Why You Should…Eat More Meat

August 17, 2009 2:30 pm     Posted in Body, Reality  Katie - Michigan State University g+ page

eat more meat


By Katie

There’s a great many things to do and places to see in this world of ours.  As humans, our lives are pretty short (and if you party like I do, it’s probably going to be even shorter).  So we have to prioritize!  We have brains for a reason and that reason is…reasoning (well, at least some of us use them for that purpose: see comment about partying above).  Let me be your voice of reason as I show you all the things you should be doing right here, right now.

It’s hard to be sure of what to eat these days.  Health reports come out with a study against a certain food one day and for it the next.  Do I eat the egg yolk or do I stick with the whites?  Are pomegranates that good for me?  How many more vitamins do I really need to take?  It’s confusing.  And I don’t like being confused about food.  I just like eating it.

Everyone’s heard the old adage, “Everything in moderation.”  Sounds pretty obvious, right?  You can eat your egg yolk (as long as you don’t eat five eggs a day) and not feel guilty.  Even dessert isn’t off limits if you don’t gorge yourself.  So this is why I’m going to give a shout out to something that has gotten a lot of bad press lately: meat.  It seem everyone is jumping on the vegetarian wagon, what with all the new vegetarian options out there.  Hey, I don’t have anything against tofu (I actually love tofu, but that’s a different story), but I have to defend my meat.  It’s delicious, packed with nutrition, and can be used in a million different ways.  Here’s why you should eat more meat:

Stronger Muscles – Meat has mad amounts of protein.  The health benefits are endless and as college women we suffer from some of the lowest protein levels of any age group (I blame cafeteria food).  Have a steak, gobble a burger, or grab a pork chop to pump up your protein levels.  There’s a reason they make protein powder: it helps build up your muscles and makes your workouts more effective.  If that means I’m going to get more benefit from the same amount of work (true story), then I now have a reason to drag my butt from the couch and go to the gym. With a steak.

Guy Cred – Meat has long been considered a man’s domain.  Men are in charge of the grill, they are the ones who traditionally hunt game animals, and they tend to be masters of meat preparation.  If you practice a bit or even take a barbecue class (they have those), you will get major respect when you step up to the plate and pull off a perfect medium rare steak (instead of a charred hunk of flesh).  You’ll probably get a Woman Of The Year award or something from Spike TV.

Shiny Hair – Want hair like you see in the shampoo commercials?  Then save your money on expensive product and head over to your local butcher instead.  Meat, particularly red meat and fish, can make your hair look all shiny and amazing like you’re an Herbal Essences model.  This is because of the high levels of iron and protein in these foods (and the fat content, which can be beneficial).  So, not only will your hair benefit, but your nails and skin will look amazing as well.  Done deal.

Piss Off Some Vegetarians – Sure, it may be petty and wrong and you might not even know any vegetarians, but some of them deserve to be antagonized.  Whether their patched-up, baggy corduroys piss you off or their unidentifiable, stinky vegan mash makes you sick, there’s a sure-fire way to get back at those annoying plant eaters:  eat meat.  This is what portable meat was made for, people!  Hot dogs, hamburgers, corn dogs, shish kabobs, and anything else that you can eat on a stick or with your hands.  Sweet, delicious revenge.

More Bang For Your Buck – Okay, so meat isn’t cheap.  However, it does have a ton of nutrition.  So if you were to try and get the same amount of nutritional value from veggies, you’d end up paying more for the massive amounts of greens you’d need in comparison to the small amount of meat that does the same thing.  See the value?  And I’d much rather have a turkey burger than five pounds of salad.  Just saying.

Look Classy – Nothing says “I’m a classy lady” better than a filet mignon.  Or a rack of lamb.  Extra points if you can actually cook these things (and cook them well…).  Think about it: every movie that includes a romantic dinner or a expression of extreme wealth has meat.  Steak Oscar, and coffee-rubbed hunks of beef (okay, now I’m hungry) are all a great way to say, “I’m classy and enjoy great food.”  Trust me, you’re not gonna see any tofu casserole on the menu of the restaurant on the top of the Eiffle Tower.

