Why meat and poultry are so good for you

Meat and poultry are very good sources of protein, which is important for growth
and development. But did you know they are also full of other things that you need
to be healthy? For example:

 iodine to help your body produce thyroid hormone

 iron to carry oxygen around your body
 zinc to keep your immune system strong, your skin healthy, and for growth,
development and reproductive health
 vitamin B12 for your nervous system
 omega 3 to support heart and brain health.

Getting the right amount of meat and poultry

Advice about how much meat to eat can be confusing – eat enough, but don’t eat
too much. But how much meat and poultry is enough, and how much is too much?

The Australian Dietary Guidelines recommend that you eat 1–3 serves of lean
meat and poultry, fish, eggs, tofu, nuts and seeds, and legumes or beans every
day. During pregnancy, 3-4 serves are recommended. And to make sure you get
enough iron and zinc, around half these serves should be lean red meat.

A standard serve of meat or poultry is:

 65 grams cooked lean red meat such as beef, lamb, veal, pork, goat or
kangaroo (around 90–100 grams raw)
 80 grams cooked lean poultry such as chicken or turkey (around 100 grams
raw).

But moderation is the key with red meat. The Australian Dietary Guidelines
recommend up to 455g cooked lean meat per week, and limiting processed meats
(such as ham and bacon) to avoid some of the health risks associated with eating
these foods. Many Australian men eat too much red meat and, conversely,
Australian women and children tend not to eat enough.

Healthy ways to cook meat and poultry

There are so many tasty ways to cook meat and poultry. Check out these tips:

 Choose a lean cut of meat or poultry. A trimmed pork chop, a lean rump
steak or a chicken breast without skin or crumbs on the outside are a great
place to start.
 Grill your meat, rather than frying it. And don’t add extra oil when you are
cooking.
  Use a low-fat marinade to give your meat and poultry a great flavour.
Marinades also tenderise your meat and keep it moist during cooking.
 When you are roasting meat or poultry, sit it on a metal rack above the
roasting pan so the fat drips off.
 And when you are slow cooking stews, curries and casseroles, try putting
less meat or poultry in and adding more vegetables and pulses.

Cooking meat and poultry safely

Cooking your meat and poultry properly kills any bacteria. And this helps protect
you and your family from food poisoning.

Safe cooking practices depend on the type of meat or poultry. Some meat and
poultry must be cooked all the way through (that is, until the juices run clear and
there is no pink or red meat on the inside when you cut it). Cook the following meat
and poultry all the way through:

 poultry and game, including chicken, turkey, duck and goose

 pork
 offal (including liver)
 rissoles and sausages
 kebabs
 rolled joints of meat.

Generally you can eat whole cuts of beef or lamb when they are still pink or rare in
the middle (as long as they are cooked on the outside). These include:

 steaks
 cutlets
 roasting cuts.

However, if you are at a greater risk of the more serious effects

of toxoplasmosis (for example, you are pregnant or immunocompromised) you
should ensure your meat is cooked thoroughly to reduce that risk.
HOW DOES VEGANISM HELP THE ENVIRONMENT?

Recent studies show that one third of all global emissions are created by the food industry and
meat production is responsible for over 50 percent of this! That is equal to the total emissions of
the US, just from meat products. So, if we all went vegan, we could reduce the amount of
emissions equal to the world’s second largest emitter of greenhouse gases.

Another major risk to the environment is biodiversity loss. Animals and plants provide essential
ecosystem services that allow the healthy function of our beautiful planet. When we deforest
lands for beef production, or overfish our delicate ocean ecosystems, we disrupt this healthy
balance. This has terrible consequences for us and the environment. Plant-based foods take up
less land than animal agriculture, so no land needs to be deforested, and actually we can return a
huge amount to its natural state, thereby helping wildlife and allowing nature to provide for us, as
it always has done.

