Red meat: What Makes It Unhealthy? (page 5)

NOLAW

Biometrics: Those 'facts' seem to have been manipulated.

Man is omnivorous.

biometrics

@NOLAW

Which facts?

Note: There is no useful, meaningful, or even vaguely-scientific anatomical/physiological/biochemical definition of "omnivore". Is my dog an omnivore because he eats an apple every now and then?

biometrics

@botchtowersociety

Here's a hint, this isn't for berry harvesting:

No, they're not. But the fact remains, you don't know exactly what they were used for, and therefore can't prove anything with them. For all we know they could have been used to defend the tribe while collecting berries?

mP

I think the most unhealthy part of eatting red meat is not the physical act but rather the message behind its source.

To eat meat means someone has to kill another living animal and chop it up. Today in our western society, we are far removed from this gruesome cruel process. I reasonably confident if we had to witness how cows and pigs were killed when we purchased our meat we would become vegetarians.

There are many studies that show psychopaths often torture animals as children before they progress and become murders when they grow up. Theres something to the killing of animals that changes our minds into machines that become cruel and arrogant believing we have a mandate to kill and destroy anything because we are better than the other animals and plants on our earth. In the passt hundred years we have changed from an animal that rarely eats meat to one that consumes a lot more frequently, and its no coincidence that the destruction and poisoning of the planet has also increased because our attitudes have been altered.

still thinking

I think you are probably right about some of that mP...if we had to kill it most of probably wouldn't eat it...and that is probably because we have been pampered in todays society. People always used to kill their own food.

Trying to compare meat eaters to psychopaths is a bit over the top...don't you think? We are eating more meat because we are more vicious or arrogant...but more likely because it is readilly available...maybe if it was more available centuries ago they would have eaten more then too...just like the Inuits.

Destruction of our planet cannot be blamed on people eating meat...that is WAY over the top and far too simple. I am not sure if this is what you are actually saying...but it seems like it since you seem to have lumped it all together....torturing animals and children, murders, cruelty and arrogance, destruction and poisoning of our planet. ....all in one breath!...gosh maybe I won't have that steak tonight...I might turn into a serial killer.

mP

@stillthinking

rying to compare meat eaters to psychopaths is a bit over the top...don't you think?

MP:

Imnot comparing the two directly, im simply stating that killing animals is not healthy for ones peacefulness for lack of a better word.

All im saying is that eatting meat is the first step in a changed mindset. Mankind when they were less carnivorous were a lot more in harmony with nature. Today we eat meat and as a whole are less respectful of the world. Eatting meat is part of the change in society that we call the modern world.

still thinking

I have to admit that when I was standing in front of the meat department in the supermarket the other day, eating meat did cause me discomfort....when my 4 year old son stood there, hands behind his back looking at all the meat and stated...."should we eat animials chopped up into pieces?......we should not" I honestly have no idea where that came from. But it did make me uncomfortable...I mean, how do you explain that to a 4 year old. We have chickens and goats as pets, and I have been dreading how to explain to him that the chicken we eat is just like 'butter' in the back yard...*yeah, my teenage son called her butter chicken...and the name stuck*...

Billy the Ex-Bethelite

"I reasonably confident if we had to witness how cows and pigs were killed when we purchased our meat we would become vegetarians."

And if most people had to actually grow their own food, they would starve to death.

I often get the feeling that most people today really believe that food simply comes from grocery stores. Several times it's come up in class where students start ragging on farmers and inhumane conditions of animals and use of pesticides. Having grown up on a farm, I won't deny that there's bad stuff going through the food chain, because people demand cheap food. And I would reply to the students to grow their own food if they are really concerned about what they're eating.

And I would get a look from these kids like I had just grown another eye.

still thinking

LOL billy...the world has gone soft!

We do not have to treat animals inhumanely...but as you say, sometimes it happens because of supply and demand and prices...humans are to blame for that.

I still think most of us benefit from eating meat...no matter how uncomfortable it makes us feel.

talesin

Having grown up on a farm, I won't deny that there's bad stuff going through the food chain, because people demand cheap food.

I would have to say the issue is much more complex than 'people demanding cheap food'. The gov't spent a lot of money convincing failing farmers to produce crops such as soya and corn - these are the staples of processed food. Small farmers just couldn't make a go of it, selling their beef/poultry/pork for cents on the dollar, and many family farms went under.

Thus, the emergence of 'factory farms'. These are what we need, in my opinion, to focus on. The animals are mistreated, and as you so clearly explained, fed products that are unnatural. They are also pumped full of antibiotics and hormones to keep them healthy and make them grow faster. (watch themeatrix.com online - it's an interesting and informative short film on the realities of factory-farming)

On a side note, I have had a hard time buying chicken organ meats, because, as the butcher at the grocery store explained, "The chickens grow so fast and fat, so quickly, that their hearts literally explode. It's hard for us to get organ meats from the factory farms. I suggest you contact a local, small producer and see if you can get your organ meats from that source."

The meat that comes from factory farms is also laden with preservatives. The same butcher explained to me that unless the label says "unseasoned", ALL the pork in the grocery contains either MSG or other preservatives. I don't know if this is true of beef, but I suspect that is the case.

For many years, I couldn't eat eggs without feeling nauseas afterwards. A friend suggested that I find a source for eggs from organically-raised, free-run chickens. I did, and no longer get nauseated after eating quiche or a 3-egg omelette. Just this year, I saw a report on the CBC that said the main antibiotic used in mass-produced chickens would be a cephalosporin. Well, it just happens that I am allergic to cephalosporins (yes, a true allergy), and well, that explained why those factory-produced eggs were making me ill.

Many local farmers are quite willing to sell a 'side' of beef or pork at a very reasonable per pound price, and will deliver it to your door. Around these parts, a side of beef will run you around $600, and a side of pork about $350. It's the way to go, and you are not only eating healthier, you are supporting the small farm instead of a multinational corporation.

Farmer's markets are available in most cities as well. Get to know your producers, buy from them, and limit your meat intake as much as you can. It's easy to research nutrition online and through your local library. There's no need for one's diet to be deficient -- for example,,, the darker the green, the more the calcium; beans and lentils offer great nutritional benefits, as well as being easy to digest - they also help keep the glycemic index steady, for those contemplating diabetes. I enjoy the meat I *do* eat, but find my system works much better when I limit it to several small portions per week.

tal

Red meat: What Makes It Unhealthy?

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