Blanket statements and poor biochemistry aside, I cannot stand his poor grammar and lack of punctuation on this site. Most of the time his answers look like they were written by a 3rd grader.

I'm expecting to be down voted by his all too faithful followers but as you pointed out, I'm not the only person he bothers.

I can't really answer, because of the whole moderator thing and my past arguments with Quilt.

But I will say that Quilt is very very knowledgeable, and I appreciate his willingness to post free information in an effort to improve people's health.

One just has to be fully informed when evaluating the advice of anyone on the internet, and this is no exception.

"Believe nothing, no matter where you read it, or who said it, no matter if I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense.”
— Buddha

Jack, I apologize. Apparently on March 15, after you commented on Facebook on one of my posts, I did ask you if you would contribute a guest post fleshing out some claims you had made that surprised me. On March 21 you made the statement on PaleoHacks that I had invited you to do a guest post. When, around May or June, someone from PaleoHacks asked me if it was true, I had totally forgotten that exchange and said I hadn't. Just a loss of memory on my part.

In any case I was wrong, your statement was not false, and I apologize for thinking and saying that it was.

you know, ive been around here long enough that i have seen the quilt really dig himself into a few holes. ive never appreciated the tone that he uses with people when they question him. "just look it up," is not an acceptable answer when someone asks you to clarify a statement you make. it just speaks to his character in a way that i dont appreciate. i didnt know about most of this stuff here in the question, though i remember the couple of run ins that im mentioned in. seeing it all together is not totally shocking, i have to say. ive sort of long ago dismissed what he has to say since he is such a poor communicator. im also highly suspicious of anyone who gives medical advice over the interwebs. its just not ethical, and shows a lack of judgement.

i cant speak to his science, since that is not where my strengths lay but again ive seen him caught in enough tight spots that im confident that i can get much better information elsewhere.

besides, i find the relationship advice he offers to be borderline abusive. since that is where my strengths lay, i think ill follow my intuition and get my science elsewhere.

that said, im not a fan of gurus anyway. like rose, i follow my body and listen to my intuition. i never depend on information from just one source so when someone like the quilt makes a claim that i cannot verify elsewhere, its automatically dismissed. after three strikes, i stop listening. this is why i love wolf, harris, and sisson so much though. they are always seeking and striving and growing and citing. its hard work convincing people youre right, as it should be.

I take issue with the way that people are responding to the Quilt. I'd like to defend him a bit.

Kruse is the type of thinker who consumes large amounts of information and then synthesizes it into a similarly large system. When he writes he is trying to bring out all of the connections that are buzzing in his head. Kruse's emphasis - as a writer - is usually on seeing everything come together, and not necessarily on providing what most of us would consider a polished, professional statement. Further, he is a very busy person who wants to help others, so the practical compromise he accepts is that his comments will be made in haste, with poor grammar, minor errors, and various moments when his tone could be misconstrued as rude or dismissive.

It is true that Dr K is an opinionated person with an aggressive, idiosyncratic sense of humor that sometimes gets him in trouble with some types of readers. But I think that he considers it an acceptable tradeoff to offend this subset of readers if it allows him to help others achieve their health goals.

So far I've talked mostly about Kruse's style, now I'd like to shift some to his content (the two are interrelated).

To begin, I'll just say that I really value Kruse's contributions to the paleo discussion. He seems to pour through more of the scientific literature than anyone else. His attempt to synthesize this literature is also the most ambitious I've seen. Most of the information he conveys is also backed up by clinical experience, so it's not just crackpot theorizing. Rather, it's informed speculation plus experimentation; and that is pretty much what science is. Kruse's background or journey - from dentistry to neurosurgery to optimal nutrition - also gives him a unique vantage point that, to my knowledge, has no parallel in this community.

Admittedly, Kruse's communication skills are not as strong or polished as they could be. His readers have to dig around his articles, make some connections on their own, read through the comments, etc. He makes readers do more work than any other science-literate blogger of which I'm aware. What I've found, however, is that in time most of it actually does come together. When Kruse makes a claim on his blog, or here on Paleohacks, that seems unwarranted and without basis, eventually the explanation and evidence on which it is based comes to light.

As for the guru issue, I'm not one to follow gurus. I follow ideas, and try to take in the ideas that sound the most original, creative, and comprehensive. On this front, it is hard to argue against what Kruse has to offer.

