Does choosing the impossible Whopper on beef will help you stay healthy?



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Burger King made the headlines of his Impossible Whopper, no meat. Getty Images
  • More and more restaurant chains are turning to fake meat options.
  • But experts say that the fact that it is not meat does not mean that it is much healthier.
  • In general, diets low in meat may be healthier. However, products containing fake meat may have a high sodium content.

Burger King has the impossible Whopper. Carl's Jr. has his Beyond Famous Star. KFC even launched a plant-based chicken-like product – and sold in 5 hours.

It seems that, either to follow a trend or to offer alternatives to more diverse consumers, many brands of fast food are jumping on the train of herbal meats. Grocery stores are even seeing an influx of plant-based herbal options on their shelves.

The bet on fake meat is paying off for companies like Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat, two of the biggest suppliers of these herbal products. Some economic forecasters predict that these companies will earn more than $ 100 billion in about a decade. Even Tyson Foods thinks it can turn its non-meat foods into big business.

But despite all the hype and glam of these meat substitutes, there is a very real reason that encourages businesses to encourage consumers to replace their sturdy hamburgers with green burgers: research suggests that they are healthier both for man and for the planet. .

Can these plant-based foods offer the promise of a healthier and longer life, a reduced footprint and a delicious and delicious taste? We asked the experts to weigh for us.

Numerous large-scale and in-depth studies have looked at who lives longer: people who eat mostly plants, or people who consume an omnivorous diet with meat.

And the results were rather one-sided.

For example, a study over 73,000 people found that vegetarian diets were linked to lower rates of premature death. In addition, deaths due to certain medical conditions – such as cardiovascular disease and kidney disease – were less common among vegetarians than non-vegetarians.

The authors of the study also noted that "associations among men were larger and more often significant than among women," suggesting that men who consume a vegetarian or herbal diet could see even more benefits that women who flee meat and animal products.

More recently, a study found that people who follow a vegetarian or vegan diet have a lower incidence of all types of Cancer. Meat, on the other hand, is generally linked to increased rates of cancer.

"Processed meats are class 1 carcinogens, at the same level as cigarettes, as determined by the World Health Organization," said Dr. Dana Simpler, primary care practitioner at Mercy Medical Center Baltimore.

In addition, research confirms that people who follow a plant-based diet have a lower risk of hypertension, diabetes and heart disease. Herbal nutrition can also help you lose weight, and people with certain chronic diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis, can see improvements in symptoms by following an herbal diet.

"Unlike a meat-based diet, which has been shown in many studies to be associated with various diseases, including diabetes and cardiovascular disease, a plant-based diet has many benefits, including reduced body weight, increased reduced cancer risk and a reduced risk of death from ischemic heart disease – a restriction of blood supply to tissues, causing a lack of oxygen, "said Mahmoud Ghannoum, PhD, author of" Total Gut Balance " At Healthline.

"Another study published in 2018, involving more than 15,000 adults over the age of 25, found that animal foods rich in protein and fat, such as lamb, beef , pork and chicken, were associated with a higher risk of premature death, while plant-based foods, including vegetables, nuts, peanut butter and whole grain breads were associated with a lower risk of premature death, "said Cyrus Khambatta, PhD, co-founder of Mastering Diabetes and co-author of" Mastering Diabetes. "

Despite these findings, a report earlier this year highlights a systemic problem within the American food spirits: many know that switching from meat to plants would be healthier for almost everyone, but few people take the message into account.

"We need to ask why this is so, given the many benefits and health benefits of a complete plant-based diet," the researchers wrote.

This, it seems, is the challenge of dietitians and physicians.

Beyond nutrition, Beyond Burger, Impossible Burger and other plant-based plant substitutes are not so different as their fleshy twins, at least in numbers.

"Since a meat-based diet poses a number of health risks, the perception is that consuming a meat-type alternative is a healthy exchange. In this respect, the consumption of herbal meat is relatively safe and logical, "said Ghannoum. "However, these meat substitutes are processed foods, and like other processed foods, they are not as healthy as eating fresh vegetables."

Salt and grease are a particular concern because many manufacturers add these ingredients for flavor. The addition of oils, for flavor and moisture, makes many of them not ideal for a person with diabetes or heart disease, says Simpler.

"Beyond Burger has as much saturated fat as meat," said Hannah Koschak, RD, CD. "However, the Beyond Burger contains 3 grams of fiber, which is beneficial."

But in the benefit column for fake meats, there is the absence of a particular type of fat, Koschak says. "The meat naturally contains trans fatty acids, which should be avoided as much as possible. However, meat imitations do not contain trans fat.

More simply, "In addition, soy protein isolates are so transformed that they mimic the effects of animal protein on the body. It is therefore important to pay attention to the ingredients and avoid products containing a lot of oil or soy protein isolates. "

In addition, some of these herbal patties contain more sodium than ground beef, which naturally contains less sodium. An ounce of ground beef contains about 20 milligrams of sodium, or about 70 milligrams for a 3 ounce cooked pancake. Beyond Burger has nearly 400 milligrams. High sodium intake is a risk factor for heart disease, stroke and other cardiovascular diseases, one of the leading causes of death in America.

So when it comes to why many people do meat substitution – for their health – the passage of ground beef patties to herbal varieties has more benefits than d & rsquo; Disadvantages, says Koschak. But this is not the real turning point to a plant-based diet that many health advocates have been advocating for decades.

"No, it's not more nutritious in every way. However, from a health point of view, they are a better option than meat, "she said.

The experts with whom Healthline spoke agreed that any change to an herbal diet was going in the right direction.

"These meat-based alternatives represent a short-term step to consuming less animal-source foods, but may not be a good long-term strategy for reducing the risk of future health complications." Khambatta said.

But ultimately, the goal of anyone seeking to prolong their life and reduce their risk of diet-related health complications is to move entirely to a diet that focuses on unprocessed plants.

However, these casual hamburgers are endorsed by these experts because meat-like meats have flaws, but are, overall, even healthier than the real thing.

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