[hombre_fatal]

This is a popular talking point among carnivore charlatans on social media, but can you show me any meta analysis or randomized controlled trials where they found adverse health effects when humans consume whole plant foods high in oxalates such as leafy greens, beans or whole grains?

I know the charlatans won't. We'll just get petri dish and rat studies but mostly hand-waving narratives.

> Overall these are plants defense mechanisms

This doesn't mean anything. Of the "anti"-nutrients that survive basic cooking, most of them show improved health outcomes in humans: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7600777/

Though I'm not sure how people find it convincing on a rhetorical level. If these "defense chemicals" are so bad, then over what time period are they supposed to hurt us? 100 years? Because the overwhelming balance of evidence only shows improved health outcomes with the consumption of fruit and vegetables, especially the scary ones like dark leafy greens and legumes.

This just sounds like the "eek, a chemical in my food!" rebranded for the 2020s.

Finally, to circle back to the topic at hand, I just wouldn't center my diet around rhubarb leaves. They're about as enticing as celery leaves.