Is Eating Meat Healthy for Humans?

No it is not. Some of the healthiest people with the longest lives, lowest cancer rates and highest IQ's are Vegetarians. Take Albert Einstein for example, he was a vegetarian. More famous vegetarians can also be found here.

"Men who eat red meat as a main dish five or more times a week have four times the risk of colon cancer of men who eat red meats less than once a month," says Edward Giovannucci of Harvard Medical School. Heavy red-meat eaters were also twice as likely to get prostate cancer in his study of 50,000 male health professionals. Source: Time Magazine

That's just one study. Looking at others, says Lawrence Kushi of the University of Minnesota, "the evidence is quite consistent that red meat is associated with a higher risk of colon - possibly prostate - cancer".

But even lean red meat seems to increase the risk of colon cancer. "It could be the carcinogens created when meat is cooked" speculates Willett.

It's not just red meat that is a problem, in fact all meats including: chicken, lamb, pork, turkey, fish (including salmon, tuna, trout, prawn and all seafood), beef, quail and other poultry, eggs, sausages and mince are all highly acid forming in the body.

A diet which is rich in acid forming foods is know to increase the risk of many illness and disease, since the highly acid forming diet causes a large accumulation of debris and hardened mucoid plaque (mucous) in the colon. Once the colon is damaged in this way, the body's immune system, and ability to eliminate toxins becomes compromised.

A very easy way to ascertain the true effect of eating meat is to compare the abdomen of the typical Australian or American (among the largest meat consumers in the world) with the average poor Chinese or Indian (they rarely or never eat meat because of the cost, also many Indians are devout Vegetarians). Obesity in children has been declared a problem in Australia! Below are some pictures to highlight this problem:

 Swollen Abdomens From Excessive Meat and Protein Consumption

The big belly is not just 'fat', underneath the layer of fat is an extremely swollen bowel. You can verify this by finding someone with a big belly (not a pregnant person please!) and asking them to tense their stomach muscles, then feel how thick the layer of fat is. Usually it is only an inch or 2, the rest is the intestines.

The protein structure of most meats is much more complex and harder to digest than that of plant proteins, this puts an enormous strain on the liver as the half digested protein molecules enter the blood stream and wreak havoc.

Vegetable proteins on the other and are easier to digest and do not toxify the body in the same way as meat does.

People wondering if they can get adequate protein from a vegetarian diet should note that many vegetable proteins are extremely concentrated. The highest of all, being spirulina, which is around 70% protein, and 95% digestible, unlike most meats which have a lower digestibility percentage.

Below is a chart of vegetarian high protein sources:

Source: Alternative Living

But actually, eating too much protein is damaging to the body, and much of the western world suffers from diseases related to excessive protein.

“To consume a diet that contains enough, but not too much, protein, simply replace animal products with grains, vegetables, legumes (peas, beans, and lentils), and fruits. As long as one is eating a variety of plant foods in sufficient quantity to maintain one’s weight, the body gets plenty of protein.”

Source: The Physicians Committee For Responsible Medicine

“Being vegetarian does not mean your diet will be lacking in protein. Most plant foods contain protein and in fact it would be very difficult to design a vegetarian diet that is short on protein. Excess dietary protein may lead to health problems. It it now thought that one of the benefits of a vegetarian diet is that it contains adequate but not excessive protein.”

Source: The Vegetarian Society