Conserves Water

Globally, animal agriculture uses 20-30 percent of freshwater. This comparison table from Water
Footprint shows just how much more water is required to produce animal products. For example,
pulses require less water per gram of protein than all animal-based proteins.

So, going vegan and prioritizing plant-based foods, can save vast amounts of water.

Cleaning The Soil

In the US, our soil has lost as much as 60 percent of its original organic carbon content. This is due
to industrialized agriculture and the loss of forest land associated with this. Removing trees from
land not only leads to soil erosion, but the grass that replaces the trees cannot provide the same
minerals to the soil.

By going vegan, we free up land that would be used for animal agriculture and can allow it to
return to its natural state, eventually returning soil to its naturally rich state.

Reduces Energy Consumption

The entire process of raising animals for food is energy inefficient and produces vast amounts of
greenhouse gases. It starts with the crops we grow to feed animals, from which we get fewer
calories back in meat, which is an inherently inefficient process. Then comes the energy intensive
process of turning living beings into meat. If inside, their housing must be heated and lit artificially,
then they must be slaughtered, dismembered and processed. Finally there is transportation,
refrigeration and packaging.
This all adds up to make animal agriculture one of the most energy inefficient and polluting
industries on the planet. It’s no wonder it makes up at least 14.5 percent of all human generated
greenhouse gas emissions.

Cleanse The Air

As well as releasing vast amounts of climate-changing greenhouse gases, animal agriculture can
also damage local air quality. Hog farms in North Carolina, for example, are responsible for illegally
over-spraying manure on fields, releasing toxic gases such as nitrous oxide into the air. The health
of local people has suffered greatly from breathing this toxic air and they have been forced inside
to avoid the awful smells.

Prevent Species Extinction

The World Wide Fund for Nature has reported an average 68 percent decline in animal population
sizes in the last 46 years. This is alarming biodiversity loss that could have huge consequences for
us and the planet. In North America, 52 percent of all biodiversity loss can be attributed to
changes in land use, largely agricultural changes due to animal agriculture.

Going vegan frees up more space for agricultural land to be effectively rewilded and therefore
reverse this alarming biodiversity loss.

Preserves Habitats

Put simply, if we stopped destroying natural habitats to create farmland, we could preserve them.
If everyone switched to a plant-based diet we could reduce global land use for agriculture by 75
percent and preserve natural habitats.

One of the most diverse and delicate habitats on the planet, the Amazon rainforest, is being
deforested in favour of agricultural lands. The rate of deforestation is still increasing and soared to
a 12-year high of 9.5 percent between 2019 and 2020.

The single most effective way of slowing and reversing this destruction is by going vegan.

Stabilizes The Ocean

The recent Seaspiracy documentary brought the terrible state of our oceans to light. Today, the
average person eats twice as much fish as 50 years ago. As a result, over 60 percent of global fish
populations are fully fished and declining and 30 percent are overfished. We are already seeing
the destabilization of the delicately balanced ecosystems in our oceans. The consequences of this
include huge species loss and eventually, no more fish in the ocean.

By going vegan, we can reduce the demand for fish that fuels such exploitation of our oceans.
Waterway Cleaning

Factory farmed animals produce waste, often too much waste for farm silos to handle. North
Carolina alone generates upwards of 10 billion gallons of animal waste per year. Waste spills are a
common occurrence and pose serious threats to aquatic ecosystems and human health.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, 46 percent of North America’s waterways are
in poor biological condition, and industrial agriculture is a leading cause of this. Going vegan and
boycotting farmed animal products is the best way to reduce impact on waterways.

Protect The Rainforest And Land

The best way to protect the rainforest and preserve land is to stop cutting down forests in favour
of farmland. A vegan diet prioritizes growing plant foods, which take up much less land and can be
used to promote soil health and biodiversity, while protecting the forests

Replenish The Sea

The best way to replenish our oceans is to leave them alone. The sea’s ecosystems are delicately
balanced and rely on there being healthy fish populations. If we continue to remove billions of fish
from the ocean, these ecosystems will collapse.

