat and organs.

Here's why...

Multivitamins (often synthetic) are packed with garbage ingredients like silicon dioxide, polyvinyl pyrrolidone, and hydroxypropyl methylcellulose. Even worse, the vitamins and minerals in these supplements are in poorly bioavailable forms that your body struggles to absorb.

Want to know what the REAL multivitamin is?

Organs. Specifically liver.

Even just half an ounce of liver per day gives you a TON of bioavailable nutrients in the forms your body actually wants and can use. You simply cannot beat liver as a multivitamin — it's nature's true supplement.

Yes, we make supplements at Heart & Soil, but these are actually FOOD — desiccated organs for people who can't source fresh organs.

But my strong belief is that you should always try to get fresh organs first.

Now, there are some unique situations where supplementation might be necessary...

For instance, I have supplemented with methylated B vitamins because I have the MTHFR gene mutation. But these are highly specific cases that should be evaluated individually.

For the vast majority of humans eating an animal-based diet rich in meat and organs, synthetic vitamins are completely unnecessary. Your ancestors thrived without them, and so can you.
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#2 What do I have to do to lose weight?

‍I strongly believe people are overweight because they’re eating the WRONG foods.

So, entering a calorie prison or endless cardio to lose weight is NOT a long term solution.

The key is undoing the Westernized dietary pattern that's making you fat.

First, eliminate the biggest offenders:

• Seed oils (these increase hunger via cannabinoid signaling and can lower thyroid function)
• Processed sugars
• Processed grains

Then, focus on the most nutrient-dense foods that create true satiety:

• Meat (especially grass-fed/finished)
• Organs (fresh or desiccated from Heart & Soil)
• Fruit
• Raw honey
• Raw dairy (if you tolerate it)

Studies consistently show that when people eat this way, they lose weight WITHOUT counting calories. For instance, when participants followed a similar meat-based pattern in paleolithic diet trials, they lost weight unintentionally — even when researchers tried to prevent weight loss!The mainstream "calories in, calories out" model is overly simplistic. The QUALITY of your food affects your metabolism, hormones, and satiety signals. Focus on food quality, and the weight will take care of itself.Combine this with a moderately active lifestyle (movement like walking, resistance training) and watch the weight fall off!
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​#3 Do you believe carnivore is still a good starting point for people who are trying to resolve health problems.

‍It certainly can be.

The carnivore diet is an incredibly powerful elimination protocol, especially for autoimmune conditions. It helped resolve my lifelong eczema, itchy rashes, and asthma completely.But here's the key — while carnivore can be amazing for initial healing, it doesn't mean you need to stay there forever.After about 18 months on strict carnivore, I noticed some issues like muscle cramps, sleep issues, low T, lower thyroid function etc.After adding back strategic carbohydrates from fruit and honey all those issues went away and right now I feel the best I’ve ever felt.So yes, carnivore is an excellent reset. But once you've resolved your health issues, you may thrive better by slowly incorporating some carbohydrates from fruit, honey, and raw dairy.Remember: If you're thriving on carnivore, keep doing it (n=1 as I always say!)But if you start experiencing any of the issues I mentioned, don't be afraid to experiment and evolve your approach.​

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‍#4 What can I eat if I’m allergic to beef?​

So this is interesting to me…I’m not sure whether your allergy is alpha-gal syndrome – the tick-induced red meat allergy – or a direct protein allergy… so first, I would work with an allergist to get to the bottom of it if you have not already.IF it is alpha-gal syndrome. This condition typically lasts 3-5 years, there are promising desensitization protocols being studied that may help reduce this timeframe significantly.Regardless, you can still eat the following and do extremely well:

• Chicken
• Turkey
• Fish
• Eggs

These animal foods are still rich in bioavailable nutrients and will do you a world of good.
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Try to opt for pasture-raised chicken and turkey that are fed their species-appropriate diet of insects, grubs and forage (grain-fed poultry is higher in linoleic acid, and usually contains microplastics, antibiotics and hormones).Note that pork, lamb, and venison can also trigger alpha-gal reactions since they contain the same sugar molecule found in beef.

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#5 If you lived in a country where all raw milk products and raw milk itself were illegal and there is no way to get them other than getting yourself a cow (not doable!), would you cast all dairy out of your diet or exceptionally do with pasteurized?

‍In this situation, I'd look for raw aged cheeses first like Pecorino Romano and Parmigiano Reggiano, since they're often legal even when raw milk isn’t.There are some important considerations for pasteurized dairy.
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When milk is heated above 65°C during pasteurization, it denatures the immunologically active whey proteins. Research shows that raw milk's protective effects against allergies and asthma are lost with pasteurization.Pasteurized still provides valuable nutrients like calcium, K2, and odd-chain fatty acids that are hard to get elsewhere.
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If you tolerate pasteurized dairy well and can't access raw, it's not the end of the world – just understand you're missing many of the benefits of raw.
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The optimal hierarchy for dairy would be:

1. Raw milk from grass-fed cows
2. Raw aged cheese
3. A2 milk (if you can't access raw and do not tolerate regular)
4. Regular pasteurized milk

And if you do choose pasteurized milk, look for:

• Grass-fed sources
• Non-homogenized when possible

Fermented options like kefir or yogurt can be a good option too.Remember: Don't let perfect be the enemy of good. While raw dairy is optimal, some dairy is better than no dairy for most humans who tolerate it.Alright.
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That wraps it up!

Welcome to the Remembering.

Paul