Say what you want about his style or personality, but you can't say that the Quilt's heart isn't in the right place. He obviously spends a great deal of his time contributing to this site and his blog. Dr K answers almost everybody's questions and comments, and he is always game for a debate. Granted, he is not as interested in providing citations as some of us would like him to be, but it is also true that, intellectually, those are the least interesting sorts of requests. When ideas and concepts are at stake, Dr K has been very dynamic, informative, and original.

I don't mind the mistakes here and there. Most people who - like me - work in academia and research know how important making mistakes is to achieving substantial progress. The big picture matters far more than whether or not a few details were mistaken along the way. This is true broadly, and it is especially true in the context of Paleohacks comments. Most of us are not in a rush to convey information that fits into a larger system that is being unveiled in pieces as it comes together before our eyes. Whether Dr K is on the right track or not, this is what he is doing, and I think that it makes sense for all of us who understand this to make special allowances because of it.

As Kruse likes to point out, he is a big boy, so criticize him all you want. He can take it. But let's not give him the wrong idea. Kruse may be doing something special. So far, I think it is pretty impressive, and I want to encourage him to keep pushing forward, minor details and pleasantries be damned.

this guy says things that are factually wrong and talks down about legitimate science way too much. his advice might work for you and make you healthier - after all, as far as I know he sticks to the paleo framework to some level of strictness, right? but I would take everything he says with a grain of salt. Working in the field doesnt mean he's always got the science down if he's not going to be conscientious about checking sources and facts before he posts and gives advice. MDs are not superhuman. Also, as someone who invokes his authority as an MD almost constantly, I question the ethics of his posts where he does give medical advice without knowing the patient or often having a basis for making recommendations. He should probably be careful about that.

A point for any of his followers to keep in mind is that a clinician is not necessarily a trained scientist.

Despite his medical knowledge, his results seem to me to be N=1 at this point, just like the rest of us. He's made amazing personal progress with his health and fitness and that's to be respected. Like many of us, he has a great story about regaining his well-being through paleo.

However, I find it hard to believe that he has had sufficient time to collect the clinical data necessary to support his theories; like many of us, he hasn't been paleo for a long time. A careful clinician will not jump to sweeping conclusions based on a few patients, or just his own results. Blanket statements, erroneous cites, and inchoate postings are not solidifying his position.

Given sufficient and rigorous investigation, some of his ideas could prove to be valid while others go to the dustbin. His leptin prescription does seem to be helping some people based on the testimonials here, and he has a strong passion for all things paleo. He's full of ideas and contributes a lot here, but a clear delineation between fact and speculation when making connections between ideas in the medical and academic literature would be helpful and on the level.

There is a misplaced tone of aggressiveness in a lot of what he said, and the comments about Kurt Harris' practice were definitely out of line and frankly, jerky. In my experience these are not the hallmarks of a very profound mind.

I also have a difficult time with unfounded, blanket, black and white statements.

Mari,

I do not read this as antagonistic at all. The fact that you have presented both positives and negatives was very thoughtful of you. This is a VERY tough question and even tougher to answer fairly. Since it seems really appropriate, I am going to reference my response to the question from Matthew yesterday -

We could go on and on about how someone earns our trust and becomes a "guru" that we rely upon (e.g. formal training, letters before/after their name, personal life transformation story, etc). Peter at Hyperlipid says "no gurus". However my take is that there are gurus, but it is not a tenured position. It needs to be continually earned (or at least not lost).

Perhaps it will be more efficient "via negativa" to answer this question

• Has he/she ever blatantly lied or falsified information?
• Does the person make bold claims absent supporting information? I am not talking about cites for every last claim, but at least controversial ones.
• Does he/she have a history of being litigious on blogs and forums with dissenting views?
• Is he/she unwilling to consider alternate points of view?
• Does he/she imply omniscience rather than acknowledging limitations of his/her knowledge?
• Does the person engage in ad hominem attacks?
• Does the person have an incoherent writing style? Genius that no one else can comprehend is not very useful.
• Is the person emotionally unstable? This might seem odd but it is difficult to trust someone, even versed in science, that arguably needs to be institutionalized, or at least get some intensive therapy
• Is the person respected by his peers? This is not synonymous with complete agreement on all points

I could go on. This is not the be all / end all list, just an off the cuff response to the question. Also, this is obviously not a black-white assessment - there are many shades of grey. But if a person fails enough of the questions, then one must consider the possibility that this person is doing more harm than good for our community.

