Thematic styles of eating capture different people for different reasons.
Veganism, for example, speaks largely to those who are compelled by animal welfare, ethics and environmental concerns.
The increasingly popular carnivore diet, as you might imagine, speaks to a very different crowd.
In today’s post, a Halloween special, I’m offering you a look into the world of curated, thematic omnivorism.
Also known as the Grizzly Bear Diet.
Let’s start by reviewing the dietary pattern of our furry friends.
What Do Grizzly Bear’s Eat?
Let’s review some of the primary pillars of a grizzly bear’s diet.
Being far from a ursine biologist, I tried my best to accurately encapsulated a Grizzly’s broad dietary palette after doing a little bit of…
“my own research”
Grasses [Leafy Greens] – The closest human edible equivalents to grass must be leafy greens like spinach, kale, collards and chard.
Fruit [Especially Berries & Tree Grown Fruit] – All types of berries and tree grown fruits like apples fit the bill here.
Fish [Salmon] – We’ve all seen bears hunting for salmon.
Tubers , Forbs & Bulbs – Encompass foods like beets, potato, sweet potato, squash, onions and garlic.
Nuts – Bears primarily eat pine nuts, but if they could grocery shop they probably would not mind almonds and other nuts either.
Red Meat – Grizzly bears love scavenging all sorts of carcasses.
Want To Eat Like A Bear?
I’ve been a dietitian for 10 years and so it’s only reasonable that I eventually create my own random thematic diet.
This is how I would eat like a bear.
The Grizzly Bear Diet Parameters
I’ll use a 2,000 calorie day as an example to bring this style of eating to life.
We’ll allot ~100 grams (20%) of that to protein and the rest to carbohydrates and fat.
Energy and macronutrients needs vary and you’ll need to work with a Beary good dietitian to help customize that.
Here’s how we’ll do it:
- Berries + Apples Daily
- Leafy Greens Daily
- Fish Or Red Meat Daily
- Nuts Daily
- Tubers/Root Veg Daily
Keep in mind that sometimes Grizzly bears forage, and sometimes they feast.
So we are going to adapt that to our imaginary fun diet.
Forage
1x Smaller Meal ~25% Of Daily Intake – 700 cals, 20 g protein
100 grams of nuts | 20 g protein , 600 cals – sweetened with 1 tbsp of honey obviously
1 cup of berries OR 1 apple – 100 cals
Feast
1 Larger Meal ~75% Of Daily Intake – ~ 1,300 cals, 80 g protein
~400 grams of salmon or red meat
~400 grams of potato, sweet potato or squash
Multiple cups of cooked or raw leafy greens adorned with onions/garlic/mushrooms
Why Did I Create This Post?
Let’s call it a convergence between satire and science.
The Grizzly Bear diet does not offer any secrets or quick-fixes.
What it offers, in my view, is a creative way for me to bring together nutrition science and my personal nutrition philosophies and preferences into an easily presentable framework.
Substantiating this claim isn’t hard because my nutrition views and philosophies have been shared amply for the last decade.
Things are about to get beary interesting.
HAPPY HALLOWEEN
Andy De Santis RD MPH
The Grizzly Diet & Fatty Liver
