Is chicken stock enough?

[JSerene]

For a variety of reasons, I decided to reintroduce meat & dairy into my diet after 7 years of being meat & dairy free. I've added raw cheese, cultured butter, eggs, cod liver oil, and last but not least, chicken stock (homemade, of course).

I believe that people need small amounts of meat in their diets.

I believe that nutrition is more than the sum of it's parts. i.e. I know that I can get B12 and vitamins A & D with a vitamin, but am now choosing it's natural sources. There are factors present in food that we may not have identified and cannot replicate.

That being said, is chicken stock enough? I eat some everyday during the winter (soup season), but can't bring myself to buy any other kind of meat. If I truly believe the above, don't I need more variety?

-I don't buy fish because of the heavy metal contamination.
-I don't buy beef because I've been programmed (right or wrong) to believe beef is bad for you.
-I don't buy pork because pigs are so damn smart and to me it would be like butchering a dog. Sorry if this offends anyone, that's not my intention.

There is no other meat available to me right now in the free range organic variety and that's the only kind I will consider. At other times of the year I may have access to venison, bison or turkey.

My life would be easier if I just stuck with the chicken stock. Is it enough? Any thoughts or wisdom?

[kmamma]

Not to put you on the spot at all, but why do you think beef is bad but bison not? To me they seem pretty similar, both red meat. There are some great older breeds out there, like highland cattle which taste so delicious, that are more closely related to their wild ancestors.

How about lamb?

I think chicken is enough for you at least right now. It's funny how things are either available to us or not, for good reasons. If you've been meat free for so long I would suggest to go easy on that front to begin with, to get your body and mind used to the whole thing. Then maybe start adding other poultry.

You mentioned that we should have some meat in our diets but you didn't say whether you also eat the chicken meat (just stock).

Oh, and BTW, some fish are not contaminated, such as wild salmon from alaska, if I'm not mistaken. I believe the reason why meat was very healthy for our ancestors is because it contained a lot of omega-3 fatty acids because of their wild diets. So eating wild fish that has not been contaminated could be a very healthy thing.

[JSerene]

Originally Posted by kmamma

Not to put you on the spot at all, but why do you think beef is bad but bison not? To me they seem pretty similar, both red meat. There are some great older breeds out there, like highland cattle which taste so delicious, that are more closely related to their wild ancestors.

How about lamb?

I think chicken is enough for you at least right now. It's funny how things are either available to us or not, for good reasons. If you've been meat free for so long I would suggest to go easy on that front to begin with, to get your body and mind used to the whole thing. Then maybe start adding other poultry.

You mentioned that we should have some meat in our diets but you didn't say whether you also eat the chicken meat (just stock).

Oh, and BTW, some fish are not contaminated, such as wild salmon from alaska, if I'm not mistaken. I believe the reason why meat was very healthy for our ancestors is because it contained a lot of omega-3 fatty acids because of their wild diets. So eating wild fish that has not been contaminated could be a very healthy thing.

Good point about the beef and bison. If both were grass fed and organic it shouldn't matter which one I chose. Like I said, the message that beef is bad has been drilled into me for so long I can't get over it yet.

No, I haven't gone beyond the chicken stock yet. I'm working my way in slowly. I just need to know if I can stop here since I've found a comfort level or if it's necessary (for better health) to continue further on this path of meat eating.

I'll have to research the kinds of fish available at my co-op to see how safe the options are. I mourn the fact that I live a block from a river and cannot use it as a food source. As a species, we've really destroyed a good chunk of this planet for ourselves.

[kmamma]

I agree, it's sad that we can no longer get whatever fish we want since IMO that is the best quality animal food there is for humans. Another thing you might want to consider as an easily digested beginners food is fish eggs (if your coop can find a good source for you). Such a healthy food and taste is great. Here in Sweden everyone eats it in the form of "caviar" in a tube. It's mixed with vegetable oil though and some preservatives and sugar and potato flakes, so no longer as healthy as it could be.

My friend who's never eaten meat in her life is starting off like you too, just the meat broth. I think it's a very good idea. Whenever you feel the mental inclination to eat the flesh, is when you can start eating it. Never force anything because others say it's healthy. There's more to food than the nutrients it contains, the food has to appeal to you as well and feed not only your body but spirit too.

Josefina.

[tboroson]

JSerene, while I lean toward believing that everybody needs *some* animal protein/fat, I do believe that how much and what kind varies very greatly. I don't think that everyone needs beef or dairy, or any single thing for that matter (though I do think that eggs, for those who are not allergic, are the most universally good). I think your plan for changing over sounds just fine

If you've been doing fairly well on a veg*n diet for this long, it's quite possible that you don't need a whole ton of animal food. OTOH, you may find you need more animal food for the first six months or two years or whatever until you replenish your bodily stores, then you may settle on a lower amount daily. That's kind of what I did; At first, I craved meat a lot more. Now, although I love to eat a huge steak or both legs from a chicken, I most definitely don't *need* that much, and am satisfied with small amounts frequently.

If you are interested in fish, though, there are a lot of low-to-no mercury alternatives. Tilapia, wild salmon, wild shrimp. No pressure, just a note

[saratc]

I think even if you never want meat, what you already mentioned you are eating sounds very healthy. If you read Nutrition and Physical Degeneration by Weston A Price, the diets of traditional cultures varied very widely. Some didn't eat meat at all and were mostly vegetarian but ate insects. Some lived on mostly milk and cheese with small amounts of bread and meat only occassionally. You can follow a traditional food approach and not eat meat. And bone broth is so wonderful for you.

I saw another thread here yesterday about whether following a traditional/NT diet meant eating all foods ate by traditional cultures or foods ate by your ancestors. I lean more towards the latter. Being from a Chinese background, milk was not a part of our diet while growing up and even now, drinking too much raw milk will give me intolerance symptoms like bloating or very loose bowels. However, I love eggs and crave them all the time. On days I didn't plan anything for dinner, my fall back would always be eggs of some sort. I could easily live on eggs as my main protein source. DH loves milk, grew up on milk, and drinks 2 gallons a week by himself. He's happy on milk, cheese and butter.

I think as long as you're not on the SAD or addicted to sugar, it's wise to listen to your palate and cravings and you will eat what your body needs.