07/08/2024
From Cleveland Wellness Clinic:
Picking the Right Proteins for Your Health.
“Where’s the beef?” To up your odds of living a long, healthy life, make sure it (that includes bacon!) doesn’t appear on your plate more than once a week. According to a 16-year observational study of more than a half-million adults, consuming beef, lamb, and pork substantially and importantly up your odds of dying from eight — yes, eight — conditions: cancer, heart disease, respiratory diseases, diabetes, stroke, kidney disease, and liver disease. That’s quite a litany! Both processed meats (such as bacon - we know, we repeat ourselves - and lunch meat) and unprocessed meat (such as steak or ground meat) were associated with increased health risks in the study. “White meat,” however, such as chicken and turkey, was linked to health benefits. That said, when it comes to protein, don’t put all your eggs in one basket (so to speak!). Vary your sources, and be sure to include plenty of plant proteins like lentils, beans, tempeh, and nuts as well as fish such as salmon and ocean trout, which contain not just protein but also beneficial omega-3 fatty acids. To break out of the red-meat habit, embrace planning: Meatless Monday, Turkey (or Tempeh) Taco (corn only) Tuesday, White Bean Soup Wednesday…. you get the idea.
Source: Mortality from different causes associated with meat, heme iron, nitrates, and nitrites in the NIH-AARP Diet and Health Study: population based cohort study