Also, I do NOT think the argument "well, a lot of people have gotten healthier following his/her advice" holds water. People have gotten healthier following Ornish and Oz also. Correlation is not causation

I don't think it is a secret that I have not always seen eye to eye with Quilt. But I do agree with the positives you have cited and I have nothing against him as an individual. To the extent that you have merely copied these quotes from previous posts/blogs, I have to assume that the veracity of these items are not questionable. However, I think the "facts" you have a presented definitely are cause for concern, particularly the excerpts of distortions and comments Quilt has made. The information you have presented is particularly troublesome because I know there are many new and impressionable members of PH community that need to be mindful of the advice they are receiving.

Let's face it, Quilt has become a significant member of the Paleo community, and with that comes responsibility on his part, dare I say some level of accountability - not simply as a blogger but as an MD and someone that could influence many in a positive way.

The bottom line to me is that there are a many paths forward. So will he,

1. Not dismiss this post and take the time to address what you've raised in a thoughtful manner analogous to the effort you have taken? And perhaps use it as opportunity for self improvement and growth?
2. Tell people to f*ck off because he has a following now and doesn't give two sh|ts what others think because he has achieved his objectives in the blogosphere
3. Love every minute of it!
4. None of the above

I eagerly await his response. Thanks for posting this question. I hope some day I grow up to be as mature as you (not likely).

JarJaravind, out...

The super-annoying spelling/grammar issues aside, my problems with Kruse are:

(1) Science w/o Substantiation:

When someone says "My principles are based around optimizing life through science not opinion”, then they better be prepared to put up or shut up! Quilt is responsible (for better or worse depending on the Hacker - grin) for my return to PH because I asked him on his blog to substantiate a claim that Mg deficiency ALWAYS precedes IR. That is a pretty bold statement. A statement like that implies that there is overwhelming evidence in the peer review literature to support it. A consensus if you will. When I asked him, he first sent me to {paraphrase} 'any biochem text ever published'. Huh? If this is really common knowledge at the textbook level, he should at least have a page number to cite, no? I've searched my PDF copy of G&H Textbook of Medical Physiology and found nothing. Next he sent me to a thread here where others listed a bunch of citations. Lots of info out there linking Mg and IR, but none of the cites I had time to look into further supported the claim.

Bottom line: Kruse's broad authoritative statements lack substantiation most of the time. Instead of providing the information, he would rather send his readers off on wild goose chases. Paleo as those may be, that is not courteous behavior. If your claims are backed by science you've read, referencing the relevant citations should be part of the initial presentation of said claims. Absent that, one should at least be prepared to provide the support when asked.

(2) Consistency:

Jack and I got off to a bad start on my blog. Yeah, I'm not the most politically correct tactful blogger out there, but I call them as I see them. Jack rhymes with the noise a duck makes, and having read about nipple massages and such this guy came off immediately as one to me. Still, at the time many were doing his plan and discussing him over at Jimmy's LLVLC forum. I called him the LLVLC "flavor of the month". Jack took exception to that in my comments saying that he was not low carb and folks at AHS were even shocked by his carb consumption. OK. But then I listened to his interview with Jimmy and read some comments on his blog and ... darnit ... he's supporting Taubes and telling his readers that VLC is what works for him. I asked again in his comments.(#) I got a rude reply. I don't care if he's LC, HC, no C, hyper C. I don't care if he cycles weekly or seasonally, but be consistent! (#Note: I tried to discuss this with him as CarbSane but I was apparently banned from comments and my posts disappeared. So I tested another ID/email and those went to moderation. He let through one comment by me posting as LCC and responded. I tried to respond as CarbSane ... that's in perpetual moderation apparently).

(3) Made Up Words

I initially thought that levee was a typo and he was instead talking about levels. But I was wrong. It's unnecessarily confusing.

(4) WTF Equations????

His Leptin Reset post ends with this:

(QUILT SURVIVABILITY) = (Total Energy – Growth and immunity expense) X (RESOURCES) X (efficiency) X (awareness of our environment)

Stated in levee form where: Cell longevity = LS – IGF-1 + immunity X Food Quality X leakiness of Mitochondria X environmental cues

1. I have no freakin' clue what to make of such equations!
2. Is IGF-1 the bad guy?

Point 2 is a biggie b/c PROTEIN stimulates IGF-1. Last I checked his whole plan begins with frontloading a BAHPB. I've asked him about IGF-1 and what stimulates it. He emailed me a paper. If we're talking insulin resistance, IGF-1 is an insulin sensitizer. The work of Gannon & Nuttal in this regard, that I blogged on in The LoBAG Diets for treatment of Type II Diabetes and IGF-I, discusses this.

