Posted on 09/17/2026 2:55:10 PM PDT by simpson96
A 50-year-old Florida man who says he spent decades battling severe psoriasis, pain and depression credits an extreme "lion diet" with saving his life.
Stephen Lashbrook of Pensacola told Fox News Digital that his depression began at just four years old. In his teens, it was compounded by chronic pain and sleeplessness; in his early 20s, he was diagnosed with psoriasis, an immune-mediated skin disease.
"I was probably 90% covered in psoriasis," Lashbrook said. "My body was just one big, giant, itchy, flaky scab."
Creams, steroids and other medications did not help, he said.
Doctors recommended expensive, long-term injections to combat his inflammation, which left Lashbrook feeling hopeless and suicidal.
Then, he came across a TED Talk from Mikhaila Peterson, an influencer and the daughter of Canadian psychologist and author Jordan Peterson, who used a meat-only elimination diet to tackle her own health issues.
"It gave me a whole new lease on life," he said.
Lashbrook said he initially cut sugar, grains, fruits and vegetables from his diet.
On Jan. 1, 2024, he committed to the "lion diet," a strict carnivore diet variation centered on ruminant animal meat — "your cow, your buffalo, your lamb, your goat," he told Fox News Digital.
Within a week, Lashbrook said his itching and suicidal thoughts stopped and, within a month, his skin began to clear up and his pain subsided.
"I haven't had one suicidal thought. I haven't had any depression. I haven't had any pain," he said. "All my skin issues cleared up."
His current menu consists of only grass-fed ground beef and steak.
Lashbrook said he generally eats one meal per day — about 1.5 to 2 pounds of high-fat ground beef usually cooked in an air fryer.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
Skyrizi is brutally expensive (in the neighborhood of 20K per shot). 1 starter shot, a booster 1 month later, then one shot every three months after in perpetuity unless it stops working for whatever reason.
And yes, having psoriatic arthritis and plaque psoriasis is a drag, a real drag.
I add Stevia or monkfruit to the melted chocolate. I'm not a masochist.
These have little effect upon blood sugar.
Chocolate is definitely a superfood. It’s the added sugar that’s the metabolic killer. I only use natural sweeteners that do not affect blood sugar. My favorite are Stevia and Monkfruit.
TWO of the Best & Safest!
Excellent advice.
Thank you to both of you for your response.
I’ll discuss it with him when I see him next.
I recall him saying he had an infusion and it helped a lot.
I always thought psoriasis was a skin disorder that caused skin to be irritated in patches. What he experienced was far beyond that. It would make any one depressed.
“I hope he doesn’t get bitten by a lone star tick.”
Omgoodness - that would be just devastating.
Named from the perspective of the lion. What does a lion eat?
“Omgoodness - that would be just devastating.”
I KNOW!!!
We’ve met quite a few people recently who have contracted alpha gal, and it’s devastating for them. But they’re not in this man’s situation where he MUST eat meat for his psoriasis.
Conspiracy theorists, and others who aren’t, are suspicious that this syndrome about why alpha gal is becoming so common. Even our US Rep. Tim Burchett is worried about the rise in lone star ticks. He connects it with Bill Gates, who has a genetically made meat corporation.
Yes, sugar is very inflammatory and terrible on the body.
I’ve tried all the artificial sugars and never cared for the aftertaste. There have been concerns about the effect of erythritol on cardiac health, too, I tried pure Monkfruit by Now Foods, but didn’t care for it. Then in mid 2025 I discovered Allulose. At first, I tried a liquid form. Then I found an Allulose/Monkfruit blend by Lakanto that I really like. I found it once at a local grocer but none of the grocery stores carried it after that. It is available on Amazon where I buy it now.
The discovery story behind Allulose is quite amazing. If you like scientific discovery, it’s worth reading. It is classed as a “rare sugar” which are carbohydrates that exist in limited quantities in nature, with approximately 50 types said to exist. “Rare sugars” are monosaccharides that occur only in extremely low concentrations in nature. Among them, allulose, known to exist in trace amounts in figs and raisins. But converting that rare sugar was the big chemical problem.