It also works in reverse however and if we leave fish in the ocean and take care of the sea, it will
naturally replenish itself. We must act now, before it’s too late. By going vegan and replacing
seafood with one of the many excellent alternatives, we can begin replenishing our oceans and
maintain them for the future.

Environmental Benefits Of Veganism

 Remove Nitrous Oxide

Nitrous oxide is an extremely potent greenhouse gas, released by fertilizers and the manure of
farmed animals. When factory farms over-spread their waste manure, nitrous oxide is released
into the atmosphere. It has a global warming potential of 298 times that of carbon dioxide, so it is
extremely important that we reduce the levels of nitrous oxide we release into the atmosphere.

 Uses Less Resources

The vegan diet uses 75 percent less land, one fifth of the water and has a much lower energy
consumption than a meat-based diet. Why wait to go vegan?

HOW DOES VEGANISM HELP CLIMATE CHANGE?

There are many ways the vegan diet helps fight climate change:

It is the diet with the lowest carbon footprint.

It helps reduce biodiversity loss.

It reduces deforestation. Trees are a major carbon sink for the planet.

It replenishes our oceans, restoring ecosystem services that help fight climate change.

VEGAN ENVIRONMENTAL STATISTICS

Veganism can reduce an individual’s carbon footprint by up to 73 percent

A global vegan diet would reduce agricultural land use by 75 percent

Of the five major emission sectors, animal agriculture produces the most greenhouse gases, at 18
percent

Meat is responsible for around 60 percent of all agriculture related emissions

IMPACT OF A PERSON BECOMING VEGAN

Going vegan is the single biggest change we can make as individuals to help the environment. In
fact, going vegan for even just one month has huge benefits. You could save:

913 square feet of forest

620 pounds of harmful carbon dioxide emissions33,381 gallons of water

WHAT WOULD HAPPEN TO THE ENVIRONMENT IF EVERYONE WAS VEGAN?

There would be much less cultivated agricultural farmland on the planet, meaning there would be
much more natural wild land available. This is fantastic for the environment, as natural habitats
and biodiversity provide essential ecosystem services to this planet. Without them, the healthy
function of our planet would break down and humanity would not last long.

The amount of greenhouse gases we are emitting would also go down and climate change would
be slowed. We may be able to avert catastrophic climate breakdown.This would save our
environment from destructive events such as forest fires, harmful algal blooms, extreme heat,
flooding and many more.

Our oceans would begin to return to their natural state, where sealife flourishes.

Overall, humans, animals and nature would be healthier on a vegan planet.

Is It Better to Be a Vegetarian?
FROM THE WEBMD ARCHIVES

By Diana Kelly

The Rumor: Vegetarians are healthier than meat eaters

You’ve heard buzz over the years that following a vegetarian diet is better for your health,
and you’ve probably read a few magazine articles featuring a celeb or two who swore off
meat and animal products and “magically” lost weight. So does ditching meat automatically
equal weight loss? Will it really help you live longer and be healthier overall?

The Verdict: Vegetarian diets can be unhealthy if you’re not careful

First of all, what exactly constitutes “vegetarian”? There are two basic kinds of vegetarian
diet: lacto-ovo and strict (vegan). Most vegetarians fall into the lacto-ovo category: They
eat only non-animal products (fruits, veggies, grains, nuts, soy, etc.), but do eat animal
byproducts, such as yogurt and eggs. In terms of nutritional requirements, being a lacto-ovo
vegetarian isn’t all that different from being a meat-eater, according to Katherine
Tallmadge, RD, LD, past media spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
Vegans, however, don’t eat any animal products whatsoever -- and as a result, “they must
be very careful in their selection of foods so that they get all the nutrients they need,” says
Tallmadge. (Potato chips are vegan, after all.)