(5) The "Out"

All anomalies can be explained by whether or not you're leptin sensitive or resistant. If his plan doesn't work, you were obviously already LS. If you have any problem in life, you're definitely LR. Melissa's 100 yr carb eating granny? Must be LS. John Q Pudgy? He's LR. Anyone can make up any old sort of crap when you can simply dismiss what doesn't fit the model with such flippant generalizations.

As Kamal (Patrik) added, this thread is borderline, specifically because we don't want to participate or even encourage mean spirited ad hominem attacks on character merely for the sake of vulture feeding.

That aside, Dr K has made enough of a wave in the Paleo community, and has created enough of a name for himself, that I think a thread that pointedly discusses his ideas and claims is warranted, and perhaps even necessary at this point. Mari (love this girl) has taken great care to point out both sides from a relatively objective vantage point... positives and negatives. Some answers here are very well articulated and balanced, and some are not. I'll leave that at that.

Dr K (aka The Quilt) came onto the Paleo scene in a flurry, making bold claims and ruffling feathers right out of the gate. That can work against him or work for him depending on how it unfolds. I think both are true. In the very beginning, many people completely 100% did not believe that he was a real Doc. (I am talking specifically about people who made such comments, not at all those who merely 'questioned' his authenticity.) Well, he is a real Doc, with a live website with pictures and a Bio with detailed certification claims.

For better or for worse, Dr K has actually influenced me enough to make certain specific choices regarding my lab numbers and concerns about my health.

1. I took his advice about guar gum and ordered some. I've taken 3 small doses in total. All 3 times, it has given me a splitting migraine headache and quite honestly made me feel like total garbage. Anyone who needs 2 bottles of pure guar gum powder... just lemme know. lol.

2. I have also purchased Vitamin K2 MK4 5,000 mcg and take it daily.

3. I have an appt today in 4 hours from now to give blood for the first time per his (and several others actually) recommendations to reduce my iron stores.

You see.. my actions listed above are EXACTLY why this thread and Matt's is important. In this digital age of readily available interconnectedness with such an army of online so called "experts", people are open to considering the advice of the gurus because of the disappointing approach taken by conventional medicine Docs. As a community, it is imperative that we fact check and carefully consider the information with discernment.

His grammar? It doesn't bother me as much as it bothers others, but since I am looking at this from a broader perspective, I would say that he could use some help here. A proofer. A spell-check. A grammar check. Whatever. BUT!! As Eric and others have mentioned, Dr K uses multiple resources to post, including wireless devices and such when he is out and about. On one hand, we could shrug it off and say who cares. On the other, is it really that difficult to spell check for a moment? The computer will do it for you. Is it really so important to get the article published immediately moments before picking up a scalpel!!?? In my opinion… No. I think taking several minutes to spell check, grammar check, and re-read and possibly have someone else read through it would be more beneficial than hastily publishing poorly constructed articles that frustrate your own readers.

False Claims and Statistics - Yah this is a weird one. I think it's pretty established by now that he does this. We've all tried to call him out on it, but he just kinda moves forward. I think he just puts so much info out there, that by default he's gonna get tangled up at times. But that's no excuse. Everyone makes little blunders here and there. No worries on that, but when it's chronic, people notice.

Aggressive and (at times) flippant tone - I take issue with this, and I've been plenty vocal about it. For the most part, I enjoy the Doc. But I do not enjoy nor do I support his tone toward people at times. That's largely subjective, because many people do not like Dr Harris's tone either. But personally speaking, Dr Kruse has antagonized me about my own health situation and it doesn't speak well to me at all. I too spend a great deal of time researching health and wellness from a Paleo perspective and am trying with all my might to figure out what's going on with me. I've got loads of well meaning, highly intelligent, and well studied folks giving me "advice" over the internet with the best intent in mind. From Chris Masterjohn to Dr Davis to Dr Ayers and even PaleoHackers like Travis Culp and so many others. But for some reason, Dr K thinks that's it's incredibly clear that his advice is the only advice, and makes derogatory remarks about how I need to "take it more seriously" and "when you are frustrated enough" and "it's easy to see what to do... the question is do you have the willpower" or whatever (I'm paraphrasing generalizations btw.. not quoting). Simply put, that's condescending and unprofessional. I value information and help, especially since my own doctors are so far off base that I have to turn to the internet for better info. But anyone who unnecessarily speaks down to others loses a percentage of my respect for them.

