Meet your meat!

[Siggie]

Uggly Uggly Uggly. UGGLY!!

You should be ashamed if you own a pair.

Nevaaar because I dont wear them with skirts or tuck my jeans into them. They're super comfy whatever shoes.

[loseyourname]

It aint the shoes, girls. If you're ugly wearing nice shoes, you're still ugly. Nice to see people trying, though.

I avoid dairy as much as I can because it seriously screws with me (native American thing), but when my body craves meat, I give it meat. I usually have very specific cravings and I figure that I have them for a reason. My body knows what it needs at that time and is telling me quite overtly.

[nunechka]

anony, i guess you chose to respond to one sentance and left out the other. its coo you are still cute.

i SAID! that since we now mass produce and animals and everything else they provide us, that we are not getting the same type of nutrition. for example how is that the normal cow of 20 years ago gave a cerntain amount of milk a day, and now they give 10 to 15 times more? hummm hormones??? yes... how come a chicken only had eggs when it was the season, and now chickens mass produce eggs on a daily basis...??? hummm hormones... etc... so maybe thats why more and more people dont want to eat meat NOW, vs. in the past. because in the past we didnt have these problems. but now we do.

so 100 yrs ago we didnt have huge facotries full of cows who had pumps attached to their nipple sucking out the milk on a demand basis, but now we do, and now cows are given hormones to produce more and more, and when you eat that meat and drink that milk, the side affects of the hormones is transfered to you.

why didnt as many people have heart disease, cancer, stomach problems, etc... well because of their healthy diet, which included meat. but its the meat of TODAY! that is bad and thats why we have invented "VEGETARIANISM" so that we can avoid the problems associated with mass produced meats and related products.

[loseyourname]

why didnt as many people have heart disease, cancer, stomach problems, etc... well because of their healthy diet, which included meat. but its the meat of TODAY! that is bad and thats why we have invented "VEGETARIANISM" so that we can avoid the problems associated with mass produced meats and related products.

Sorry to break it to you, Nune, but the primary reason that certain diseases are more prevalent today than in the past is that life expectancy is a lot longer. Today people over 40 have plenty of time to develop cancer and heart disease and all these bad things. In the past they just died before they ever got that chance. Not to say that bad diets don't contribute, but still. Diets today are in general far healthier than they were 100 years ago. We have fortified breads and juices and flourine added to water and iodized salt and all these wonderful things that have contributed to giving people the ability to live well into their 70's and 80's.

[fIReBuRntInHeLL]

This has got to be the saddest thing I have ever seen... I couldn't even finish watching it! I never considered vegetarianism, but I think I should. I understand there is a high demand for meat, but this is absolutely intolerable! If this is not animal cruelty, then what is?
http://www.petatv.com/tvpopup/Prefs.asp?video=mym2002

so your trying to say that u dont like fillet mignon????
LIAR!!!!!

[Crimson Glow]

Longer life expectancy may be part of the answer, but I think there's a lot more to it than that. There are plenty of cultures that aren't riddled with the number and variety of disease we're inflicted with in America. For starters, we are the most obese industrialized nation in the world. And that obesity is a very heavy (no pun intended) contributor to diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, high cholesterol levels, atherosclerosis, osteoarthritis, gall bladder disease, sleep apnea, and weakened joints. And the percentage of obesity is rising at an ALARMING rate. I could bore you with fax and figures, but take my word for it, it's increasing VERY rapidly, and thus, so are the ailments that come along with it. So why is the US blessed with so many disorders and diseases? There are many reasons. For example, as far as all the fat people go, we eat WAY too much and our bodies are genetically not set-up for that. They're still going off the metabolic rate required during the winter famines presented in the prehistoric years. That's why the 5-6 small portioned meals a day is so critical for speeding up the metabolism, as well as feeding muscle.

But amongst all the reasons out there, their's one major factor in my opinion: The FDA. A huge portion of the ingredients, methods, procedures and products they permit are nothing short of frightening. Remember, the FDA had to ok the environment you saw on that video. They have to ok the growth hormones, the antibiotic fed to off set disease, the standards for the living environments for the animals, etc. And quite frankly, the FDA sucks at its job (more on why further down). And for those of you who think you're saving yourself from harmful chemicals by avoiding meat, you're living in ignorance. Remember, those big, bright, juicy fruits and vegetables were sprayed with pesticides and herbicides many times over before you got a hold of them. Many of the naturally occurring properties (like enzymes) are destroyed due to the methods used to make them bigger faster, and more presentable.

I've been in my job (nutritional supplement store) for 9 years now, and some of the things I've learned in that time are appalling. There is research and evidence that implicates the FDA is approving ingredients that are being added to foods which can increase the rate of weight gain, cause addiction like cravings, cause harm to joints and create inflammation, and the list goes on and on. So why would the FDA allow such ingredients and additives to be used? Simple: The FDA is less an agency concerned with watching out for our health, and is more a money making machine in bed with the pharmaceutical companies. Pharmaceutical is a multi billion dollar industry. Those billions are based on people getting ill, and solutions being "difficult" to find. I have absolutely no doubt that there are cures for all kinds of health issues that aren't being revealed to the public. If they were, they'd loose millions of dollars in research money and sales of drugs that need to be used in an ongoing manner. Hell, you need look no further than the track record for many of the prescriptions out there right now to see that keeping your safety in mind is not their primary concern. And I'm not just talking about the ones making the news right now. Yet, they're all over the supplement industry for being "unsafe" or "unproven". Yeeaah....products that have been used and tested for centuries are unsafe and unproven, yet your products, which you KNOW are harmful, are just fine by your standards. For example, they made such a huge spectacle about how dangerous ephedra is. Fact: More people die from prescription strength Tylenol a YEAR than all of the proven ephedra related deaths combined. If you saw the results of the trial runs for Paxil before it was approved by the FDA, you'd wonder who in their right minds would allow such a drug out into the public. And that pathetic RDA for vitamins and minerals which was created pre-WWI under pressure from the government with little to no research.....it's basically the bear minimum to not die from a disease. Gee, think it's time to upgrade the info already???

