What's the difference between red and white meat? That's the question we're simply going to answer in this article taken from the Blooness Guide, and more precisely from the chapter devoted to the best meats for health and longevity on the diet ketocarnivorous, paleo, Mediterranean and anti-inflammatory.
In this part of the guide, which is one of the most important in the guide, we will try to lift the veil on the different cuts of meat to choose from to give yourself the best chance of a long, healthy life and a healthy weight.
This content is part of the guide Blooness, the guide to the ideal human diet, the summary of which you can find here 🌱🥑
The Best Meats chapter is divided into several sub-chapters which you can find here. The first sub-chapter is therefore as follows the distinction between white and red meat.
In search of the best meat for your health
What are the best sources of red and white meat for your health?longevity, maintenance of muscle mass and maintenance of a healthy body weight, depending on the bioavailability in proteins of these meats, their health benefits, their nutritional profile, their fatty acid breakdown, their protein and fatty acid breakdown. lipidsand their propensity not to generate inflammation?
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It's to these questions, which are absolutely crucial to health, longevity and size, that we're going to attempt to provide answers in this exceptional content from Blooness, the guide to the ideal human diet, which we're continuing to expand and make more comprehensive as time goes by.
Here, we discover that there's more to a keto-mediterranean, carnivorous or paleo diet than cheap steaks and sliced chicken breast. Far from it, in fact, it would be counterproductive to focus solely on these meat products, as they don't provide the micronutrients you need, and their nutritional profile is far from being the most interesting for health, satiety and vitality, especially when you're on a low-fat diet. carbohydrates.
Important reminders about proteins
In previous chapters of the guide, we saw that there were protein intakes considered "optimal" and relatively intangible depending on age, build and individual goals, and since proteins are chains of essential amino acids, we couldn't do without them, especially as many people are often slightly deficient in protein, as we saw in the chapter on protein deficiencies.
We then went through the whole process a list of the most bioavailable protein foodsThis is not to say that certain foods should be banned, but that it would seem wise to prioritize certain foods, such as This does not mean that certain foods should be banned, but that it would be wise to prioritize others, such as meat, eggs, possibly cheeseand other protein sources such as visit pulses for example as supplements to the first sources.
Finally, we also discovered that the fact of prioritizing meat consumption doesn't mean you have to eat too much of it (cf. the chapter on signs of excessive protein intake, particularly from animal sources), and that it's even less wise to consume them at inopportune times, and we'll see this in content that will be dedicated to human chronobiology.
The importance of protein quality
But before we move on to the section dedicated to chrononutrition, and now that we understand the importance for longevity of consuming highly bioavailable protein products such as eggs, meat, certain dairy products and legumesit's time to turn our attention to the quality of these protein foodsall other things being equal.
In other words, knowing that red meat - for example - is highly bioavailable in terms of protein does not answer the question which red meat is best?
And to answer this question, we have several levels of reading:
- the first criterion is to know which preferred animal for human consumptionbased on the animal's nutritional profile and health benefits ;
- the second criterion is which animal cuts to choosealways based on nutritional profile and health benefits;
- last but not least, it's important to take an interest in the animal rearing methodThis will be discussed in the next chapter;
For example, meat, eggs or milk from a battery-fed animal that has been in a state of torpor due to its rearing method and is therefore rich in fats pro-inflammatory omega-6, will not have the same quality as food from an animal that has been properly fed for most of its life, and that has been born. The two foods will also not have the same price. Except that poor-quality meat is likely to cause terrible inflammatory damage to the body, with potentially deleterious long-term effects on health and weight gain, while good-quality meat may well give us the best chance of coping with metabolic diseases.
We are therefore going to answer questions relating not to the theoretical quantity of protein that we could consume according to this or that objective, or this or that context, but rather to the theoretical quantity of protein that we could consume according to this or that objective, or this or that context, but rather to the theoretical quantity that we could consume according to this or that objective, or this or that context.he quality of these protein-rich foodswhich brings us to the " Mediterranean "for the famous Blue Zones "In this way, we tried to emulate as closely as possible the eating habits of those parts of the world where healthy life expectancy was at an all-time high. And in these regions, the animals were properly fed and ideally raised.
In this new part of the guide, which is intended to be practical, we will therefore list the best red and white meats for the keto-mediterranean diet, based on health benefitsIn the next chapter, we'll look at the labels to be preferred, i.e. the farming methods used.
So, we'll assume here that the pieces suggested here respect the breeding methods we'll be listing in the next chapter, and if this isn't the case, we'll suggest a few alternatives.
But before we tackle the ultimate list of the best meats for your health, let's take a look at some basic facts about meat, which may seem trivial to the older generation, but are fast being forgotten by the younger.
What is meat?
Meat is animal flesh consumed for its nutritional value.mainly in the form of proteins. It includes muscles, and sometimes organs, and constitutes an essential source of amino acids vitamins (especially B12), and minerals (iron, zincetc.).
Meats come in several types, depending on the animal and the color of the flesh, including red and white meateach with different nutritional characteristics and health benefits.
What is the difference between red and white meat?
The main difference between red and white meat lies in their myoglobin content, a protein that turns muscles red and carries oxygen to the muscles.