But!! Dr K spends a great deal of his time researching/testing his ideas about health and wellness, and particularly from a Paleo perpsective. He is a big picture thinker. He is very knowledgeable about human anatomy and the science-y biochemistry behind it. And He PROMOTES Paleo, and that folks, is valuable. Some might see his claims and ideas as more of a liability to Paleo than an asset, and (with all considerations in mind), I disagree. My stance on this is almost exactly that of Eric's. Personally I feel that Dr K is a net positive (as others have pointed out).

Conclusion: Given a multiple choice to keep him around or lose him, I’d keep him around and trust the community to put his ideas and claims into a refiner's fire. Let’s let PaleoHacks be the resource it’s intended to be and hack away at his ideas. He even welcomes that himself, which is great.

He is confident. Unfortunately, he is also often wrong. That's a bad combination. I don't trust anything he says.

I like the positive sentiments that are expressed here. I agree with those who have said that no one is perfect because in all of Quilt's responses that I've been lucky to read or come across (he is almot as prolific as Travis Culp or Eva) he appears intent on not only helping but in clarifying complicated health topics. The negativity expressed I believe is not warranted.

RE Paul Jaminent, in Quilt's defense, I bet he expressed it incorrectly in that he meant Jimmy Moore reqested a writeup (for a response to Paul Jaminent). Just a guess as Jimmy requested this from many. He's a cowboy fur sure and IMHO a good guy. I'd trust my Dad's health to Dr.K and my Dada is a surgeon!

i dont believe in leptin resistance, thus i quit reading the quilt after he made the DANGEROUS assertion that someone with hypothalamic amenorrhea is LR...@$$ backwards my friend. when it comes to eating disorders he would do himself a favor NOT to give advice or talk about them period., i wrote this rant over at MDA yesterday:

that reset BS has nothing to do with leptin... protein, and that much, is gonna cause any and everyone to eat less period. no snacking is just another dieting antic to get you to eat less. coconut oil is BS as well, it works for a couple days, after that its NOS, not gonna work.25 carbs...again its a dieting antic.

what does ANYTHING about the 'reset' have to do with leptin...NOTHING. leptin is an evolutionary female based hormone, meaning it is only really important in the context of a female, and in her reproductive years. any reading on the hormone itself shhhhould lead everyone to that conclusion. males can have low leptin, if youre a dieting male it is expected, duh. lose fat=lose leptin....YOUR NOT becoming resistant to it, you just lose it as you lose fat! your not resistant to leptin when your fat either, you have a ton. i dont understand how people dont understand this...

i can also quote this same leptin genius saying 'insulin equals death'....now again, this is impossible. spiking your insulin means your body is shuttling off nutrients/aminos- PERIOD. if you eat sh*t that is supposed to spike insulin but doesnt have the nutrients to back it up(SAD food) then again, duh, your gonna have continuously high insulin b/c your body is waiting for nutrients that aint coming.

if there is ANY truth to dr kruse's stuff, it's that he has it a$$ backwards. what needs to be 'studied' is the brain's insensitivity to dopamine(i swear if someone says this is b/c of leptin resistance.....lol). leptin alters dopamine, i know. but it is the dopamine deficiency that was first. this causes the weight to climb uncontrollably, the hormones to whack out, the insulin to go haywire, the leptin to f-up, the lazy feeling, adrenal fatigue whatever it is...this same dopamine problem leads also to fat burning problems. same reason certain people given depression meds gain weight...it blocks their dopamine receptors. same reason exsmokers gain weight and heroin addicts sudden get fat. anything that does this leads to the body signaling starvation. low leptin leads to dopamine problems...again, NOTHING about this is related to being resistant to leptin in anyway...

insulin is a body fat signal leptin is a body fat signal

to me, low dopamine should be present, along with low leptin on a ketogenic diet. if the body is functioning correctly, this diet in a roundabout way signals 'starvation' i.e, hibernation. if this didnt happen, how would early man have survived hibernation, the responses NEEDED to happen. so, one on a prolonged VLC diet is going to have downgraded dopamine receptors(but a plus, they should be more sensitive), part of the reason a change in diet leads to weight gain and people inevitably feel they will keep gaining. Dr kruse's MASSIVE LIST of testing and supplements will keep your brain high enough to possibly combat some stuff, but i for one am not shoving 283476510354 lbs of pills in my body, ever. period.

NEITHER leptin or insulin will function correctly with a dopamine problem. this is where stephen DOES have some ground in his 'food reward' stuff, i just think he is presenting it wrong. i dont think obesity is a brain disease like he does. its still not all about the brain, studies show insulin resistant muscles ALSO have insulin resistant brains- this, i am guessing is a factor/result of mitochondrial malfunctioning(which i am still reading about). however, if your brain reads low leptin(deficent) then so will your CNS, your liver, your muscles...you have leptin receptors all over your body(and for females the one's on the ovaries are where we get sh*tted on- amenorrhea etc..)

also, leptin is key to muscle breakdown and growth. if youre someone trying to gain muscle and eating lbs of protein with no result, your low on leptin. it factors into protein synthesis/breakdown and IGF.

dr kruse reminds me of Tabues but instead of insulin it is leptin.