That said, following a vegetarian diet “can be nutritionally superior to any other way of
eating,” says Tallmadge. “It can be one of the healthiest ways to eat, because we know
plant foods are loaded with nutrients to protect our health.”

According to the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, an evidence-based review showed

that a vegetarian diet is associated with a lower risk of death from ischemic heart disease.
Vegetarians appear to have lower low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels, lower blood
pressure and lower rates of hypertension and type 2 diabetes than meat eaters. Vegetarians
also tend to have a lower body mass index, lower overall cancer rates and lower risk of
chronic disease.

But if your vegetarian co-worker is noshing greasy veggie burgers and fries every day for
lunch, is he likely to be healthier than you, who always orders the grilled salmon?
Definitely not!

“A vegetarian diet doesn’t necessarily lead to weight loss -- especially if you eat out at
restaurants often,” says Tallmadge. “A lot of times, the only vegetarian dishes on the menu
are cheesy and fattening.” It can be hard to find restaurants serving soy burgers or beans
and rice, and eating restaurant-size portions of pasta, rice, nuts and cheese could quickly
add up to weight gain. According to Tallmadge, the desire to eat lighter meals that provide
adequate protein is what makes many vegetarians change their minds and start eating fish.
The most important thing for vegetarians of all kinds to remember is to make sure they are
getting key nutrients, including protein, fatty acids, iron, zinc,
iodine, calcium and vitamins D and B-12. Protein is essential for building muscle mass,
amino function, fighting disease and healing, according to Tallmadge, so make sure you’re
getting protein in each meal throughout the day for optimum absorption. “In order to get
essential amino acids and nutrients,” says Tallmadge, “vegans must eat soy protein -- the
only vegetable protein which is as complete as animal protein. Or they must mix beans with
grains.”

If you're considering going vegetarian, keep these tips in mind:

1. There are numerous research-proven health benefits to following a vegetarian diet, but
only if you’re doing it properly and not substituting meat with processed or high-fat
vegetarian products.
2. Both lacto-ovo vegetarians and vegans need to make sure they are getting adequate
nutrition. It’s a good idea to purchase a book on how to follow a vegetarian diet, or to
meet with a nutritionist to outline what a few days of meals looks like.
3. Be aware of how much of your diet is made up of nuts as a source of protein, especially if
you’re trying to lose weight. An ounce of nuts is about 180 calories and 5 grams of protein.
You should be getting between 20 to 30 grams of protein per meal. So: You’d have to eat
thousands of calories worth of something like nuts in order to get the amount of protein
you need to be healthy, according to Tallmadge. They’re a healthy food, but high in fat and
calories -- so be sure to round out your diet with a variety of vegetarian proteins.
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camera) at a target. bottle at Gary's head
have the intention of achieving.
Derive obtain something from (a specified the word ‘punch’ derives
source) from the Hindustani ‘pancha
Component a part or element of a larger an assembly plant for
whole, especially a part of a imported components
machine or vehicle
Diet the kinds of food that a person, a vegetarian diet
animal, or community habitually
eats.
Consumption the action of eating or drinking industrialized countries
something. should reduce their energy
consumption
Usage the action of using something or a survey of water usage
the fact of being used.
Contribute give (something, especially money) he contributed articles to the
in order to help achieve or provide magazine
something.
Shortage a state or situation in which a shortage of cash
something needed cannot be
obtained in sufficient amounts.
Consideration careful thought, typically over a your case needs very careful
period of time. investigation and
consideration
Combine unite for a common purpose groups of teachers combined
to tackle a variety of
problems
Crop a cultivated plant that is grown on the main crops were oats
a large scale commercially, and barley
especially a cereal, fruit, or
vegetable.
Breed (of animals) mate and then toads are said to return to
produce offspring the pond of their birth to
breed
Supervision the action of supervising someone he was placed under the
or something supervision of an officer
Inspection careful examination on closer inspection it
looked like a fossil