{"id":5507,"date":"2014-05-15T12:01:31","date_gmt":"2014-05-15T16:01:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/?p=5507"},"modified":"2014-05-11T21:40:18","modified_gmt":"2014-05-12T01:40:18","slug":"is-it-time-to-put-meat-back-on-the-menu","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/2014\/05\/is-it-time-to-put-meat-back-on-the-menu.html","title":{"rendered":"Is It Time to Put Meat Back on the Menu?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Dr.<\/a>Eating meat has gotten a bad rap in the past years. Yet then we hear about its benefits. It can get very confusing. That\u2019s why I\u2019m thrilled to have Michael Fenste<\/strong><\/a>r, M.D., F.A.C.C., FSCA&I, PEMBA, as my guest today. He\u2019s a board-certified interventional cardiologist, also known as \u201cDr. Mike.\u201d In his book, Eating Well, Living Better: The Grassroots Gourmet Guide to Good Health and Great Food<\/strong><\/a>,, he combines his culinary talents and Asian philosophy with medical expertise, creating winning recipes for healthy eating. A certified wine professional and chef, Dr. Mike worked professionally in kitchens prior to entering medical school and maintained his passion for food and wine throughout his medical career. He has participated in numerous clinical trials and spoken nationally on a variety of cardiovascular topics to audiences, including the American Heart Association and American College of Cardiology. Dr. Mike holds a JuDan (10th degree black belt) ranking in Bujinkan Budo Taijutsu.<\/p>\n

WWWD? What Would Wimpy Do?<\/strong>
\n By Michael S. \u201cDr. Mike\u201d Fenster, M.D.<\/strong><\/p>\n

With as much bad press as red meat has received lately, Popeye’s erstwhile companion might be contemplating trading in his trademark fare for a spinach and tofu Lean Cuisine.A spate of commentaries regarding several recent studies, recommendations and guidelines has red meat more out of favor than a kosher deli in Tehran.\u00a0 But is eating red meat really the dire dietary decision it is being portrayed to be?\u00a0 When it comes to who\u2019s chewing the fat, the question is, where’s the beef?<\/p>\n

Here is a commentary focusing on the recent American College of Cardiology\/American Heart Association dietary guidelines. This expert opinion was delivered by a paid consultant for the Pritikin Longevity Center:<\/p>\n

\u201cAn analysis of 448,568 participants in the EPIC (European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition) trial, 26,344 of whom have died, showed what investigators termed \u2018a moderate positive association\u2019 between processed meat consumption and mortality, especially deaths from cardiovascular disease and cancer. In a multivariate analysis, daily consumption of red meat at an average of 160 g or more \u2013 that\u2019s 5.6 oz. \u2013 was independently associated with 14% higher all-cause mortality than in individuals who consumed an average of 10-19.9g\/day.<\/em>”<\/p>\n

\u201cThe association was more striking for processed meat, such as salami: Subjects who ate an average of 5.6 oz\/day had 44% greater all-cause mortality. The investigators estimated that if all study participants limited their processed meat consumption to less than 20 g\/day, 3.3% of deaths could be prevented.\u201d<\/p>\n

Technically, all that is true; depending, of course on your definition of “meat.”In the study, red meat consisted of both fresh meat and processed meat. Processed meat consisted of all ready-to-eat meat products, including hams, bacon, sausages and minced meat.\u00a0 The processed meat may have included small amounts of processed white meat such as chicken, turkey, duck, goose, unclassified poultry and domestic rabbit.<\/p>\n

In any statistical analysis, once the raw data is collected, adjustments for measurement errors must be made before any meaningful and statistically valid conclusions can be drawn. Following such adjustments, the conclusions from the study were that the \u201celevated total mortality observed in the highest category of red meat consumption became statistically insignificant.\u201d<\/p>\n

In other words, eating 160 grams or more of fresh red meat daily did not cause increased mortality!
\nSeveral other statistical models were used and the researchers continue to observe \u201cno statistically significant association.\u201d\u00a0 So eating fresh red meat at any level did not correlate with increased risk of cardiovascular disease, cancer, other disease or total mortality. That is not what was intimated in the position statement.<\/p>\n

Conversely, the various statistical models yielded a consistent observation of \u201csignificantly higher all-cause mortality with higher consumption of processed (italics and bold mine) meat.\u201d\u00a0 It was the processed meat in this study that was consistently associated with increased disease and mortality at every level.\u00a0 There was no association with increased disease or mortality when eating fresh red meat or poultry at any level. \u00a0This is a critical distinction.\u00a0 These processed meats are what you find in the filling of your yoga mat sandwich.<\/p>\n

While very high consumption of fresh red meat was not significantly associated with increased risk of mortality from cancer, cardiovascular causes, respiratory causes, diseases of the digestive tract or any other cause, consumption of more than 160 grams of processed meat per day increased the \u201crisk of dying of cardiovascular disease as compared with those who consumed only moderate amounts.\u201d\u00a0 Consumption of a processed meat also increased the risk of dying from cancer.<\/p>\n