Some things to remember about the Quilt (and humans in general) ---

0) I have had my differences with The Quilt -- and have had to suspend him from PaleoHacks. But, generally speaking, his intent is to help people --- he is a net benefit for PaleoHacks.

1) No one is perfect.

2) We're all wrong to some degree.

[See my thoughts on this here: http://us1.campaign-archive2.com/?u=48c5aee421576df1d6f5c8e45&id=7740a2bd8f]

3) The Quilt would benefit from doing better marketing & better writing, and less emotion.

UPDATE: WITH MY EXCHANGE WITH THE QUILT BELOW IN THE COMMENTS, MAYBE I COMMENTED TOO SOON.

I appreciate what he has to say because he makes me think outside the box and he makes me challenge the status quo, as well as my own thought process. I do not take anything anyone says on this forum as gospel or as applying to everyone in every situation, all the time; so he doesn't bother me in the least. I don't mind his faults, as I happen to have many of my own.

I'll stick with my original answer to yesterday's thread, namely that I read a wide variety of websites and other publications then ponder the information to develop and focus my own thoughts. I'm not close enough to any of these people to make absolute judgments and I am pretty sure they're all mixtures of correct and accidentally incorrect statements in their work and their beliefs. I do get suspicious of anyone who dismisses counter evidence rather than re-working/thinking his/her previous pronouncements.

I can't even read all this crap.

Some people seriously have to work on their understanding of life, universe and everything else. The fact that most points got the Nutritionist who talks about the "grammar issues" puts this entire thread on the pre-kindergarten level.

Who cares anyway, Quilt is not here to kill you or torture you or play Megamind but to share his insights and probably to learn about new things himself. Does he makes mistakes and use unchecked information ? Sure, who doesn't. Does he self promote ? Sure, who doesn't. I can compile this kind of BS for any single blogger out there.

The good thing about the internet is that everything is accessible. You don't trust the dude ? Go check it out, if you know how to search.

World would be a much better place if everybody was talking truth and nothing but the truth, right ? Meh...

Oh my God. I left MDA because Dr. Kruse spends all day cultivating a veritable army of defenders of the "Quilt." How hard is it, Kruse, to respond to questions in a clear, concise manner? You aren't Rumplestiltskin, and no one is going to spin gold out of your pile of plagarism and shady psuedo-science. You are single-handedly driving rational people back into the bosom of Hostess and Stovetop Stuffing.

I am a new member of this community and English is not my native language so take my opinion for what its worth. I have not followed any of the mentioned "drama" and do not take any sides.
I am sure Dr.K gets a lot of stuff wrong and his attitude and ego seem to be bigger than most, however, he still is a very valuable, prolific and UNIQUE part of this community. He seems to be a cross between several communities - Paleo, Doctors, Quantified Self. There are other Paleo MDs, so what makes him really unique and valuable is the Quantified aspect of his persona. The Quilt is a true Paleo Quant Doctor. He really looks for context. He seems to have access to a lot of lab tests data ,both personal and patients, which allows him to quantify conditions, improvements as well as observe patterns through many lab results. He does not simply read papers, studies, and journals.
At the end of the day, he is the best and most prolific Paleo medical resource for lab testing. He trials and refines his ideas on his patients and himself through numerous lab tests. Thus, while some of his theories and presentations might have flaws, he still provides a very valuable information and hands on experience for free. I would appreciate him for his strengths and unique perspective, while acknowledging his weaknesses.

EDIT:

I seem to not have expressed myself properly and to have appeared as some Quilt die hard fan boy. I couldn't care less about most of Quilt's not well thought out, badly presented, poorly sourced ideas and hypotheses. I do not follow his protocols. However, I have GREAT respect for this guy because of his quantified approach and clinical experimentation. He has access to vast medical resources and most importantly is ACTIVELY using them to improve his own and the public knowledge and understanding of concepts. I can only hope that one day I might encounter a similar doctor in my personal medical journeys and interactions with medical professionals. If this thread results in less or no output from him, this would be a great loss not only for the Paleo community.

