Q: Let's speak about the Primal Diet. This is Aajonus Vonderplanitz.
What's the derivative of that name, sir?

A: The first name is Greek, the last name is German.

Q: What a beautifully exotic name you have.

A: Well, thank you. It's a lot to write.

Q: But, it's not such an exotic diet that you have.

A: (laugh) Well, actually it is.

Q: What's it called? Is it actually called the Primal Diet?

A: Yes it is.

Q: Now, from my just very basic research on this – and you can give
us all the details – it kind of, on the face of it, goes against
everything that newfound dieticians might tell us.

A: Well, absolutely, the newfound dieticians and the old dieticians
are all molded by the pharmaceutical-medical industry. And, of course,
they do not want you to be well because, then, they don't profit. And I
found that the Masai tribe, the Samburu tribe and the Eskimos were the
healthiest, strongest and happiest races on the planet. And they eat
raw meat and raw dairy.

Q: You say raw dairy. That's straight out of the udder, is that right?

A: Yes. Well it's not straight out of the udder. I wish I could get it
straight out of the udder. But, it is packaged, unpasteurized.

Q: I see. Right. Now, do you eat actual raw meat?

A: Correct.

Q: When you say raw, there are obviously delicacies. Fine dining will
give you some raw steak.

A: Ya, you can get steak tartare, you can get carpaccio, ceviche,
sashimi. There are all types of raw meat that are available throughout
the world.

Q: But, if you walked into Walmart and bought a couple of lamb chops and
took them out of the packet and just ate them, you'd be ill wouldn't you?

A: No. You might get a little bit of a discomfort from it if it was
raised with hormones and antibiotics.

Q: So, are you saying that if you took a freshly killed sheep or pig or
whatever one wants to eat and just took the meat off, that would be fine,
much like a wolf or other creature?

A: Absolutely.

Q: No kind of ill affects from doing that?

A: Well, I've been doing it for 38 years now. When I started eating
raw meat, I actually did it to kill myself. I had 4 types of cancer:
cancers of the blood, bone, stomach and lymph.

Q: That's a lot of cancer.

A: Yes. I also had as a child: juvenile diabetes, psoriasis, angina
pectoris and bursitis. So, I was very sickly and I was supposed to die
at 21 years old. And I went through all the medical therapies. And,
actually, the medical therapies are the ones that gave me the cancers.
And they severed my vagus nerve to my stomach so I would never secrete
hydrochloric acid; and they told me that I would never be able to eat
anything but cooked food – even if I ate a banana or an apple, it had
to be steamed because I would be in danger of bacterial or parasitical
invasion and death. And, so I listened to what they said and I ended
up a worm on the floor, unable to stand, unable to move without severe
pain. They cauterized my spine with radiation therapy.  I was miserable
and I just wanted to die and I thought that raw meat would kill me. So
I began eating raw meat and it did just the opposite.

Q: So, in a weird kind of way, you didn't discover this because you met
a wise nutritionist, you discovered this because you thought "I can't
be bothered to cook this. I'm going to eat it and if I die, so what,
my life is rubbish anyway."

A: No, I didn't think, "If I die, so what." I thought of all the
propaganda out there about you getting parasites and diseases from raw
meat and you will die. I was convinced by all that propaganda that I
would die.

Q: So, tell me what do you have for breakfast?

A: I will have some raw, unsalted cheese first, to absorb any poisons
that dumped during the night into the stomach and intestinal tract.
And then I will have a raw egg. And then I will eat some raw meat,
whether it's poultry, fish, beef, lamb, pork, no matter what. But,
I always get meat that's organically grown, no antibiotics. Maybe grazed.

Q: Does it taste nice? What's the taste of it like?

A: Well, when you've been eating it as long as I have, it's quite
delicious. So, I don't need any condiments with it. But, most people,
because they're used to flavored foods like it better by eating some
kind of a sauce with it.

Q: Not even any salt and pepper?

A: Well, I don't use any salt whatsoever, but I will use some black
pepper.

Q: OK. It's always nice with a bit of steak, isn't it?

A: Yes, it is.

Q: What's a delicacy then, for a man who eats raw? What would be a
real treat?

A: Well, brains are wonderful. I had a pig's brain, just last week. And
it is so sweet and so delicious and rich. You know, brains are about 60%
fat. So, it's a very rich food. And if anybody's eaten urchin, it's much
like urchin.

Q: What do you do? Do you have the brain in your hand? Do you put it in
bread? Do you do anything with it? Do you just munch it up?

A: No, I'll just take a fork and knife and cut it up and eat it.

Q: It doesn't bother you because a pig's brain clearly looks like a
pig's brain; it's not disguised as anything. That is obviously a brain.

A: Oh, it's obviously a brain. But, if you look at a brain aesthetically,
it is quite incredibly complex and beautiful.

Q: Well, indeed. Which, perhaps prompts some people to not want to eat it.

A: (laughs) Yes, you know, before I had eaten the meat to kill myself,
if I had seen that, it probably would have repulsed me.

Q: If I was in the States and I said "Let's go to a nice restaurant for
a meal," I'm assuming you wouldn't be able to come with me.

A: Oh, I go all the time!

Q: What do you eat when you get there?

A: Well, I'll order steak tartare or carpaccio. You know, steak tartare
is chopped meat, usually fillet, and mixed with raw egg. And they'll
usually use capers, pepper, salt and other condiments to flavor it,
including tomato and parsley. I'll have all that, but the capers and
the salt. And it's quite delicious.

Q: What about tongue? Do you like tongue?

A: No, I do not like tongue.

Q: It's a tough old beast, isn't it.

A: It's tough raw.

Q: That's quite hard to chew through that stuff.

A: Yes it is.

Q: Well, listen, it's been great to have you on sir.

A: Well, thank you,.

Q: That's a pleasure and great to talk.

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2010-04-18