23 Comments on "Why You Should…Eat More Meat"

  1. emma says:
    Mon, 17th Aug 200910:43 am 

    actually meat is not all that healthy for you. sure there's protein in it, but there's protein in plenty of other foods too. just because something contains protein doesn't make it good for you. sure you get protein, but you also get a shitload of cholesterol (the bad kind), fat, & chemicals. studies have also shown that people who don't eat meat at all or reduce their consumption of meat are less likely to develop cancer & are less likely to be obese or overweight. so i don't know, not eating meat sounds a lot healthier. plus there are foods other than fruits & veggies. beans contain the exact same amount of protein & they fill you up more without the added calories & fat. nuts as well. they still have fat, but it's the good fat.

  2. Johnnie says:
    Mon, 17th Aug 200910:54 am 

    Go Watch Food Inc. Before you start eating more meat.

  3. Alana- Boston Univer says:
    Mon, 17th Aug 200911:05 am 

    As a recovering vegetarian, I have to politely disagree. I've never really eaten red meat, and I think I'm healthy/happy. Plus, the whole process that goes into making your hamburger leaves HUGE carbon footprint.

  4. dannidupa says:
    Mon, 17th Aug 20091:14 pm 

    If these are the best defenses of eating meat, then I'm glad I am not on that bandwagon.

    http://lavieboston.wordpress.com/

  5. Brittney says:
    Mon, 17th Aug 20091:19 pm 

    I second Emma's comment.

    I'm finishing up week 3 of a month long stint of vegetarianism, and although I do plan on going back to eating meat, I plan on eating a hell of a lot less of it. The majority of the animals we eat have pumped with all sorts of chemicals to make them grow at ridiculous rates and are pretty much sitting in the waste of the other animals they are caged in with – and then we eat it. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy the taste of meat – but it is certainly something we do not need to eat more of. I also think that the amount of protein we need is exaggerated – those protein shakes you speak of are typically used by guys who are trying to build huge muscles – they are taking in way more protein than most of us need/want.

    So I say, enjoy your meat, but know it's in no way the healthiest thing you can/should be eating.

  6. Casey says:
    Mon, 17th Aug 20091:39 pm 

    Emma, studies have also shown that people who don't eat meat are more likely to develop an eating disorder. So that's probably why less of them are obese.

  7. Zee says:
    Mon, 17th Aug 20092:21 pm 

    I'm a vegetarian, so obviously I disagree. I find your list interesting, but why must you add the "Piss Off Some Vegetarians" bit? It makes you sound pretty lame and immature. It's fine you eat meat, I don't care; but that just makes you sound silly. To each their own.

  8. Chris says:
    Mon, 17th Aug 20093:25 pm 

    I totally agree with Zee (and pretty much everyone else posting). I'm a vegetarian — not because I'm totally pro-animal rights (at least, that's not the primary reason), but just because meat has always made me feel sluggish and awful. I still get enough protein and a decent amount of iron, and that's coming from someone who has been anemic since childhood. Vegetarian diets seem to be so much healthier, and I've never felt this good.

    Ah, guess I just like pissing off carnivores!

  9. ashleigh says:
    Tue, 18th Aug 20095:07 am 

    yeah i don't get the whole piss off vegetarians thing either. who cares what people choose to eat? i also don't eat nuts because i don't like them. should people get mad at me for that?

  10. ziggy stardust says:
    Tue, 18th Aug 20095:38 am 

    I am NOT a vegetarian but I do know eating too much meat is bad for your body and the environment. Argentinian forest is felled at ever increasing rates to provide grazing land for beef cattle. As Buddha would advocate, everything in moderation! Try eating alternative meats and fish. Not like overfarmed Salmon and Tuna.

    I think this article could have been written a little more intelligently…i'm disappointed College Candy.

  11. vic says:
    Tue, 18th Aug 20097:57 pm 

    Here is a good video on meat: http://meat.org

  12. vanessa says:
    Wed, 19th Aug 20097:32 am 

    this article is so STUPID!! as a vegetarian I can't even believe what I'm reading. avocado can give you shiny hair, protien is found in LOTS of other things besides meat which can give you strong muscles, AND studies show that being vegetarian is a lot LESS EXPENSIVE than eating meat. in fact, even if you are eating meat you should only have about 2 helpings a day which is the size of two packs of cards. overconsumption of meat is also related to numerous health problems, while being a healthy well rounded vegetarian does not… it actually leads to a longer life.

    maybe do some research before you write another article.