(Although the question and most of the answers/comments are very respectable and polite, I hope this internet conversation and critique doesn't suffer from the lack of personal contact and non-verbal communication! This would be a much more interesting and fun thread if it was happening with all of us, including Dr. K, around a big fire, eating some meat on a stick, on a cool starlit night in august...)

Only a very subjective comment, and intellectually not very substantual:

Dr. K made paleo difficult! (edit: for me)

All the testing and supplements.

Again, he could be totally right, but paleo used to be easy.

By the way, we still use the easy paleo approach at home...

Cheers,

Pieter

Has anyone noticed that some of the information/posts written by Jack Kruse / Quilt appear to be taken directly from published, copyright protected sources? Is there any explanation other than the obvious?

from Carl Sagan and Ann Druyan

"...the ease with which it can be sweet-talked, overwhelmed, or subverted by our other hardwired propensities. These things sometimes themselves are disguised as the cool light of reason and that is a worrisome bias that might be a pitfall if we are not careful". --Quilt

"...the ease with which it can be sweet-talked, overwhelmed, or subverted by other hardwired propensities -- sometimes themselves disguised as the cool light of reason -- is worrisome." --Sagan and Druyan

from Michelle Skye, author of Goddess Alive!

"I am going to improve everything about me I can. Today I want to become the shaft of lightning or the glowing candle that illuminates my world. Be fast, furious, bold, and strong. Arrive quickly and depart just as fast, leaving behind a brighter mind or soul or heart in all I may touch." --Jack Kruse

"Brigid is the force behind grand ideas and simple comforts. She is direct, quick, enlightening, and enlivening. She is the shaft of lightning or the glowing candle that illuminates our world. Fast, furious, bold, and strong, she arrives quickly and departs just as fast, leaving behind a brighter mind or soul or heart. Brigid's gifts lie not in what she brings to you, but rather in casting light on what you can bring to the world." --Michelle Skye (Author of Goddess Alive!)

from Adlin Sinclair

"...the embodiment of the information we choose to accept and act upon. To change our circumstances we need to change our thinking and subsequent actions." --Quilt

"...the embodiment of the information you choose to accept and act upon. To change your circumstances you need to change your thinking and subsequent actions.” --Adlin Sinclair

from Anatole France

"All changes, even the most longed for, have their own melancholy of sorts (...) what we leave behind us is a part of being.......but we must die that part of life before we can enter into another realm." --Quilt

"All changes, even the most longed for have their melancholy (...) what we leave behind us is a part of ourselves. We must die to one life before we can enter another." --Anatole France

from Steve Jobs

"Remembering that we are going to eventually die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you really have something to lose in life." --Quilt

"Remembering that we are going to die is the only way I've found to escape the illusion of actually having something to lose." --Steve Jobs

from Herbert Henry Asquith

"Youth would be an ideal state if it came a little later in life." --Quilt

"Youth would be an ideal state if it came a little later in life." --Herbert Henry Asquith

from Chuck Palahniuk

"What we call chaos today is just patterns we haven't recognized yet." --Quilt

"What we call chaos is just patterns we haven't recognized yet.” --Chuck Palahniuk

from Robin Sharma

"Chase beauty......but adore mastery." --Quilt

"Chase beauty. Adore mastery." --Robin Sharma

from Alan C. Kay

"The best way for you to predict your future is to invent it." --Quilt

"...the best way to predict the future is to invent it." --Alan C. Kay

from Marc and Angel Hack Life

"...chance is a gift, so act on chance when given the opportunity." --Dr. Kruse 12 Wishes

"Chance is a gift, so act on chance when given the opportunity." --Marc and Angel Hack Life, 26 Life Lessons

The Quilt is a funny guy. My opinion is that you shouldn't let personality get in the way of a) listening to other perspectives and b) when in doubt looking into things for yourself.

Don' t let your personal religion stop you from exploring other's religions and don't hold others accountable for your own personal choices. Make your own choices and decide for yourself what is reliable and not reliable.

There have been many cases in history were a group of people have come together to persecute an idea and in the end the majority was wrong. Don't forget that. Also don't forget that there have been many cases in history where individuals were wrong.

http://paleohacks.com/questions/48074/most-original-influential-helpful-major-person-group-in-the-paleo-primal-health-c#axzz1cY0jhniK

The problem is that Dr. Kruse is a doctor, but he posts a lot of comments and stuff that are less than rigorous. I think when you have that credential burden, you have to be careful what you say. I recommended his blog to my roommates in NYC who were having a lot of trouble with paleo and I think they really benefitted from his Leptin RX, particularly the high protein breakfast. I guess my beef with him is he is so focused on a certain type of sick person that he, like many other low-carb doctors, thinks his prescriptions (like keto) are optimal for everyone and his view of human evolution is shaped by this. There is the second type of sick person, of which there are many on PH, which is the tend to be-underweight malnourished often kind of high-strung sort. That's what I am, and that's what a lot of other people I know are. Keto can help some of these people, but it can make others worse.

