I'm right there with you Chris. I've seen enormous gains in health since incorporating raw animal foods into my diet back in 2003. But I've also been making a lot of other lifestyle changes at the same time, working less, getting more sleep, creating stronger and deeper relationships with people, etc. Building a better lifestyle is the real cure-all, if there is such a thing, and our eating patterns are just one component of that.

I was on a podcast with Denise Minger (author of Death by Food Pyramid, a great book by the way) a week or two back. I asked her what percent our eating patterns play in our overall health. She guessed that they made up a minority, with stress levels, toxics exposure, sleep and relationship quality making up the majority of what determines whether we're 'healthy' or not. She and I are on the same page here. People who think that diet, of any sort, can be a cure-all are far off base.

This underlies why I struggle with whether to remain an active poster here. Some of the more devoted posters act as though eating a raw paleo diet will make them invincible. Wasn't it last year that a young man convinced himself that he could have unprotected sex with a woman who had an STD without risk of infection because he was eating raw paleo? Within a month of making that claim, he stopped posting, as far as I know. I was bashed for referring to RPD as a theology, but given the behavior of some people here I think that's a very accurate way of looking at it. Very extreme eating patterns adopted and promoted by people who don't present themselves as being emotionally well balanced...

It's as if people are trying to start a raw paleo cult or something.

I LOVED your post Eric.

Hanna, raw nuts are a great choice for RS, if you did not know. Raw cocoa too 
Those are my choice.... But the nuts need to be real good quality for sure! I only trust Orkos...

I guess that’s why bonobos and early hominids did not settle in Scandinavia or Finland… Their wise chiefs and sorcerers must have said “Oh, there’s nothing to eat here and it’s freezing cold, let’s go back down South and let our successors come back once the know how to make and control the fire, and when they’ll have developed javelins, bows and arrows! We haven’t yet figured out how to wash the tubers before eating them.” 

You’re welcome here first… What animal foods do you find there? Reindeer and fish from the Baltic? Or are you now in Norway near the Atlantic coast?

 

I find elk, deer (there are lots of deer BTW.. I see them around the house pretty often!) rabbits there are lots of too... ducks, other animals too.. and yeah many kind of fish in the Baltic. Although there is not as much fish as it used to be and the water is polluted too. But it is getting better. I do believe a healthy person is able to clear many kinds of pollutants and poisons! That is why someone get sick and someone not. It has always fascinated me. Why that is. And how you can be one of them that clear stuff effectively -> stay healthy in not so ideal environment too.

I m not so sure our ancestors hated it here... lol There is a certain magic here up north. Something very peaceful.. and the cold aint that bad as you think, ask Tyler!  it is actually pretty nice! It is kind of how you choose to think about it. Everything has its plus and minuses. The summers here are awesome! They are not too warm... and they are just so beautiful.... already the fact that here lives way less people than more south is a very nice thing me thinks. You have so much space! I do not think it is very good to have a too heavy population at all.

It does is something magic about warming around a fireplace in the freezing cold.....  I am also wondering if the cold somehow makes a bit cooked animal food less bad for health than if you eat that stuff in a warm climate. I really wonder about that. At least I know ice baths are very good for health, and everyone who lives so far north knows that too. 3 % of the population do them regularly and there are places / lakes to do it, they are hold open by the government.

I like the seasons, they are so different here! It is so freaking exciting when comes spring... and you can taste the first wild edibles... and walk barefoot again. It is like when you have to be away from your lover.. and then see him again.. it is way more exiting and magic than if he is always by you 

Believe it or not but when summer is about to end... you get really excited about the winter...! 

BTW.. speaking about food sources. I have found a great grassfed Angus beef source not too far away, I have to drive maybe half an hour. It is amazing! They are 100% pastured in summer and in winter they get only hay, nothing else. The meat is awesome! I buy lots of heart.. and other kind of meats too, the liver tastes great too! I love to buy food directly from the producer, it is a couple that own the place, it is a huge place, very beautiful. They are very very nice people. She asked how I cook the heart and I said I eat it raw... the fat too. She was very interested and thought it was cool! Imagine! There was a vet too, her friend, and she said yeah, in Finland we can eat the beef raw without any issues because the meat is so high quality  very nice older lady too. They thought it was a great idea. I said I sometimes make carpaccio out of it too and they said they are going to try!


@ PaleoPhil,
IDK if they have? There are information you can check out different foods with different amounts of AGEs.. but I doubt that is telling the whole truth. Looks like we are able to clear them pretty well too if we are healthy and they are also made by the body somehow.. it is a very complex thing. I think we need a little bit of AGEs too? At least I read that somewhere too. Just too much is bad. And stress makes lots of them too, even sport! yeah... it is always way more complex than one thinks, huh! 

Inger, what got you into raw paleo? Surely you did not always eat this way? How long were you raw paleo?

Hi Cavebiatch and sorry for replaying so late! got so busy lately... I have stepped into construction business lately... I know, weird! Being one of the owners and so much to learn.

I started raw paleo many years ago... with a heavy fruit and veggie and nuts based diet. Not totally vegan but almost. I do had some meat and fish once in the while in the beginning too. Maybe it is 7 years ago or so? Then after a few years on that very expensive diet my financial situation went very bad and I had no money for the expensive tree ripened organic raw exotic fruits I thought was the only road to heaven. So I had to figure out something else. I found zero carb.. and gave it a try. Raw. Costs almost the half of my previous WOE. Here I am today. 
I never went back to fruits as I noticed more benefits from the ketogenic WOE. So I am almost only RAF for maybe 4 years?  I do eat as much seasonal wild carbs as I want. Veggies from my parents garden too in summer... I love the cucumbers! And some other stuff like 100% chocolate occasionally. I am not religiously raw. I sometimes eat precooked mussels cold, or a steak just warmed in the pan, bluer than blue. But mostly I eat everything raw and it makes me feel awesome! Yeah.. I really feel as well as when I was a kid 

@ Chris,
I actually started exercising a month ago or so, I do about 40 minutes 1 / week, seldom twice/week. I already think my butt has gotten perkier  i love it! But I really keep the rule "less is more"
but I sure keep muscles even without any sport, I do have to keep the hole in the ice in the river open and that is pretty much a workout too when it is cold! 

