Category Archives: Fun

A Dangerous Diet

I am quite busy with work and haven’t had a chance to finish a science post, but an article caught my eye with a diet that was new to me and deserves a warning: the “live diet”:

Rainbeau Mars, the actor and yoga- and holistic-health guru with “an irresistible glow,” according to her website, has requested that her guests “try out a vegan, and subsequently live food diet for 21 days” before her upcoming Kauai wedding to Hollywood business manager Michael Karlin, according to the Huffington Post. That way, Mars’s publicist explained in the piece, “everyone will look and feel their best for HER big day.”

Now, since the live diet is not the vegan diet, I suppose it must include animal foods – live animal foods.

It seems like this diet must be a version of Paleo – after all, as Robb Wolf explained, “if it has a face, it’s Paleo” – so I was surprised I hadn’t heard of it. I haven’t found much about it on the web but I think the “live diet” must resemble this excellent recipe by Daniella Martin, except without the cooking:

(Note: The taco shells are not PHD. Consider substituting rice flour based spring roll wrappers.)

Unfortunately, I have to say that based on a brief literature search, I believe the live diet, while fine for pythons, alligators, and herons, may be quite dangerous for humans, and must oppose it. This alarming case study illustrates the potential dangers:

I do wish Ms. Mars a joyful wedding day; but I must recommend that her guests avoid this risky diet.