Edit: Quilt seems to think I have it in for him. Why would I recommend the Leptin RX to certain people (people I CARE about) then?? I think the Leptin RX can help a lot of people. It is mainly his random comments on the internet I have argued about, particularly on the safe starch debate and on evolutionary biology.

Amazing thread.

The Quilt's replies take it to the next level. Those replies and the idea that the man sits around here at paleohacks all day speak volumes. To learn that he has been banned from here before and yet he's back and so into this place is amazing.

Anyway, I am indeed happy for everyone who has benefitted from his advice. That's really what matters most.

--- EDITED ---

Is this really him?

I like the Quilt. He turned me on to K2. When you guys live longer, you'll find out that one good idea, per person, per lifetime is about as good as you can expect from any other human being. Think George W Bush as the counter example. :)

Like others, I appreciate The Quilt for his willingness to post. His cryptic answers are more than annoying, and your citations to intentional misrepresentations definitely bring his credibility into question. As for his ideas, I would suggest n=1 like most other information we read about the Paleo diet. If you think a Quilt suggestion sounds legitimate enough, give it a try and see if it works for you.

As an aside, I think this is the best PH post I have read. Thank you for taking the time.

Quilt on cancer reduction through nipple massages: "....one nipple massage will reduce your risk of breast CA by 50% because of the sensitivity to oxytocin"

I did a little search and found what could be the probable source for that statement:

Biological relevance of oxytocin and oxytocin receptors in cancer cells and primary tumors

"(...) it has become evident that OT may participate in other biological activities in the neoplastic context. In experiments set in vitro, we demonstrated a unique effect of inhibition in the proliferation of breast [15], endometrial [16], glial [18], neuronal [18] and bone [19] neoplastic cells. The entity of such inhibition ranged from 30% to 50% for all the different cell lines and had been evident since the first 48 hours of OT treatment."

But:

Although the inhibiting effect of OT on cell proliferation was reproducible in all the above-described cells, in the BeWo human choriocarcinoma cell line OT produced an opposite effect on cell proliferation [17]

Also, the following paper looks interesting:

The potential for oxytocin (OT) to prevent breast cancer: a hypothesis.

I think the problem is not the information per se but the way it is transmitted. I try to never use a "will" specially in complex topics like cancer, because we don't know much about it. So probably, stimulating oxytocin release by a nipple massage could help against breast cancer, but it might also increase the invasiveness of human endometrial carcinoma and angiogenesis (bad if talking about cancer).

I wasn't going to jump into this at all but it's driving me crazy. I like PH for the knowledge and online community, I get happy when I see certain people posting things because they actually will phrase some serious interesting stuff in a way that everyone can understand, looking at you Kamal, GWAR, Mer, Melissa, Gillie Bean, and definitely a few others except I'm only two sips into my tea and I can't remember right now.

I don't know everything. This is where I want to learn more and share, not always in books, podcasts, and other websites, but by real people who are experiencing the same things I am. I know that if I pose a question to the aforementioned people that they won't make me feel like an idiot with their response, which in turn will make me want to post more meaty responses in addition to posing different styles of questions. It. Makes. Me. Grow. and is not stifling in any way.

Yes. Quilt drives me crazy with those cryptic posts that are phrased in such a way that discussion is difficult to build off of unless it's kind of antagonistic. Sir, I really wish that you would just wait until you're home and write something thoughtful instead of just four words. But that's cool, it's your way.

How do I handle it? I just don't read his posts. See? Easy. Let it roll off. I don't think PH was ever meant to be a peeing contest. Drinking pee is Paleo, right?

Now, who wants some homemade coconut pudding topped with broiled spicy banana? Hmm?

He's obviously in it because he believes it can make a difference. It takes a certain type of character to do what he does. High output and problem solving can go along with increased error rate. Now it's not for me to tell his error rate, but I'd certainly consider a low error rate important in this area. I think he's much more correct where it counts than most doctors you will meet. Nobody is right 100% of the time and everybody can fall prey to the logical pitfalls of being human.

My only critique is the lack of graphics on his blog, though it's not like any paleo author makes much use of that. The things he writes about would really benefit from relationship maps and such.