5 Meats to Avoid
While we’re all about vegetables here at MDA, we have a special place in our stomachs for clean, lean meat. Yes, it’s the ultimate primal picture-caveperson (O.K.-caveman, but can we get points for trying?) returning from the hunt with dinner for the family.
Fun illustration aside, it’s more than the image. Meat, of the MDA-approved variety, means protein, omega-3s, iron, and a host of other nutrients. And, yes, there’s that gastronomical, savory satisfaction. (Apologies to the vegetarian set. We’ll stop now.)
Nonetheless, as we say here at MDA, not all meat is created equal, especially in the current era of antibiotics, hormone injections, grain feed, factory farms, and cloned animals-coming soon to a neighborhood store near you. (Yes, our friends at the FDA are expected to approve cloned meat and milk in the coming days, according to the Wall Street Journal.)
1. Cured meats
We love bacon as much as the next guy or gal, but we definitely recommend going for the uncured variety. Nitrites are a sketchy lot. Included in everything from bacon to most lunch meat, sausages and hot dogs (are we really calling those a food still?), they act as preservatives and color enhancers. Unfortunately for those hot-dog-eating competitors, nitrites bind with naturally present amines in the meat when the meat/”meat” is cooked. The result is N-nitroso compounds, which have been linked to oral, lung, urinary, pancreatic, esophageal, stomach and brain cancers, particularly for children.
2. Cold cuts – Cured meat redux and then some.
First off: nitrites.
And then: listeria. Pregnant women, children and people with compromised immune systems, in particular, should shun cold cuts because of the risk of listeria, a kind of bacteria that causes flu-like symptoms in most people but can, in extreme cases, result in meningitis, blood infection, miscarriage and stillbirth.
To boot: it’s processed. We just don’t like them processed foods ’round here. Sodium (oh, yeah, there’s the massive sodium content) and phosphate brine, meat emulsion substances we can’t pronounce-ewww.
Hey, wait a minute. Cold cuts are for, um, sandwiches – with, like, bread and stuff. Well, consider it another reason to skip the hoagie.
3. Ground meats
Ground meats, as we’ve said in the past, usually end up being a hodge-podge of flesh from hundreds of carcasses. (All remaining vegetarians have now fled the room.) In addition to this decidedly repellent image, the grinding process also poses a safety risk, as we’ve seen in the E. Coli recalls. The issue with ground beef, in particular, is the fact that the unsterile exterior of the carcass is ground and mixed in with the “safe” interior.
4. Grain-fed beef
Grass-fed beef is leaner in terms of saturated fats but heftier in terms of healthy omega-3 fatty acids. That grass diet, with all the benefits of plant and grass chloroplasts, beefs up (we couldn’t resist) the meat’s omega-3 content to as much as six times that of grain-fed cattle.
It’s important to note that the grass-fed label can sometimes be misleading. Although many cattle are fed grass at some point, most are later fattened up with grain at the feedlot in the final weeks before slaughter. During this relatively brief time, the store of alpha-linolenic (LNA), DHA and EPA quickly diminish. We recommend doing a little digging to make sure you’re getting what you’re paying for.
5. Non-organic meat
Remember those antibiotics, growth hormones, and squalid, inhumane conditions of factory farms? As much as we enjoy meat, we’d recommend enjoying less for the sake of the better quality, higher nutrition, safer content, and lighter conscience (albeit heftier price) of organic meats. (Did I just see a couple vegetarians peek around the corner?)
As primal thinkers, we eschew the meat and potatoes hobby horse of our current culture. Cave people were hunters and gatherers, after all. Meat, as important as we think it is for complete nutrition, is best enjoyed as one ingredient among many – a strong supporting actor in a well balanced ensemble cast.
If you’re having difficulty finding organic meats in your area or if you want to make a special point of supporting local farmers (and we applaud you for it!), talk to the folks at co-op markets or CSAs. Both typically know area suppliers. CSAs, community supported agriculture co-ops, are best known for their vegetable shares, but some also offer meat shares or informative referrals for area farms.