Rawesome,
welcome to the forum! I was in Norway (I am Norwegian btw, just born in Finland) a few months ago for 2 months and I loved to pick oysters at the beach and eat them fresh.. yum! And then I loved the whale meat! And mackerel... I ate mackerels almost every day, they are so fatty you need no extra fat for sure at that meal at least!

I am sure you could get fresh lambs meat too, it has some fat on it, and tastes amazing.

Try to get game too.. and organs, you need to eat everything on the animal. You will find seaweed to much on, for free, in the ocean. I am a fan of wild foods, they makes me feel amazing!

Do not count calories by any means! Go after how you feel and you hunger. Calories means nothing.

Do not eat fruit in winter in Norway! That is my advice... and as you write you already experienced it is not too good for you. Always try to eat in season. Maybe you can find Hazelnuts? I love them! They are very high fat and very healthy, almost no carbs and they are growing in Norway too. I do sometimes eat Brazil nuts and Pistachios and Macadamias etc. for dessert, I love nuts but they must be fresh and organic, not rancid or you will only hurt yourself.

@ Francois,
haha.... I hope you won't die Francois because I need to come and visit your beautiful place first and the picture of you feeding me with fresh sun ripe figs in season is not leaving my mind

I think it is very sad he thinks a cooked vegetarian diet is the thing... it is like... he has something right but something terribly wrong. With cold an animal food diet with very
little carbs is the optimal woe. I can sense it from the video there is something missing

I am addicted to oysters....  too bad as they are so expensive I cannot have more than 13 / week at this point in my life. Hate it. I want only them!!!!

Raw brains..... but I cannot get any.  makes me feel sad about myself (  )

I have the thing with raw fat plain too, SB. IDK why it tastes like cookie dough to me? It is scary because I can eat and eat and eat it 

other things pretty much vary. I am kind of addicted to the taste of snow too. I get such weird cravings to munch on it when outside... crazy! I give in of course.. 

Cooked foods are not addictive to me...lol I eat cooked once in a while (seldom), like precooked mussels, I eat them cold. Actually when I do eat something cooked it makes me crave raw..lol pretty much the opposite than the raw guru's predict  . Most days I eat 100% raw tho. I have eaten raw so many years... maybe it is for the beginners it is addictive? Or it depends what you eat? I never eat crap, ever. Also never cooked carbs. I barely eat any carbs anyways, practically only the local, wild ones in season.

Francois I do think we probably need some time to adapt to certain parasites and viruses etc. There are rawfooders that died of Malaria because they thought their body could handle it, they were non native to Africa BTW.
But sure anyone can take any risks they want, I myself would make informed decisions and be cautious at least in certain countries.

Hanna that was an amazing Video clip! I love the Germans 
They certainly made it look like this is a great diet! yay!

Sabertooth is our Hero  wow the place where he is in the doctors office scantily clad laying on the doctors bed was pretty HOT 

I was like that too Van. I loved my exotic, organic, tree ripened fruits so dearly I could never have given it up if I had not run into serious financial issues that made me have no money for those expensive fruits. I did not realize my teeth went bad... and my skin was not the best too. Supermarket fruits were no option for me.... so I figured Zerocarb was my next best option... and go figure... made me feel so great I never went back to fruit consumption...lol

A family's friend in Norway, a religious Christian too, had such bad Chron's for years she told my bro the doctor said she must get surgery and a "bag" on the outside of her belly too. I told my bro to tell her I know what might make her healthy - a raw meat diet only. I will do anything to help her. But guess what, she has not even considered it, but her answer was, she has tried everything (but of course not what I suggested) and she believed her doctor  who  said no diet will help. She is a young girl just a bit over 20 yo.


I think it is only  very special courageous people that are willing to try a RAF diet. People with an open mind and desperate for health.

Trance is a great word Eric.

My family... they are exactly like that. They see the health benefits I get from my way of eating/living and they want them too but they go on like in trance... baking Christmas cakes... eating bread.... it is like they are unable to wake up. they want but they cannot they just lack the willpower, energy, or whatever it is. Sometimes they do changes, but very soon fall back to the old pattern. A relative diagnosed pre diabetic and having blood sugar issues, very tired after meals etc. asked what to do and when I told her she said, "what? I cannot give up cookies and bread and the good stuff. What would there be left to enjoy? No I cannot." She has children to care for and could need all the energy and wisdom she could get.. how weird people do not think about that. And she is a very christian woman that prays to god and have special clothes and all because of her strong believes.

I have stopped trying to "change" them long ago. Now I think the only thing that might move to real changes is them facing an illness. The sad thing is many illnesses come very slow... sneaking upon one. When we wake up in real suffering it is too late and people are to damaged to be able to change anymore. Like the brain is not able to think clear. But some do wake up from the trance and look for help and that is when we need to be there for them. When they are desperate for help.

Sad thing is all the damage a bad working brain and cognition does in ones life, bad decisions, bad relationships..... very unproductive. 

When I was eating fruits all year round I was so cold all the time in winter.. grrr....    and underweight too... had 25 degree C in my home and bundled up
now I know why