Is Red Meat Killing Me?

Is red meat unhealthy?

Stress is the number 1 killer, so hyper obsession about food can do more harm than than the food itself!

However poor nutrition is also a form of stress on the body. So is red meat poor nutrition?

Now you are always going to get militant views from both sides! The vegan organic hemp wearing crowd and the muscle popping cow gorging gang.

What has the media been saying?

Every year the media makes its assault against red meat. It causes cancer and heart attacks and all things nasty.

The type of studies that the media cling hold of are observational studies. Now one of the biggest specific problems with observational studies on red meat is what is referred to as the “healthy user bias”. Since red meat has been vilified for years in the press those that prioritise their health take heed of the warnings. However these health conscious bunch also adhere to other healthy practices such as exercise, sleeping enough, eating your vegetables etc. Do you see? To sum up generally the people that eat red meat are the hamburger, pizza and chip lovers who don’t do a lot else and the ones that don’t eat red meat treat themselves with a chia seed, raw chocolate dessert whilst in the lotus position… Probably reading this article.

Let’s explore a little further…

A side note – Be careful of the media. It’s always preaching the latest health message that sells. For a long time “fat” has been the enemy with low fat products cramming the supermarkets, even though the correct form of fat is a potent health booster. Now it’s “carbohydrates are bad”. Give me a break!!

Disease free communities.

Rather than following the latest health fad I would suggest looking at disease free communities around the world, finding that common link.

1. Some have a large proportion of their diet made up of animal products such as red meat.

2. Others have a higher plant based diet, even fairly high in carbohydrates. ( I thought carbs were bad? *hitting head on desk)

3. What both share is a diet that is:

- free from processed foods and refined sugar.
- free from transfats (mainly from super heated vegetable oils).
- high in omega 3 and vitamin d.
- full of probiotics and fermented food.

To sum up so far. You can include or exclude red meat from your diet and still be extremely unhealthy or healthy. The major issue is refined sugar, processed food and a lack of omega 3, vitamin d and other minerals.

But should I eat red meat??!

Red meat contains a load of b vitamins, iron (primarily haeme iron, a form that is absorbed and utilised much more efficiently than the non-haeme iron found in plant foods), vitamin d and minerals such as zinc. It’s a potent health food.

However some red meat I would completely avoid, other types I would enjoy.

Quality is key.

1. Buy your meat local, where the animals have been well cared for and have been eating real food! (I do an order online every 6 months and then freeze, from a farm I trust)

A bit of a rant but bear with me… It amazes me how many cows are just given feed rather than grass, or chickens (I’m aware they’re not red meat) given just corn rather than worms and bugs. Let’s think logically! What is the natural food for this animal? Bad food = bad meat.

Some supermarket meats have been poorly cared for and fed. It’s not kind and it’s not good for our planet. If you go supermarket, go organic or free range.

2. Cooking method. Long and slow for meat is best. The meat can form carcinogenic properties through high temperature and fast cooking times. BBQ and microwaves are the worst! Also try marinating meat before cooking.

3. Only have processed meats as a treat.

In summary if the meat is of high quality and cooked correctly it can be included into a varied diet. Rather than overdoing red meat I mainly eat fish (everyday) but will also include the meat to add a nutrient power punch.

If you refuse to eat meat and aren’t eating oily fish daily please supplement with krill oil to ensure the correct 3:1 omega 3 to 6 ratio.

That’s it for this week. Email me your questions for next week!

Dorchester personal trainer - Dave Wall - www.dorchesterpersonaltraining.co.uk