Sometimes, we happen to stumble across information from an evangelical vegetaria n or vegan source, such as PETA, which seems reliable

and convincing and serious ly makes us consider if our current diet is really healthy for us. Though much o f the information provided by such sources is based on legitimate studies and re cent findings, and verified by personal experience, some of it is not. Some is s imply there to convince you to give up meat - but has no basis in fact. So, let' s consider the three most common myths about eating meat: 1) Meat makes you fat. Actually, no, it doesn't. Consuming s not usually what makes someone fat. In fact, some animal neficial to human health. Beef fat or tallow contains high jugated linoleic acid (CLA), a trans fatty acid that helps and obesity. So what does make us fat? Carbs. fat content in meat i fats are extremely be concentrations of con defend against cancer

Humans get fat from excess carbohydrates, which the body stores as glycogen in t he liver and muscles when it isn't used. But when the body runs out of glycogen storage, it immediately starts converting those excess carbs into fat and storin g them in fatty tissue called adipose. This means that before you check the fat content on the food you're buying, you may want to check it's place on the glyce mic index. Carbs with a GI rating of 55 and lower are not as conducive to increa sed blood sugar levels and fat storage as carbs with a GI rating of 70 or above. Starches, like potatoes and corn; sugary drinks like cola or beer; and refined f lour-based foods such as regular cereal, white pasta, and white bread, all have GI ratings above 55 and contribute to fat storage. When these foods are ingested , the body secretes insulin to store those excess carbs as fat. If you're a star ving child in Africa, this process is certainly helpful to your dietary health. If you're reading this, it probably isn't. What does all this mean? Unless you're biologically disposed to cardiovascular d isease through the presence of an iron-loading gene or another condition that pr ohibits the intake of meat and fat, the bun your burger comes in could kill you faster than the buger itself. 2) Animal proteins aren't any better than vegetable proteins. In a sense, this i s true. All proteins are constructed from amino acids, and all essential amino a cids can be found in vegetable sources. However, while red meat, poultry, fish, eggs, cheese, and milk contain all of the amino acids essential to human health, no single non-animal product does. This is why proteins derived from meat or other animal products are called "comp lete" or "high qualitiy" proteins. "Incomplete" or "low quality" proteins, those found in leThe brant to be paired with other protein sources containing the ami no acids they lack. For example, the amino acids lacking in rice are found with in dried beans, in a higher concentration, and those that are lacking in beans c an be found in rice. This means that beans and rice together are just as good as animal-sourced proteins, but one without the other is not. They should be eaten within the same day. 3) Humans are not made to consume meat. This argument often claims that herbivor es have a digestive tract that is 10 or more times the length of their body, whi le carnivores only have a digestive tract of three times to five their body leng th. This is true. Where the argument fails is in claiming that human beings have a digestive tract that is 10 times their body length. In an adult human, the ga strointestinal tract measures 20 to 30 feet in length. If this was 10 times the length of a human adult, we would be 2 or 3 feet tall at our prime! In fact, thi s is only a little over 3 to 5 times the length of a 6-foot tall adult, about th e same as your average carnivore. One could easily argue that ours is slightly l onger, to scale, than a carnivores, but that argument discounts the fact that hu

mans are a historically omnivorous species, eating both meat and vegetables and evolving into a being capable of digesting both efficiently. This argument sometimes claims that humans lack carnivorous instincts, or that we don't have claws like dogs or tigers do. The first argument is easily shown f alse when you consider the number of humans that hunt. Modern man lacks an appar ent hunting instinct because hunting, to the average modern human in a developed economy, means going to the grocery store, stalking the meat refrigerator, and getting the best meat for the best price. Turn back time about 10,000 years, and you'll find a large population of the earth still hunting its food. Humans don' t need claws to hunt, either; for approximately the last 2.6 million years, homi nins have been designing and using tools. What changed? Evolution. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------At the end of the day, no one can tell you whether or not to eat meat. That's no t up to them. No vegetarian or vegan can ethically tell someone else that eating meat is bad, and no meat-eater can tell a vegetarian or vegan that eating only veggies is going to kill them. Both would be wrong. Dietary health is a very per sonal thing, but before you buy into the lies and misinformation of evangelical vegetarian propaganda, you may just want to consider the above. If you're considering giving up meat and becoming a vegetarian, be sure to consu lt with a licensed medical professional and ensure that you can do so healthily. If you can, ask them to help you plan your meals so you don't miss out on those much-needed proteins, and be sure to share your progress with them as you journ ey through life on your new diet. If you're already a vegetarian or a vegan, and are considering eating meat, espe cially red meat, be sure to check with a licensed medical professional as well. Though meat is healthy for general human consumption, some people are better off without it. Find out if you have any pre-existing conditions that could make th is a harmful choice, and don't make any sudden dietary decisions without talking to your physician or dietician. Namaste.