So why does the FDA come down so hard on the supplement industry? A few reasons. One major one is because you can't patent an herb; therefore, the pharmaceutical companies can't make money off of them. And more importantly, it's taking major money out of their pockets. The more you find cures on your own, or ways to prevent health issues, the less you need doctors and prescriptions. The less prescriptions you need, the less money goes to research, and the less sales. The doctors also don't care for this for a few reasons. The vast majority of doctors are not very well versed on nutrition or eastern medicines, so rather than do research, they just disapprove. Also, they get kickbacks from pharmaceutical companies for prescribing their medications (cash awards, vacations, etc), so they're being hurt several different ways by the supplement industry, too. It's a huge trickle down effect revolving around greed. They're trying to generate business by creating and initiating disease and health afflictions, and the dietary supplements are trying to prevent them. And so, they do what they can to condemn the supplement industry.

Now I'm not saying that the supplement industry is perfect by any means. In fact, it's far from it. The FDA does not regulate dietary supplements, and many lower scale companies take advantage of this by making ridiculous claims (like the completely unfounded superior absorption claims of coral calcium), putting inferior quality ingredients in their products, etc. It's always best to get supplements from a quality store with major industry labels (Nature's Plus, Enzymatic Therapy, Source Naturals, Country Life/Biochem, etc, not the crap you find at a pharmacy). Also, compare strengths in dosages, not the "size of the bottle" when shopping for costs. And many of these herbs/supplements have a vast array of quality. Do some research on each ingredient you're looking at getting before you actually decide on a product to purchase. Or just ask me!

Here's an example of the varying qualities: For the milk thing, it may provide you with calcium, but there are many different grades of calcium bioavailability (the body's ability to absorb/breakdown). For example, calcium citrate is up to 8x more absorbable than calcium carbonate. Now I don't know exact figures on the form in milk, but I have read in several places that it's on the lower end of the scale, so you're only getting 300 mg to begin with, and absorbing a small percentage of that to top it off. It's also good to take magnesium (will help direct calcium's effect on bones) in a 2:1 calcium to magnesium ratio with it. Also, vitamin D added to the mix will help with the absorption of the other 2 ingredients.

So, moral of the story: Don't fear the meat! Just go organic, as several here have mentioned. That goes for fruits and vegetables, too. Do a high quality multi vitamin, because you can't meet most of the RDA out of food alone, and even if you could, the RDA figures are pathetic. If you want calcium in your system, get a good quality supplement which includes magnesium in a 2:1 ratio, along with vitamin D. Eat 5-6 small portioned meals a day (consisting of around 20 grams of protein if you're not working out with weights) to regulate your metabolism, and fend off the catabolic state (where some muscle is damaged as the body searches for protein). Flax oil is also beneficial for MANY different facets of the body. And most importantly, tune in to "the Simpsons" every night for a meditating, holistic experience.

[CatWoman]

Yeah, I like the organic idea... I tried not to have meat for a week, and it was impossible!! everything yummy has meat in it, lol! and fire... I love fillet mignon
So instead, from now on I'll just have organic meat and dairy. At least I know the animals aren't tortured and kept in those horrible conditions... I knew I couldn't live without meat

[nunechka]

there is NOTHING that the people in this forum will ever believe if it is written by me...

life expectancy is longer now because we have more medicine... but that has nothing to do with CANCER! cancer is developed in YOUNG people too as much as old people, and it is more in the US then any other oxxxxry in the world. and it just so happens that the meat in the US is contaminated with hormones. in other oxxxxries for example ARMENIA! they DONT have mass producing farms and the meat there is HEALTHY! and less people in armenia have heart disease and cancer then here in the US, and its not because of # difference its the percentage difference.

in china more people suffer from stomach problems (why? because they eat everything, and usually uncooked)
in the US more people suffer from heart problems and cancer (why? because the food we eat is not healthy, not because it is unhealthy to eat meat but it is unhealthy to eat meat that has HORMONES! in it)

the average woman of 50yrs ago in the US wore a size 6 shoe, now its a size 8. the hormones in the meat that make the animal fat or grow faster and bigger are effecting us...

maybe this isnt the right forum for me, since most people have to be FED everything, and there is hardly ever any COMMON SENCE used...

[CatWoman]

Nune, unhealthey food aside, don't you think the main reason more people in US have cancer is because the stress level here is so much higher than lets say in Armenia?

[nunechka]

ummm, i would normally agree with you catwoman, but i have to say that armenia is not the best example of stress levels... they are livining in constant stress there, its intollerable there... the politcs, the economy, the day to day life is a struggle, BUT on the other hand if lets say we picked france or germany, then i would say YES! you are right on one aspect there...

the US is the only industrialized leading nation that works a 40hr++ week, all other places in europe work only 35 the most, and dont get me started on how much better it is...

anywho, the heart attacks caused by stress are linked to work habbits, but armenia isnt the best example... not only the facts about the meats we eat but our eating habbits compared to the rest of the world are also alarming...