The higher the myoglobin content, the darker the meat, classifying it as "red". (e.g. beef, lamb, horse). White" meat contains little myoglobinwhich gives it a paler hue (e.g. chicken, turkey, rabbit).
- Red meat It includes the beef, lamb and pork (according to certain classifications). Rich in iron and myoglobinIt has a more or less intense red color.
- White meat : Chicken, turkey and rabbit are among them. These meats are low in myoglobinThis gives them a paler color and often a softer texture.
Tripe products or offal
Tripe or offal designate not only animal viscerai.e. the organs contained in their cranial, thoracic and abdominal cavitiesbut also their glands, heads, feet and tails.
These rather unusual cuts of meat have fallen into disuse because of their appearance, and what they conjure up in the collective imagination. Consumers prefer meats with a more sanitized appearance, generally muscular meats.
However, the bad reputation of offal is far from justified, and we'll see in the chapter devoted to offal just how important it can be to human health. We will discover that without their consumption, we are likely to miss out on unsuspected health benefits.especially when it comes to food lowcarb and that you don't necessarily need to supplement your diet with vitamins and minerals.
Moreover, from an evolutionary point of view, offal has been a prized and indispensable part of the human diet from prehistoric times until recently, forming part of many traditional and family cuisines. It's only with the break-up of the family in the 21st century, and the erosion of what might be termed peasant cooking, that offal is falling into oblivion.
As regards the distinction between red and white meat, we can consider that offal is a family in its own right. They can be separated into red and white offalThis is not because of its color, unlike other types of meat, but because of the way it is prepared by the butcher or trimmer.
So.., Red offal is offal sold as is, raw and trimmed only as required.. These include red pieces such as liver, kidneys, spleen, lungs, heart, tongue, snout and cheeks, as well as white pieces such as brains, sweetbreads, tenderloins and animelles.
White offal is offal that is scalded and bleached by the tripe-maker.This gives them an ivory-white color and saves the consumer tedious preparation and long cooking times, such as heads, burrs, feet, ears, double fat and teats.
Charcuterie
Deli meats may contain both red and white meat. Here is a summary:
- Red meat in charcuterie: Most classic charcuterie products are made from red meat, especially pork (such as ham, sausage, pâté and bacon). These products are often associated with culinary traditions and typical dishes.
- White meat in charcuterie: There are also charcuterie products based on white meat, such as turkey ham, poultry sausages and chicken pâtés. These options can be an interesting alternative to red meat, and an alternative to pork in particular, for those who don't eat it.
What are the nutritional differences between white and red meat?
Red meats provide nutrients such as heme iron (easier to absorb than vegetable iron), and complete proteinszinc and B vitamins, especially B12. However, red meat may be higher in saturated fats, which, depending on your diet ketogenic or not, and depending on how the animal is reared, can have health consequences, and we'll come back to this later.
White meat is renowned for its lower saturated fat content than red meat.. It is a source of high-quality protein and also contains B vitamins, although less iron and zinc than red meat. It is often recommended for its cardiovascular benefits, and as being a high-quality source of lean protein.
We'll come back later to the relevance of choosing lean or fatty white meat, as well as lean or fatty red meat, depending on whether or not you're on a keto diet, and on the type of animal.
Red and white meat: health effects
Scientific studies seem to show that high consumption of red meat.., in particular processedmay be associated with increased risk of heart disease and cancer (particularly colorectal). That's why it's so important to choose high-quality red meats.and we'll be coming back to the subject of how to identify the right cuts of red meat, and the right channels.
White meat has a better reputation, thanks to its low saturated fat content, and is less often associated with health risks. But it's not all so simple and Manichean, and we're about to discover that red meat, like fats that have long been wrongly demonized, isn't all bad after all - quite the contrary.. We'll come back later to the best cuts of white meat to choose, whether to eat fatty or lean cuts of white meat, and how best to combine white meat consumption with other types of meat, particularly in the keto-mediterranean or paleo/carnivore diets.
How to choose between red and white meat?
That's the question we're going to try and answer in this part of the guide, because the answers are much more subtle than they appear. In fact, according to the doxa, it's recommended to prefer white meat to red meat, and to limit red meat to 500 grams a week maximum, favoring lean cuts (such as ground steak with 5% of fat).
But we'll see that things aren't quite that simple, and that new nutritional theories are emerging, it is possible and even recommended to eat red meatprovided that your diet is keto-Mediterranean, or carbohydrate-controlled, or paleo/carnivorous, and provided that the meat comes from certain quality chainsWe'll come back to this later. We'll come back to this.
For a balanced and diversified diet, it is nevertheless recommended to vary the pieces chosenThis is true whether you're for or against eating red meat. In fact, we suggest not only alternating white and red meat, but also supplementing your intake with plant proteins in small doses when you're not on an exclusively carnivorous diet, both for the pleasure of the taste and for the benefits that a holistic approach can bring.
Now that we've learned to distinguish between white and red meat, I suggest we move on to the next chapter of this large section of the guide, where we'll be looking at the different animals commonly consumed by humans, and where we'll be able to distinguish between several animal families.