What is the correlation between intestine length and diet?

[kurite]

This always bothered me when it came to the whole vegan vs meat eaters debate. Vegans always say that we have a longer intestine length which is closer to that of herbivores, while carnivores have shorter intestine lengths. Apparently herbivores need them to be longer because it takes a long time to fully extract the nutrients from plants. But if thats true than why does it take longer to digest meat than it does fruits or vegetables?
Just wondering if this makes sense to somebody?

[TylerDurden]

I have read numerous scientific analyses in the past  which variously claim that we are either  100% carnivores or 100% herbivores. These are always deceptively  good explanations, backed up by strong science, and they can't both be correct. IMO, there is too much overall evidence supporting the notion that humans are omnivores

[kurite]

I completely agree, I just never understood the point that they make about intestinal length.

[RawZi]

    In my case they appear to be totally wrong.  The last 7-10 years I was vegan, my digestion was so slow, I couldn't fit more than about three teaspoons a day of food in.  It never went done and rarely went out. 

    During my veganism, about five years before the end, TCM instructors said that my intestines, both large and small, are unusually long like they've never dxed.

    Eating raw meat is a breeze for my intestines.  But during this time of RVAF, two years ago I tried a green smoothie.  It could have killed me it clogged me up so.

    When I first became vegan, I do remember a lot of health changes, why I stuck with vegan from then on to so long.  Bowel changes were not one.  I was about the same.  So I would say that although whole vegan foods are better than SAD for many things, they are not better nor worse for the bowels.

[TylerDurden]

Well, eating raw plant foods does usually lead to more bowel-movements than eating raw animal foods. Only exception I found was when I overindulged in raw liver.

[luis]

Pigs have a smal intestine of 15 to 20 meters, and wild boars are omnivorous, even though most of their nutrition comes from plants, fruits, acorns and so on. But when they have the chance to eat some animal,mainly insects,larvae, they will do it.

Our small intestine is much smaller, between 6 to 7 meters, therefore our ability to use nutrients from plants should be much inferior to the pig, which suggests a greater tendency for eating animal foods.

[cliff]

This is a weak argument used by vegans, basically because we don't have a digestion system identical to a carnivores we are not able to eat meat or animal foods.  We don't have a digestion system that is identical to any animal.

[William]

It's also said to be interactive in the sense that carnivores have a short gut, so if a vegetarian changes diet to raw zero carb her gut will shrink, while if a raw carnivore goes veggy, the gut gets longer.

Eating cooked meat would confuse the issue, as it needs more digesting time.

[RawZi]

said to be interactive in the sense that carnivores have a short gut, so if a vegetarian changes diet to raw zero carb her gut will shrink, while if a raw carnivore goes veggy, the gut gets longer.

    I was vegan longer than most people are ever.  I had been vegan for over twenty years when they said that in TCM.  Maybe my intestines got so much longer because of how I'd been eating.  I am acquainted with irl long time fruitarian people who get long hands.  Our bodies apparently can make some major changes, according to our diets.

[RawZi]

Well, eating raw plant foods does usually lead to more bowel-movements than eating raw animal foods. Only exception I found was when I overindulged in raw liver.

    Liver never got me going more.  I never ate tons of it anyway.  Even one (raw) egg gets me going usually. With the raw meat, I am regular, so I usually don't "need" egg and do without it.

[kurite]

It's also said to be interactive in the sense that carnivores have a short gut, so if a vegetarian changes diet to raw zero carb her gut will shrink, while if a raw carnivore goes veggy, the gut gets longer.

Eating cooked meat would confuse the issue, as it needs more digesting time.

Never heard of this, very interesting.

[Raw Kyle]

We have a shorter intestines than herbivores but a bit longer than pure carnivores like cats. Gorillas have much longer torsos and intestines than humans, and they eat very little meat and mostly vegetation. Of course ruminants are another story because of their different amount of stomachs. I agree with what luis said about pigs. I've heard our systems are closest to pigs, and if it's true our intestines are even a little shorter (in proportion to body I suppose) than it leans us greatly towards a mostly carnivorous diet.

My own personal experience is that anything outside of raw meat I eat makes my stomach a bit bloated. I can eat a piece of fruit and be fine, but if I ate a meal of fruit my stomach would bloat. If I eat just meat I haven't yet experienced an amount I could eat that would bloat my stomach like plant foods do.