As I love FOOD, it is always frustrating to read something bad that researchers found in the food. I like any kind of food as long as it is delicious. Today when I read an article from BBC website about the red meat, I am compelled to write out my disappointment. It doesn’t move me that much when I hear about the side effects of soda although I like to drink soda, but I don’t like to hear a bad news about the meat because I am already upset with the saturated fat and cholesterol included in it. I know that they are not good for our hearts, but I can never imagine eating meals without it. Vegetarians always impress me because they are doing the thing that I cannot do, and they have healthy diets than meat-eaters do.
the picture is taken from BBC website
Even though this blog is not very related to the English class, I feel like to share some knowledge about red meat we all consume unless you are a vegetarian. A new study showed that saturated fat and cholesterol were not the only reason for causing heart disease; a compound called carnitine was harmful to our hearts as well. When we eat the red meat such as steak and bacon, carnitine in the meat is broken by the bacteria in the stomach. That carnitine is broken down into a gas and, in the liver, converted into a chemical called TMAO that transported cholesterol to arteries and helped form the detrimental plague.
Therefore, it is necessary to eat less meat so that the bacteria that break down carnitine will be reduced and less TMAO will be produced, and it will decrease the risk of heart disease. For vegetarians, they already have fewer bacteria of that kind, so they have benefited a better cardiovascular health from their diets.
As usual, fish is always good for our health. Unfortunately, I don’t like fish at all.
Why can’t meat be as good as fish?
P.S: in a few years, there will be a “healthier” version of chocolate with half the fat. That is a very good news!
Unfortunately, I love red meat. That’s one of my biggest food sins. I’m trying hard to give it up, though! I’m excited about the chocolate, although it will probably be so modified that it wouldn’t be good for us anyway!
Vanessa, I love red meat, too, but I am not going to give it up 😀 They said they would use natural fruit juice instead of artificial one.
I also like red meat but it’s interesting that people like it at all. Humans weren’t ever designed to eat red meat. We can’t eat it raw meat. We are the only animals to cook our meat. We have flat teeth (like herbivores), while carnivores have sharp teeth. We digest our food fast, while carnivores keep their meat in their stomach for long periods of time. We have long intestines, while carnivores do not. We are descendents of monkeys who rarely ate red meat. Instead they ate nuts, fruit, and occasionally rodents.
The healthiest diets in the world I’d say are low on red meat but do eat it occasionally. It is interesting though that people are fond and eat so much meat (white or red) today. A meal seems incomplete today without at least one serving of meat, even though we were never really developed for it.
Hello Ronald, I understand what you are saying, but meat contains proteins and vitamins that are necessary for our bodies (well, we can replace meat with beans, but meat is more delicious).
We invented fire and knew how to cook. That is the reason humans are different from animals. We are more intelligent.
By the way, we are not descendants from monkeys; we just share a common ancestor 🙂
This is really interesting. I’ve been a strict vegetarian longer than you have all been alive (most likely). I was a staunch animal rights advocate as a kid/teen/young adult. Now, the more I age, the less problem I have with other people eating meat, but it never even occurs to me to eat it myself. But, friends of mine have been really obsessed with the direct link between meat-eating and pollution–there have been studies that show a direct link between raising animals for food and air pollution! But, at the same time, not eating meat takes its toll too. After many years of veganism, I got very ill and that is actually why I am only vegetarian–my body needed certain things that being vegan was not giving it. So, what do we do and who or what do we eat? Does everything have its repercussions?
@Ma Su Su
I wasn’t advocating not eating meat. I believe it is a good addition to a balanced diet. I just found it interesting from a biological standpoint. Yes humans can cook and other animals can’t but why do we? Is it to make it easier to swallow? Is to make it taste better? Is it to avoid disease? Either way it shows a lack of adaptation to eating meat.
I have red meat 4-5 nights a week for dinner and unfortunately I love it so much I could care less about the health risks. I (unfortunately) have very little care for animals. Torture should be dealt with appropriately (Peta and ASPCA do great work) but it is also food. As a Jew I am constrained only to animals with split hooves that chew their own cud – that’s how animals make the cut for Kosher. It seems like the animals that we’re not allowed to have are unhealthier than the ones we are anyway. Great post!
Hello Professor Kaufman, Yes, everything has its repercussion. Maybe you might want to take supplements. You have been a vegetarian for that long? That is very impressive because when I was a kid or teen (I think ‘now’, too) I don’t have any idea to be a vegetarian or an animal rights advocate. I think it is because of my background.
Hello Ronald, do you mean we are lack of adaptation to eating RAW meat?
Hello David, so you cannot eat pork? You might want to substitute red meat with chicken and fish ( can you eat those?)
Interesting, I’m actually considering going vegetarian. For my own health. It’s good to know that, Prof! I have a few vegan friends who swear they are totally fine the way their are. I guess some people just can’t be vegan. I probably couldn’t! David, you need to eat other things besides red meat. You cannot eat it so much!