What’s not for dinner at your house these days? Share your thoughts and stories with our forum folks.
cobalt123, phototram, cobalt123 Flickr Photos (CC)
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Posted By: Worker Bee
Some of the meat like Polish Sausage just judging by looks only, looks very unhealthy for humans to consume. It reminds me of the “Superfans” from early “90′s” SNL fame, when the late Chris Farley puked up a whole peace of Poli sausage because he was having another heart attack. I think that made it a bakers dozen, Bob!
Yeah but if you are in the US “Polish sausage” is more like a hot dog…Real kielbasa isn’t like that…
I’m not vegetarian, but don’t eat much meat, aside from fish. I might go weeks without eating any other meat. But my weakness is processed pig – bacon, salami, chorizo – LOVE the stuff. The way I figure, though, is if I’m only eating it a few times a year, it’s not going to do too much damage, or at least the damage will be worth it!
We only eat beef a few times a year, too, and that’s largely because we can’t budget for organic, grass-fed much more often than that. So, it’s a treat when we do it, and we have one giant burger once every few months.
And where we live I don’t think there is even organic meat of any other kind available to us, so with other meats – when we have it – we have to settle for what we can get, which is another reason we don’t eat it often.
And I’ve looked for CSA’s in our area, but haven’t had much luck. It’s been awhile since I looked, though – maybe there are more options now. I’ll have to check.
I’m in the same boat as Judy. No sign of grass-fed here so my only option is mail order–except that fitting that in my budget is problematic. I also really like sausage. Being a native of New Orleans, I grew up eating red beans and rice, and I still enjoy it (minus the rice).
I don’t agree with the list.
Sure, hot dogs are no good pretty much any way you cook them. And certainly “honey-glazed-citrus-smoked-dijon” ham slices contain some weird brine ingredients and more sugar than any meat should contain, but avoiding cold cuts because of the possibility of listeria is like avoiding planes because they have been known to crash. Listeria is a rare disease (approximately 1 in 180,000 people catch it) that can also be caused by dairy products, seafood, and even vegetables.
The argument for avoiding ground beef is similarly flawed. E. Coli has long been a loaded word in the food health industry, as once every couple years there’s a beef callback, but the instances of E. Coli in America are less than 1 in 10,000 and more importantly. E. Coli is NON FATAL. Almost every victim of E. Coli recovers with no long term consequences. Again, eating fish has a higher instance of disease fatality than any red meat.
Finally, I do agree that grass fed beef is better than grain fed beef. But that is no argument that grain fed beef is UNHEALTHY or should be avoided. An easy way to get even more Omega 3′s than eating grassfed beef is to eat grain fed beef and then TAKE AN OMEGA 3 CAPSULE.
Organic meats may be healthy, but that doesn’t mean everything else from the butcher is a bacteria laced death slab.
I love to hear dissenting opinions in the comment board, but, Roger, you will notice that E. Coli and listeria weren’t the only reasons listed to avoid ground meat and cold cuts, respectively. And where is the mention of the “death slab”?
Roger,
You make a good point here:
“Finally, I do agree that grass fed beef is better than grain fed beef. But that is no argument that grain fed beef is UNHEALTHY or should be avoided. An easy way to get even more Omega 3’s than eating grassfed beef is to eat grain fed beef and then TAKE AN OMEGA 3 CAPSULE.”
When possible, I’d choose the grass-fed, but that doesn’t make the grain-fed (organic) unhealthy. The main objective in this blog is to point people in a healthy direction, armed with knowledge about the possible risks or benefits of their choices. Most of us make compromises every day…I just want to know the facts surrounding my compromise choices. I guess (upon reflecting, the headline “Meats to Avoid” is a bit sensational. Maybe we should have said “meats we’d rather not have if there were better options nearby.” Thanks for pointing that out.
****Bulletin****
Pretty amazing timing! A couple hours after posting that grass-fed beef was not available here, I went to our local supermarket and lo and behold, there was a display of grass-fed beef!!! It was top round so it wasn’t prohibitively expensive.
You are a voice of reason, Roger, and our blogger host is ever open to dissenting viewpoints. I recall taking someone here to task for falsely accusing carrots of spiking blood sugar (carrots have a high GI but a low GL as they are mostly water).
Another note on the ground meat- I eat it quite often, and love watching my butcher grind it up in front of my eyes. This way I know it comes from just 1 animal, and it’s a good, lean piece.