  13. vanessa says:
    Wed, 19th Aug 20097:34 am 

    also, i know many male vegetarians who think watching a girl eat a burger or a steak is nauseating and not classy at all.

  14. Casey says:
    Wed, 19th Aug 200911:44 am 

    Vanessa, I'm pretty sure the author wasn't referring to "male vegetarians" when she said eating a steak or burger would impress a guy.

    But I agree with everyone else that the "piss off the vegetarians" part was a little uncalled for, although I'm a little sick of vegetarians always telling me "ewww that is soooooo gross I can't believe you eat that! Do you know how bad it is for you!? Do you know what you're doing to those poor animals!?"

    I don't tell them what to eat or not to eat, and I'm pretty sure animals eat other animals as well, so until they stop eating each other why should I stop eating them? Animal rights? The animals don't even believe in animal rights.

  15. oobunillaoo says:
    Wed, 19th Aug 200912:06 pm 

    being a former vegetarian / now pescetarian, i have to say i found this article to be a bit below the level of what i usually consider "tongue-in-cheek" for college candy. i'm not sure how much weight this psuedo-arguement holds re: "pissing off some vegetarians", implying that "some of them" are judgmental of those who choose to eat meat. is that not, in itself judgemental? the assumption that vegetarians have some sort of hate campaign against those who include meat in their diets is, in my opinion, rather biased, which i can see suits the agenda of the article, yet found it rather off-putting personally. for everyone that's toting the "meat is murder" sign, there's someone toting a "meat is delicious" sign. does this need to perpetuate itself? there are benefits and drawbacks on both sides. i personally do not know any vegetarians who snap into a green bean and say/think "ha that'll piss off those pesky meat eaters!" – it's a green bean. just like a slab of meat is just a slab of meat. food is not a social weapon (except in food fights, of course.)

  16. S says:
    Fri, 21st Aug 20095:17 pm 

    meat is awesome. steak is the best food ever. hey if it's one extra thing i can enjoy in life… sucks that you can't ;)

  17. intelligenceandcompa says:
    Thu, 27th Aug 20096:02 pm 

    Have you ever watched a video about how your precious meat is produced?You are very ignorant and people should be educated on both sides of an issue before trying to enlighten other people.You're also dead wrong about all of your little facts meat has so much protein that it leeches calcium from your bones and clogs your ateries with good ol' LDL cholesterol and fat.There are so many hormones and antibiotics in your delicious half rotten tortured flesh that you are less resilient to disease and illness (good) because you obviously don't cherish life.I wish you could trade places with a pig or cow and then you could gloat about how delicious meat is. :)

  18. Kelly - University o says:
    Mon, 28th Dec 20098:31 pm 

    Those videos do as good of a job stopping people from eating meat as the Surgeon General's warning on a pack of cigarettes stopping people from smoking. There going to do it if they want to. Plus, it's not like the second hand fumes of eating a hamburger affects others' health.

    Being from the Midwest, I can't imagine a meal without meat. That's sacrilege here.

  19. zzott says:
    Fri, 5th Feb 20103:40 am 

    I see you have some reliable sources…

    i think you're lying just to becouse your too lazy to go vegeterian.

  20. Randy says:
    Tue, 28th Sep 20103:08 pm 

    What I learned from this article is: apparently meat consumption drops your IQ faster than gas huffing…

  21. sarah says:
    Fri, 8th Jul 20113:11 pm 

    Wow, this is probably the worst article I've ever read here. And it's VERY offensive. What do you have against vegetarians? The fact that some of them are vegetarian because they think killing is wrong? The fact that not eating meat is better for the environment? Unidentifiable stinky vegan mash? How about food that is good for you and doesn't have any unidentifiable animal matter? How about the fact that vegetarian food is never prepared in a cruel manner? (ie didn't involve chopping anyone's head off) What do you have against people who don't want to eat something that was alive, moving, and possibly a happy being just a few days ago? Get over yourself.

  22. eat.vn says:
    Sun, 13th Jan 201310:51 am 

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