Pork (bacon)

This a recent post on forum.lowcrber.org that I have commented on about meat products

StuartB Wrote:

I was reading the site “Perfect Health Diet,” which is a title to be loathed, where the author, Paul Jaminet, said that eating pork causes cancer, MS, fatty liver disease, and obsessive reading of Animal Farm. Because I’m impressionable, even at my age, I immediately thought I should give up bacon, because I have a fatty liver. This depresses me somewhat, as there are few things I love more in this world now than eating my morning bacon.  He said that studies show that regular pork is worse than cured pork. Apparently, because of the way pigs are kept in industrial farming (not able to move around) and what they are fed (grains) that these hogs are swimming with Omega 6, which I found out only yesterday are bad!  We eat the pig and lots of this Omega 6 is transferred into us, unless of course you have a free-range source. What do you other carnivores think about this pork bashing?

My Response:

In respect to factory farmed meat, I’m quite inclined, unusually, to agree with Mr. Jaminet. From many of the studies I have read, the type and quality of the food given to factory reared animals is appalling. When you add in to that the fact that they are almost daily marinated in hormones, plus there is a high proportion of GMO in their food. It probably is no surprise to you that I never now eat anything other than naturally reared meat. 

More specifically, onto the subject of bacon, one of the things that many people overlook is that bacon from pastured pigs contains a healthy amount of saturated, as well as mono saturated fat. Now, most of these fats consist of oleic acid which is the type so valued in olive oil, but also, it contains a healthy amount of palmitoleic acid which as you may, or may not know, has antimicrobial properties. It also contains so very healthy fat soluble vitamin D and a superior type of vitamin E which acts as an antioxidant. Now, I spend a lot of my time in France which means that I have easy access to traditionally reared and cured pork, bacon and other meats from the countryside around me. The good thing is these traditional ways of growing or producing pork and other meats have also transferred across the pond and you can find them in the States, in Australia, in New Zealand and in the UK. In fact, anywhere where good, old- fashioned animal husbandry and dedication to quality still remain impart of the farming population.

One thing I have found, though through eating naturally-reared meat products, is not only do they taste better, but it’s almost as if your body acknowledges their high and nutritional value and you find, you don’t need as much of it to be satisfied. So, while it may be a little bit more expensive, in the long run, it can work out to be the same cost or maybe even a bit cheaper to enjoy naturally grown, nutritious and delicious food.

Hope that helps,

Mark