So what can we eat for meat?? Organic, grassfed and that’s it? Are there any alternatives that have the same convenience factor as cold cuts (or cold cuts that are acceptable for that matter)?
Great post!
Thanks!
I recently stumbled upon some organic bacon and hot dogs at Henry’s. Yum yum.
All meat is organic.
Joe,
All things are relative.
All relatives are things.
My relatives took most of my things.
That’s very cute Mark. The problem is that your terminology is silly. You should describe the animal as a healthy animal, not an “organic animal.” There are plenty of animals that eat “organic food” and are not fit for consumption. Likewise, there are plenty of animals that are raised on feed lots that are very healthy.
Hope that clears things up for you.
As some one who is raising grass-fed meats eggs and milk and processing it, I think there’s some thing you should know – you probably haven’t seen the livers of most feedloted beef – they are grossly abcessed! If they are to stay on that finishing diet for another year, they will die of “un”natural causes! Grass-fed animals NEVER have this problem.
I appreciate this blog and recommend it all the time, but sometimes things are just unrealistic. I live in Southeastern Europe where preserved and cured meats are standard fare and no one has ever heard of an organic grocery store.
Someone in our family raises livestock and occasionally brings us meat and sausage from his farm but besides him I wouldn’t know where to go for organic meats on a reasonably regular basis. I appreciate the good word on all these and I definitely try to limit my meat intake, but beyond that this is just too impractical.
It was written: “E. Coli has long been a loaded word in the food health industry, as once every couple years there’s a beef callback, but the instances of E. Coli in America are less than 1 in 10,000 and more importantly. E. Coli is NON FATAL. Almost every victim of E. Coli recovers with no long term consequences.” WRONG- far from correct. Since this was first post last year, we have had several E-Coli re-calls and yes some not of beef, which is worst- not much is safe. There is a little boy in a town next to mine that got E.Coli in the TacoBell E.Coli disaster and he has been very sick- in and out of hospitals ever since. He will never live a normal life again. Sometimes surviving is worst it being fatal.
I know this post was written awhile back, but I have a question….so is grass fed ground beef bad? What’s a better option then ground beef?
What if you can’t afford to buy organic meats? What kind of meat are you supposed to eat?
A somewhat cheaper option is to get the chucks and blade roasts – all the front end stuff is awesome cooked low and slow! Juicy, lots of collegen/gelatin (great for your joints) I actually think you get more flavour and nutrition from that end!
Or if you want to get really creative, go buy a calf at the auction every year and look for some acreage family to make a deal with – don’t say I can’t – say how can I?
I enjoy this article and I think it’s a good starting point for someone looking for a healthier alternative to the SAD. But, being American and living overseas, I personally do not see a reason to seek out ‘organic’ meat, when free-range, grass-fed, antibiotic and growth hormone free meat is practically the only kind of meat in the country! Is this a convoluted notion or am I correct about this? Even MacDonal’s uses free-range eggs here in Christchurch New Zealand.
I agree with this list. I have worked in the agriculture fields (feedlots,hog farm,turkey and chicken farms)and I have also worked at the plants that produce these foods. If you really saw what you were eating it would make you sick! Ground beef is ground up with the hide- thats the hair and all the poo thats on it! Pigs are nasty, they eat every thing (poo) and since they dont sweat its stored in the meat. Research on the ingrediants of a hot dog and you might think twice about eating one again. Chickens and turkeys are massed produced so they are a lab animal grown quickly for larger portions of meat. I grow and hunt for my food now, I buy my chickens,eggs and a cow from a local rancher that has small herds and I can see what it eats (no hormones or chemicals) and how its butchered (what I dont eat I donate to a neighbor family)and my fish come from a private lake that I can test the contaminants in the water. yes I am lucky to live in an area were this is available to me, thats why I moved here!
So what made you change your mind on this article??? A lot of this stuff is in the Primal Blueprint Cookbook. I was rather surprised at all the bacon, sausage, cheese and other non-primal stuff that’s in there.
I agree, unfortunately a lot of this is just too expensive and unfeasible for me to do. Those meats we should avoid are the meats that are the most common and least expensive.
Is $5/lb too much for you? I get most of my organic or grass-fed meat for under that. I live in Southern California.
