Table of Contents

Chapter 4: Why Nutrition Matters

ii. Red Meat vs Fish

Today’s dietary world is divided into good foods and bad foods. In this accounting, red meat is a bad food. It has a prominent place in the "Western-style" diet that underlies the poor nutritional habits of Americans today. Red meat has acquired the reputation of being filled with fats, carcinogens, growth hormones, and antibiotics, but red meat is also an excellent source of protein, iron, zinc, vitamin B6, and vitamin B12. So simply cutting it out of the diet without replacing it with something else that is just as nutritious is not a smart choice.

A number of years ago, the omega-3 fatty acids found primarily in fatty fish, fish oils, and certain vegetable oils, including walnut and canola oils, were studied for their beneficial effects. In fact, studies have shown that, in some men, the addition of a few servings of fatty fish high in omega-3 fatty acids each week might reduce the risk of having a heart attack and might reduce the risk of developing advanced prostate cancer.

How these benefits will affect you individually is unknown, but replacing red meat with fish a few times a week would seem to be good way to offset some of the "bad" aspects of red meat while picking up some of the "good" aspects of fish.