The conclusion of this study was that there is \u201ca consistent association between processed meat consumption and total mortality but not between red meat consumption and total mortality\u2026.\u00a0 men and women with a high consumption of processed meat are an increased risk of early death, in particular due to cardiovascular diseases but also to cancer.\u201d<\/p>\n

These findings are not an isolated anomaly.\u00a0 A meta-analysis done several years ago by Harvard University examined almost 1.2 million people worldwide.\u00a0 That study found no association between the consumption of 4 ounces of fresh red meat daily and the development of cardiovascular disease or diabetes.\u00a0 However, the consumption of just 2 ounces of processed meat each day raised the risk of developing cardiovascular disease by more than 40 percent.\u00a0 It increased the risk of developing diabetes by almost 20 percent.<\/p>\n

Saturated fat has long suffered as the putative whipping boy for all the ills attributed to the consumption of red meat.\u00a0 However, a well-done meta-analysis of almost 350,000 people found “no significant evidence for concluding that dietary saturated fat is associated with an increased risk of CHD [coronary heart disease] or CVD [cardiovascular disease].”<\/p>\n

Based on such faulty logic, the current dietary guidelines reflect a persistent and outdated view to replace all saturated fat, particularly that derived from animal sources and read meat, with polyunsaturated fats, particularly those derived from plant sources.\u00a0 Another recent meta- analysis examined the data from more than 500,000 participants examining just such dietary recommendations.\u00a0 Their finding: \u201cCurrent evidence does not clearly support cardiovascular guidelines that encourage high consumption of polyunsaturated fatty acids and low consumption of total saturated fats.\u201d<\/p>\n

What is clear is that we need to get beyond simply trying to quantify the value of our food in terms of calories, carbohydrates, fats or saturated fats.\u00a0 We need to integrate the quality of the food we eat into our value assessment. What we add, what we remove, how we produce and how we process our food are emerging as critical determinants as to whether what we eat nurtures us or curses us.\u00a0 We should put as much thought into the food we place in our mouth as the cell phones we choose to put in our pockets.
\n************<\/p>\n

Join The Self-Love Movement\u2122!<\/strong><\/a> Take the 31 Days of Self-Love Commitment<\/strong><\/a>—\u201cI commit to do my best to do something loving for myself, however big or small, for the next 31 days<\/strong>.<\/strong>\u201d<\/strong>\u00a0and get my book, How Do I Love Me? Let Me Count the Ways<\/a><\/strong> for free at http:\/\/howdoiloveme.com<\/a><\/strong>. Read my 2014 31 Days of Self-Love Posts HERE<\/strong><\/a>. Join the Self-Love Movement\u2122<\/strong><\/a>! on Facebook<\/strong><\/a>. Watch the video<\/strong><\/a> made with Hoobastank’s song–The reason–that illustrates the power of self-love.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Eating meat has gotten a bad rap in the past years. Yet then we hear about its benefits. It can get very confusing. That\u2019s why I\u2019m thrilled to have Michael Fenster, M.D., F.A.C.C., FSCA&I, PEMBA, as my guest today. He\u2019s a board-certified interventional cardiologist, also known as \u201cDr. Mike.\u201d In his book, Eating Well, Living…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":83,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,2],"tags":[944,943],"class_list":["post-5507","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-nice-people-can-finish-first","category-self-empowerment-confidence","tag-eating-meat","tag-michael-fenster"],"yoast_head":"\nIs It Time to Put Meat Back on the Menu? - Lessons from a Recovering Doormat<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, nofollow\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Is It Time to Put Meat Back on the Menu? - Lessons from a Recovering Doormat\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Eating meat has gotten a bad rap in the past years. 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Let Me Count the Ways, a She's appeared on hundreds of TV and radio shows, including Oprah, Howard Stern, and Good Morning America and has been quoted in dozens of publications, including the New York Times, Chicago Sun-Times, Cosmopolitan, Redbook, Marie Claire, and Men\u00b9s Health. After being a consummate People Pleaser who felt unworthy of getting her own needs met for many years, Daylle found a path of self-love that enabled her to build her self-esteem and reinvent herself into a dual career. She learned to get taken seriously without being overtly assertive when she became one of the first women to start an independent record label (on a dare!) and learned to play ball nicely and successfully in an industry dominated by men. To help independent musicians empower themselves, Daylle writes music business books for Billboard\/Random House, including the very popular Start & Run Your Own Record Labe and I Don't Need a Record Deal! Daylle's books have been translated into over 10 languages and are popular around the world. She speaks for colleges, organizations and corporations. Through her company, Project Self-Empowerment, Daylle creates programs and materials to help people empower themselves. One goal is to raise the money to self-publish her book, How Do I Love Me? Let Me Count the Ways and give it away for free in colleges and through organizations, to give thanks for all her blessings. Daylle uses her writing and speaking to help others find the kind of contentment and empowerment that she has.","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/author\/dschwartz"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5507","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/83"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5507"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5507\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5513,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5507\/revisions\/5513"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5507"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5507"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5507"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}