There are many reasons to not include red meats in a therapeutic diet ranging from slowing down the process of elimination to increasing the chances of colon cancer. Meat digestion and assimilation uses more of the bodys energy than other foods. This use of energy in a person whose system is weak may well tip the scales into them becoming ill. If a person is on a detoxifying diet, meat will slow down the process of elimination because it uses a lot more energy than other foods. Meat is known as a suppressing food; in fact a heavy meat eater may not have any elimination whatsoever. Another effect that increases the suppressing value of meat is the promotion of putrefying and unfriendly bacteria; these are form due to the increase of alkalinity in the gut which meat proteins promote. If meat proteins reach the colon in an undigested form they will putrefy, the result of this rotting is the release of toxins into the colon and offensive gas. Research has shown that protein in meat cause putrefaction twice as fast as vegetable protein. Autointoxication happens due to the putrefaction and toxin production. The liver recycles the toxins into the bile instead of eliminating them. By eating meat the high protein value is counterbalanced by the high fat value of the saturated fats within meat. The risk of colon cancer increases with a diet high in fat. There are many reasons for this. A fatty diet increases the secretion of bile salts into the gut, whilst in the gut the bacteria there convert the bile salts in carcinogens which are link to liver and other cancers. A low-fibre meat diet causes constipation which lengthens the contact of toxins against the lining membrane of the colon which increases the risk of cancers. Fruit and vegetables have protective values against cancer, people who are big meat eaters tend not to eat enough fruit and vegetables which results in there protective values being low. Also when meat is cooked or preserved in a certain way (i.e. barbecued) carcinogens are created. Meat has iron in it; people with high iron amounts increase their chances of certain forms of cancer such as colorectal and lung cancer. In fact cancer sufferers with high iron amounts actually decrease their survival time which suggests that tumours like an iron-rich environment. Eating too much meat causes excessive uric acid; this may lead to gallstones, gout, kidney stones, Brights disease and rheumatism. This is a major concern in meats which are not of an organic origin. Meat can easily be contaminated by bacteria and also contains toxins such as herbicides, pesticides, antibiotics, various hormones, adrenalin, phenolic acid, creatine, creatinine, uric acid, urea, chemicals and parasites. For example a one-pound well done steak contains 4 to 5 micrograms of benzopyrene. This is equivalent to a person smoking 300 cigarettes. Benzopyrene is one of the major cancer causing substances found in tobacco smoke. In Iceland where a lot of smoked fish is eaten and benzopyrene is found in the fish from the smoking, the population suffer from high rates of stomach and intestinal tract cancers. The meat industry is just that, it is an industry and many of us are not aware that cattle, pigs, chicken and sheep are raised intensively to produce cheap meat quickly. To do this they are raised in a carefully controlled mechanized assembly line environment where they are frequently given antibiotics and other disease fighting medicine. This unnatural way of raising livestock leads to cheap meat but this meat tends to be nutritional deficient and full of chemicals. Because of the way intensively reared meat is produced it is prone to bacteria and parasites such as salmonella and clostridia (which lead to botulism). If meat is not refrigerated and cooked properly than these bacteria and parasites can lad to major ill health. To keep meat looking fresh, healthy and pink, food additives are used. Sometimes Nitrates are used which can change to nitrosamines which are highly carcinogenic. Sulphur dioxide and benzoates are other ways of chemical preservation that have been linked to food intolerance in sensitive people. Sulphur dioxide and other forms of inorganic sulfites are collectively known as sulfiting agents. Sulfites have an adverse effect on vitamin B1. Food colourings and flavouring are also added to meat products to make them more appealing and to enhance flavour; these too can have a negative affect on people who are prone to food intolerances. To enhance the colour in process meats, antioxidants are used in the form of chemicals such as butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA) and butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT). The reason for adding food additives, colourings and flavouring to meat is to conceal their inferior quality and extend shelf life. Normally this type of meat is high in fat content and low in nutritional quality. These deficiently in nutrients can cause many different ailments in people. Antibiotics are used extensively in rearing livestock, low doses of antibiotics causing animals to put weight on faster as well as keeping bacteria diseases in check. Unfortunately these diseases are becoming resilient to the antibiotics and are becoming more prevalent. The antibiotics most given to animals are penicillin, chlortetracycline and tetracycline, these are also used to treat human health problems. It is now becoming evident that the antibiotic resilient bacteria are being pasted onto humans which are causing disease in humans that is resilient to antibiotics. As highlighted the process of rearing meat, preserving and making it look fresh for market can produce a product which is high in chemicals and toxins and low in nutritional value. The body takes a long time to process and elimination meat. This results in the body becoming in contact with a toxic food product for a long time. A healthy body mostly copes with this but if a body is unhealthy it could lead to major health problems. This is why it is best to keep to a vegetarian diet and to abstain from eating red meat when on a therapeutic diet. |
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