hey, stilt0 & captxray,

Right on with what you say!

I am of northern euro descent, and have no problem understanding why I feel better and have NO digestive ailments after switching from a (almost) vegan diet to a paleo diet comprised of mostly red meat. I agree with what you say about how satiated one can get when eating it. I don't think I would trust raw meat, but rare is how I always eat it.

One question for you two (and anyone else that has ideas on the subject). Why is it that I crave fat so much, and why is it that fat makes me feel even better than the red meat aspect? I have eaten leaner meats, like deer and elk and bison, but it just does not seem to satisfy me like eating fatty cattle or pork or eggs. I have lately been experimenting with eating (for the first meal of the day) eggs and bacon/pork sausage, fried in large amounts of butter. I will even pour the excess butter and grease over the top of this plate of fatty food. (I have not tried lard yet, but I might). I have noticed a real improvement in my energy levels, my moods, mental alertness, my satisfaction, etc. It's funny how in years past I would always blame this type of eating for severe digestive disturbances, when in reality it was the toast and/or pancakes I ate along with these foods that was really the culprit! Now my stomach is as quite as a mouse after eating this type of food. Same thing with chicken skins, etc.

My question is why, if our ancestors ate mostly lean game meat, do I crave fat and feel so much better when eating it? My skin looks better, etc. I have heard that saturated fat is the best thing you can eat for your heart (in fact it is what your heart muscle uses for energy). Did our ancestors really eat a lot of saturated fat (like the Eskimos)? Is that why I crave it so much, and it makes me feel so good?

Loren Cordain, in his book 'The Paleo Diet', warns against eating the "wrong kinds" of fat (mainly saturated fat). He says that paleo people ate lots of very lean game meat, and very few eggs. So, is it true that one should watch their saturated fat intake? I am starting to have doubts about it. But, from an evolutionary perspective, have a hard time explaining it. Unless, my ancestors ate saturated fat along with their red meat.

I have this nagging hunch that saturated fat (along with other types of fats, like omega-3, etc) are actually very healthy, and, along with good quality protein like red meat and eggs, is a part of a powerful combination of food!

Can anyone give me some insights into this?

Would really appreciate it.

Thanks.

BTW... I know what you mean about getting a big gun and killing some wild herbivores! IMHO, it is actually the smartest, most healthy, caring, animal loving, humane, ecologically sound thing a person can do! The best quality food you can possibly put in your mouth is the meat from an animal that lived in the wild and was shot in the head and killed instantly, with no stress to it's being. Alive and free one minute, and a wonderful foodstuff for you the next. No torturous life in between. The healthiest thing you can do for the animals you kill are to kill them in a way that helps control their population, which will allow all of them to enjoy a more trauma free existence, and at the same time help the ecology of the earth (and the food chain) you are a part of. Sure beats chopping down all the trees to pave the planet with cornfields! I have never been hunting in my life, but plan to purchase a rifle soon with a good scope so as to "cleanly" kill deer and elk, etc.