Although I already avoid most cold cuts, I’m not really convinced by the arguments here in this post. I’m seeing lots of allusions to “links” between certain chemicals and certain diseases, but no hard evidence. I’m not saying it doesn’t exist, but just that this post really doesn’t go through any of it. Therefore, it’s really not going to cause me to change my eating habits. I need to be THOROUGHLY convinced on this one before I start paying so much more for non-cured, organic, grass-fed meats. Meat is already so expensive. I’d really like to see more posts delving into the nitty-gritty hard evidence as opposed to ones like this, which just gloss over references to evidence in the course of making recommendations.
How can you tell which meats are cured and which are not? I don’t really ever buy packaged sausage anymore, but I get lots of sausage and bacon (the most delicious bacon I’ve ever had) at the farmer’s market. I’ll ask the guy if he knows whether or not there are nitrites in his bacon, but I’m guessing he’ll say “Hey man I just work here.” What about kielbasa? Is that all bad too?
If you want to know what all the fuss about organic food is, I suggest watching the movie Food Inc. That changed my life forever.
Organic meat is meat that is raised, fed, and slaughtered humanely, has never been near a feedlot, and “should” be free from harmful chemicals and antibiotics. It is not however a perfect science… there is run off from neighbouring fields, “pesticide fog”, and long certification cycles to contend with, but I think it is better than the alternative.
Is there any lunch meats available without sodium nitrite? My husband packs his lunch, usually with lunch meat and cheese sandwiches. What is a person to do? We want to eat as healthy as possible but not sure what that is any more!!!
Yes, there are lunch meats available without nitrates. Applegate Farms and even Hormel has a version called Hormelnaturals. I am sure there may be more out there. My 13 y/o daughter loves turkey roll ups. I don’t eat lunch meat myself but the options are getting better for lunch meat lovers.
I found Applegate’s “the great organic uncured beef hot dog” at my local Whole Foods, and have been eating them a lot when I want comfort food, alongside pan-(olive oil) fried organic potatoes, onions & red peppers. I’m wondering if they’re healthy enough to have regularly? The label says: organic grass-fed beef (more details there too), water, less than 2% sea salt, organic spices, organic garlic powder, organic paprika, celery powder, organic onion powder, lactic acid starter culture (not from milk). Usually I make something green with them, but not always! I try to avoid most processed food, but then this is just chopped and mixed fine, yes?, and doesn’t seem to have any badly-refined stuff added.
Hey Darshana! Since our Great Organic Beef Hot Dogs come from grass-fed beef, it has about half the fat and 40 percent less sodium than other hot dogs! So we say if you are going to eat some American classics over the summer grilling season on a regular basis, then why not make them shameless American classics that you don’t have to feel bad about eating!
Hi Renee! I don’t worry about salt (unless something tastes too salty, which I don’t like) or fat (as long as it’s healthy fat). And I know they are amazing compared to any other hot dog! But I don’t eat other hot dogs…. I’m wondering if they compare well enough to an organic chicken breast or good ground buffalo. They are so handy! And tasty! I was amazed that just with some spices (and NO nitrates!) you got the taste I remember from really good hot dogs from my childhood.
Is it OK to eat uncured bacon and sausage?
Just a heads up that even the meats that are free of sodium nitrate contain naturally occurring nitrates, which are just as bad. Usually the naturally occurring nitrates come from celery juice, which is fine when you eat celery in its whole form because you are still getting vitamin C (which negates some of the negative aspects of the nitrates) … I’m sure I am oversimplifying this. Personally, I would save my money on “nitrate free” stuff unless the actual quality of meat is better (organic, grassfed, etc). If the meat isn’t grassfed, make sure it’s lean to avoid the omega-6s and make sure to include vitamin C-containing veggies in that meal (which you should be doing anyway).
Are cold cuts bad if the only ingredient is meat?
I’m super new to Primal and just as new to MDA. I’m reading as much as I can to eat right, but I seem to get conflicting info. Here I’m told to avoid certain meats, then I see recipes which call for Italian sausage. Is it possible to get primal italian sausage. I love brats too. Are there primal brats?
I eat a lot of ground venison. No antibiotics and just the chemicals that are floating around the countryside. The only thing the butcher puts in the burger is what came with the deer he/she was given, minus hide, bones and other non-muscle parts.