Are these 3 foods really unhealthy?

A lot has been said about the badness of meat, ghee and eggs and their link to ill health, but is there any truth to those claims? PHOTO | FILE

What you need to know:

  • During my pregnancies, I was encouraged by family members to start eating more ghee (clarified butter). When I turned to my nutrition books, the advice was the same – but not just during pregnancy. In fact, this nutritional powerhouse should be consumed every day.
  • The only problem is that the meat we eat isn’t that same as the meat our grandparents used to eat. In those days, chicken ran around eating dudus (insects) and seeds, while cows ate grass. Nowadays, animals are locked up to make them grow faster, pumped full of hormones and antibiotics and they eat commercial grain-based feeds.
  • Eggs really are among the most nutritious foods out there. Just think, you have so many nutrients in there, there’s enough to create a whole baby chicken. Perhaps the question should be, why wouldn’t you eat an egg?

A lot has been said about the badness of meat, ghee and eggs and their link to ill health, but is there any truth to those claims? Let’s take a look: 

1. Meat

While countless studies have linked the consumption of processed meat (bacon, sausages, hot dogs, ham and salami) to cancer, the same cannot be said for unprocessed meat. In fact, a 2010 study of 1.2 million people found that consumption of unprocessed red meat had absolutely no association with heart disease or diabetes.

The only problem is that the meat we eat isn’t that same as the meat our grandparents used to eat. In those days, chicken ran around eating dudus (insects) and seeds, while cows ate grass. Nowadays, animals are locked up to make them grow faster, pumped full of hormones and antibiotics and they eat commercial grain-based feeds.

Does it matter? Well, meat from animals that are raised naturally is actually much healthier. Let’s take beef as an example. When cows are grass-fed, the meat contains more omega-3 fatty acids and less omega-6 (makes the meat less inflammatory), more conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) (helps to lower body fat in humans) and more vitamins, like vitamins A and E. Meat is also a great source of protein and contains several nutrients that you can’t get from plants (such as B12, D3, K2, creatine and carnosine)

2. Ghee

During my pregnancies, I was encouraged by family members to start eating more ghee (clarified butter). When I turned to my nutrition books, the advice was the same – but not just during pregnancy. In fact, this nutritional powerhouse should be consumed every day.

Like your meat, you ideally want your ghee to come from grass-fed cows so that it’s rich in vitamin K2 (great for bones and your heart) and short-chain fatty acid butyrate. Studies have shown that butyrate not only boosts metabolism and reduces food intake, it’s also anti-inflammatory and appears to have a protective effect on the digestive system. 

3. Eggs

Eggs really are among the most nutritious foods out there. Just think, you have so many nutrients in there, there’s enough to create a whole baby chicken. Perhaps the question should be, why wouldn’t you eat an egg?

Well, many believe the cholesterol to be a problem, but studies have actually proven that dietary cholesterol doesn’t raise bad cholesterol in the blood. In fact, a meta-analysis of 17 studies, found no association between egg consumption and either heart disease or stroke.

Ideally you want eggs from chickens who’ve had a chance to run around. That way you can enjoy the various vitamins and minerals that eggs contain (vitamins A, B2, B5, B12, phosphorous, iron, selenium, choline, the list goes on and on).

So choose your source wisely and eat these foods. They’re a great addition to your diet.