I support eating real food, like vegetables and meat for many reasons. After seeing recent show called The Game Changer on Netflix, an extremely plant based bias film selling the vegan lifestyle. I felt the need to be the voice for a healthy omnivorous diet with the benefits of incorporating meat. Here are seven reasons why I am a believer in incorporating sustainably farmed animal proteins into the diet as a dietetic intern and graduate student within the nutrition and dietetics field.
The body cannot create the 9 essential amino acids that are needed from the diet. Other than the pure nutritional need, protein serves many other positive functions for healthy humans. Protein is the most satiating of the macronutrients.1 Intake of 15-30% of total calories can be helpful in regulating appetite by increasing leptin sensitivity, inducing weight loss, and promoting blood sugar control.2
Eating more, not less protein not only is essential, but also may be helpful to slowing the obesity and diabetes epidemic we are facing. Meat is a high-quality source of protein. Eating meat makes it effortless to meet daily protein needs. You might think or have been led to believe we are eating too much meat, but I disagree. Americans only eat less than 2oz of beef per day.3
2. Nutrient Density
Meat is not just high in protein. It is also a source of many nutrients that are simply not available in plants. Meat provides B12, highly absorbable heme iron, preformed vitamin, all the essential amino acids, zinc, EPA, DHA, vitamin D, and vitamin K2, none of which are found in plant foods. Plants provide important antioxidants, vitamin C, and fiber. We need this variety of nutrients to survive.
Even though chicken and beef are both quality sources of protein, beef simply blows chicken away in the nutrient department.4 It has significantly more B12, zinc, choline, iron, and potassium. In terms of micronutrients, chicken only has more B3 than beef. Recommending people reduce beef intake and replace it with chicken or vegetables, is asking them to reduce the nutrient quality of their diets.
3. Fat
Fats, especially saturated fat, have long been the villain of the nutrition world. They have been blamed as the cause for all diseases and the reason we are obese.
Fats serve many purposes for our health. The brain is made up of mostly fat. Fat is needed for insulation to keep us warm and protect our organs. They also act as chemical messengers, control growth, help with immune function, and normal reproduction. They provide essential fatty acids and help with the absorption of fat-soluble vitamin A, D, E, and K.
Saturated fat is by far the most vilified as the main cause of high cholesterol and heart disease. It does raise cholesterol, but usually raises HDL cholesterol. There has actually been no connection found between saturated fat intake and heart disease.5 The vilification of the type of fat that is primarily found in meat, is completely unfounded.
4. Iron
Meat contains heme iron, the most absorbable type of iron. Iron-deficiency anemia is the most common mineral deficiency in the United States. Iron is particularly important for pregnant women, infants, and children. Iron deficiency in children can lead to permanent intellectual delays.
5. Human Anatomy
Contrary to many internet memes floating around claiming that people only have the anatomy to eat plants, in truth, humans have distinct features that make us able to eat both plants and animals.6 Our small intestines are longer than the average primate and our colons are smaller. With our larger small intestine, we are adapted to eating more nutrient dense foods like meat and starches, not large volumes of plant foods like our primate relatives. We have canines for meat and flat molars for grinding plants. We also have very smart brains and nimble fingers to use tools very well to hunt and utilize all the meat and product off of a carcass.
6. Vitamin B12
Vitamin B12 is only found in animal foods. B12 deficiency, which is common in vegetarians and vegans, has been shown as an independent risk factor for coronary artery disease and serious neurological disorders in infants of vegan mothers.7,8
7. Zinc
Zinc is an important mineral in our immune health, wound healing, and plays a role in thyroid and metabolic health overall.9 Zinc is found in many animal-based proteins such as egg yolks, fish, beef, and more. Zinc from animal-sources is easier for the body to absorb and utilize compared to plant-based sources.10
There are obvious ethical, moral, and humane issues associated with animal protein production and climate and environmental issues. As consumers it is important to support more sustainable and ethical outlets and methods as much as possible. Research your supplier, get to know your farmer, and resources who provide animal proteins to you. Its not about following a strict way of eating or judging people who nourish with or without animal proteins. Each of us are unique and desire to consume food in the way that best serves our longevity.
Thank you for reading!
Citations:1. Stijn Soenen, Margriet S. Westerterp-Plantenga. Proteins and satiety: implications for weight management. Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care. 2008 Nov; 11(6): 747–751.
2. Izadi V, Saraf-Bank S, Azadbakht L. Dietary intakes and leptin concentrations. ARYA Atheroscler. 2014;10(5):266–272.
3. Diana Rodgers R. How Much Protein/Meat Are We Actually Eating?. The Paleo Diet - Robb Wolf on Paleolithic nutrition, intermittent fasting, and fitness. https://robbwolf.com/2016/11/15/how-much-proteinmeat-are-we-actually-eating/. Published 2019. Accessed November 25, 2019.
4. Beef vs Chicken meat - In-Depth Nutrition Comparison. Food Struct. https://foodstruct.com/compare/beef-vs-chicken-meat. Published 2019. Accessed November 25, 2019.
5. Siri-Tarino P, Sun Q, Hu F, Krauss R. Meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies evaluating the association of saturated fat with cardiovascular disease. Am J Clin Nutr. 2010;91(3):535-546. doi:10.3945/ajcn.2009.27725
6. Luca F, Perry G, Di Rienzo A. Evolutionary Adaptations to Dietary Changes. Annu Rev Nutr. 2010;30(1):291-314. doi:10.1146/annurev-nutr-080508-141048
7. Pawlak R. Is Vitamin B12 Deficiency a Risk Factor for Cardiovascular Disease in Vegetarians?. Am J Prev Med. 2015;48(6):e11-e26. doi:10.1016/j.amepre.2015.02.009
8. Roumeliotis N, Dix D, Lipson A. Vitamin B(12) deficiency in infants secondary to maternal causes. CMAJ. 2012;184(14):1593–1598. doi:10.1503/cmaj.112170
9. Melina V, Craig W, Levin S. Position of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics: Vegetarian Diets. J Acad Nutr Diet. 2016;116(12):1970-1980. doi:10.1016/j.jand.2016.09.025
10. Foster M, Chu A, Petocz P, Samman S. Effect of vegetarian diets on zinc status: a systematic review and meta-analysis of studies in humans. J Sci Food Agric. 2013;93(10):2362-2371. doi:10.1002/jsfa.6179
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