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Whilst the environmental and animal welfare benefits of many of the ‘fake’ meats (Beyond, Impossible, Vegetarian Butcher, etc) are noble and important, in the s

Whilst the environmental and animal welfare benefits of many of the ‘fake’ meats (Beyond, Impossible, Vegetarian Butcher, etc) are noble and important, in the spirit of ‘full’ lifecycle analysis, it is important to also consider just how processed (ultra processed) these products are and the potential impacts this has in the human health domain. And the research on ultra processed foods is rather clear, they are ‘bad’ for human health in large quantities. Some alternatives that are better for the environment AND for human health include: pulled oats from Finland, and fake cheese products made from beans (rather than tree nuts). Edit: Added… simple tip, read the ingredient list and count the number of ingredients used.

dguaraglia 6y ago
Let's not overlook the fact that most cows raised in massive farms are fed a horrible diet and most beef based products - even raw beef - are also processed and have additives. I'm not saying that Beyond Burger is better or worse, but that pretending all beef is healthy is kind of silly.
- deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]
gnicholas 6y ago
I'd be curious to know which ingredients are the most worrisome. I don't eat much Beyond or Impossible at this point, but I could see myself eating a lot in the future if they made lower-fat options (more like ground turkey than ground beef). But I don't want to eat something that is made out of unhealthy ingredients. What should I look out for?
- adrian_mrd 6y ago
  Three good reads to start: 1. Primer on ultra processed foods: https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/what-are-ultra-processed-foods-and-are-they-bad-for-our-health-2020010918605 https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/what-are-ultra-processed... 2. NOVA “the food classification that categorises foods according to the extent and purpose of food processing, rather than in terms of nutrients” [PDF]: http://archive.wphna.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/WN-2016-7-1-3-28-38-Monteiro-Cannon-Levy-et-al-NOVA.pdf http://archive.wphna.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/WN-2016-... 3. ‘Ultra-processed foods and added sugars in the US diet: evidence from a nationally representative cross-sectional study’: https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/6/3/e009892 https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/6/3/e009892
- lambdaba 6y ago
  Seed oils. See Dr. Cate Shanahan.
  - toper-centage 6y ago
    Better than animal fat
    - lambdaba 6y ago
      That's just wrong. Inform yourself on the history of where the saturated fat scare comes from and the disastrous consequences on global health.
    - uh-quan 6y ago
      Animal fats are great. One of the staples of healthy human diets for hundreds of thousands of years.
tootie 6y ago
All your food started in the heart of a star. What's a few more steps.
- garmaine 6y ago
  The few more steps heavily denatures proteins, potentially creating novel structures in the processing which can have significantly negative effects on humans—cancer or prion catalysts, for example.

dguaraglia 6y ago

Let's not overlook the fact that most cows raised in massive farms are fed a horrible diet and most beef based products - even raw beef - are also processed and have additives. I'm not saying that Beyond Burger is better or worse, but that pretending all beef is healthy is kind of silly.

deleted 6y ago
[deleted]

gnicholas 6y ago

I'd be curious to know which ingredients are the most worrisome. I don't eat much Beyond or Impossible at this point, but I could see myself eating a lot in the future if they made lower-fat options (more like ground turkey than ground beef). But I don't want to eat something that is made out of unhealthy ingredients. What should I look out for?

adrian_mrd 6y ago
Three good reads to start: 1. Primer on ultra processed foods: https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/what-are-ultra-processed-foods-and-are-they-bad-for-our-health-2020010918605 https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/what-are-ultra-processed... 2. NOVA “the food classification that categorises foods according to the extent and purpose of food processing, rather than in terms of nutrients” [PDF]: http://archive.wphna.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/WN-2016-7-1-3-28-38-Monteiro-Cannon-Levy-et-al-NOVA.pdf http://archive.wphna.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/WN-2016-... 3. ‘Ultra-processed foods and added sugars in the US diet: evidence from a nationally representative cross-sectional study’: https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/6/3/e009892 https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/6/3/e009892
lambdaba 6y ago
Seed oils. See Dr. Cate Shanahan.
- toper-centage 6y ago
  Better than animal fat
  - lambdaba 6y ago
    That's just wrong. Inform yourself on the history of where the saturated fat scare comes from and the disastrous consequences on global health.
  - uh-quan 6y ago
    Animal fats are great. One of the staples of healthy human diets for hundreds of thousands of years.

tootie 6y ago

All your food started in the heart of a star. What's a few more steps.

garmaine 6y ago
The few more steps heavily denatures proteins, potentially creating novel structures in the processing which can have significantly negative effects on humans—cancer or prion catalysts, for example.