The commercialization of rare sugars has a long history. Dr. Ken Izumori, a professor at Kagawa University, began his research on rare sugars in the mid-1980s, driven by a simple yet profound question: “Even if they exist only in trace amounts, there must be a reason they are present on Earth”. In 1991, researchers at Kagawa University discovered a microorganism in nearby soil that produced an enzyme capable of converting fructose into the rare sugar D‑allulose.
They scooped ordinary dirt from the Kagawa University campus, grew bacteria from that soil and fed them unusual sugar alcohols to see if anything new appeared. One strain unexpectedly flipped one sugar into another, and that enzyme also turned everyday fructose into allulose. Later they repeated the same idea with hundreds of soil samples until they found safer bacteria that do the same job.
Japanese DIRT held the answer!
Yes, sugar is very inflammatory and terrible on the body.
I’ve tried all the artificial sugars and never cared for the aftertaste. There have been concerns about the effect of erythritol on cardiac health, too, I tried pure Monkfruit by Now Foods, but didn’t care for it. Then in mid 2025 I discovered Allulose. At first, I tried a liquid form. Then I found an Allulose/Monkfruit blend by Lakanto that I really like. I found it once at a local grocer but none of the grocery stores carried it after that. It is available on Amazon where I buy it now.
The discovery story behind Allulose is quite amazing. If you like scientific discovery, it’s worth reading. It is classed as a “rare sugar” which are carbohydrates that exist in limited quantities in nature, with approximately 50 types said to exist. “Rare sugars” are monosaccharides that occur only in extremely low concentrations in nature. Among them, allulose, known to exist in trace amounts in figs and raisins. But converting that rare sugar was the big chemical problem.
The commercialization of rare sugars has a long history. Dr. Ken Izumori, a professor at Kagawa University, began his research on rare sugars in the mid-1980s, driven by a simple yet profound question: “Even if they exist only in trace amounts, there must be a reason they are present on Earth”. In 1991, researchers at Kagawa University discovered a microorganism in nearby soil that produced an enzyme capable of converting fructose into the rare sugar D‑allulose.
They scooped ordinary dirt from the Kagawa University campus, grew bacteria from that soil and fed them unusual sugar alcohols to see if anything new appeared. One strain unexpectedly flipped one sugar into another, and that enzyme also turned everyday fructose into allulose. Later they repeated the same idea with hundreds of soil samples until they found safer bacteria that do the same job.
Japanese DIRT held the answer!
I wonder if Lashbrook wasn’t mis-diagnosed. Psoriasis over 90% of the body? He should get checked out for CTCL. He might just need UVB treatments.
Fascinating stuff. Thank you.
I understand the aftertase issue. I drink Zevia soda which is sweetened with Stevia. Nothing nasty in it such as colorings or preservatives. Very healthy. When I first tried it, I was put off by the Stevia aftertaste. But I persevered. After a week, my taste buds had fully acclimated. Now there is no sense of aftertaste at all.
Sometimes it may be worth it to keep trying.
I’m 75 and most of my life I’ve taken antihistamines to stop itching.
Three years ago I unintentionally changed my diet while the wife and kid were out of state.
I just found it easy to fill a pot with meat and vegetables and let it cook for 20 minutes.
I stopped itching and can walk again with no pain.
I don’t have joint pains in my shoulders or fingers anymore.
I work in the yard all day and wake in the morning with no pain.
At about the same time as my new diet, I started taking a teaspoon of turmeric a day.
It helps control general muscle pain.
I listened to what Kennedy was saying about processed foods and it made sense to me.
A year ago I started getting muscle cramps, mostly in my hands.
Magnesium takes care of that.
If I get muscle cramps within an hour of eating, I search to find the food that caused it.
Recently it was chicken meatballs in spaghetti.
I rarely eat pasta, rice or bread but I’ve found some brands that are okay.
I think you would really like the Lakanto Allulose/Monkfruit blend. It’s my favorite.
What do you think of honey as a sweetener? Same as sugar, or not as bad?
We have this. Bought it from Amazon. We use it to make keto desserts. Especially good in keto chocolate cakes. Great sweetener.
I was just talking to a south african guy who had some terrible conditions that were cured by a meat only diet.
I was just talking to a south african guy who had some terrible conditions that were cured by a meat only diet.
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