CORRECT EATING AND NUTRITION IN CASE OF ALLERGY: MEAT, FISH AND POULTRY
To quote Lady Phyllis Cilento, in reply to a question on whether she ate meat: 'What's wrong with a good steak?' Obviously, nothing is wrong with a good steak, as Lady Cilento, a medical doctor is ninety-one and still puts in a good day's work. She admits, however, that she eats meat sparingly, takes daily nutrient supplements and eats plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables. Her attitude towards meat is, undoubtedly, the correct one. There is just too much evidence, today, against a high meat diet being good for you. A lot of meat in the diet is particularly bad for allergy sufferers because it places a greater strain on bodily functions, already overstressed by constant allergic reactions. For example:
Too much meat can cause inflammation of the nervous system.
Aggravation of myxoedema is caused by a diet relatively high in meat. (Myxoedema is linked to thyroid dysfunction and metabolism disorders.)
Vital organs are overstressed by a high level of toxins from meat. (Remember, toxic overload and allergy illness are partners).
A high meat diet can cause gout and arteriosclerosis.
A high meat diet can cause cancer.
Diabetes, which is strongly linked to food allergy illness, can be both aggravated and caused, by a high meat diet.
The blood is thickened and circulation reduced. (This also happens to food allergy sufferers due to undigested, or waste matter remaining in their blood.)
Meat produces acids which are destructive, unless counteracted by adequate fresh fruit and vegetables.
Meat does not stimulate bowel movement, and transit through the body is slow.
Accumulated toxins from the slow bowel process, are reabsorbed into the body, placing a great strain on liver and kidneys.
The thyroid gland, liver and pancreas become damaged, and altered, on a high meat diet.
It is easy to see, therefore, why too much meat should be viewed with caution. In addition to the natural toxins accumulated in the body, due to excessive meat consumption, there is the added danger of the chemicals associated with modern-day meat production. Meat tends to be loaded with dangerous chemicals, such as the carcinogen diethylstilbestrol, residues of DDT and other pesticides, as well as all the antibiotics that are pumped into animals these days to reduce mortality rates during growth.
A further factor adding to toxic overload, is that of sodium nitrite and sodium nitrate, which are, invariably, added to processed meats such as ham, bacon and sausages. Experiments at Michael Reese Hospital, in Chicago, have shown that these chemicals form cancer-producing compounds, in the body, which an overloaded immune system may not have the ability to throw out. Research carried out at the New York State College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, concluded that food additives and high protein diets were the main causes of cancer. Cornell University scientist, Dr T.C. Cambell, agrees; he says that low meat diets, combined with plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables, prevented toxic overload in the body. He also recommended supplements of vitamins A, C and E.
There is no doubt that meat is an excellent source of protein, and there is no reason why it should not continue to provide protein in a healthy, allergy-free diet, but not every day! Australians, on the average, consume about 100 grams of protein per day. This is three to four times more than the average daily requirement. The Pritikin Foundation says, diets containing more than 20 per cent protein (from all sources), cause a loss of essential minerals. Dr Sheldon Margen, Professor of Nutrition at the University of California, follows this theory. Dr Margen thinks that a 10 per cent protein intake is better. He makes the point that babies have no trouble growing on mothers' milk which contains only 6 per cent protein. People become supremely healthy on the Pritikin diet, with an intake of only 120 grams of lean meat per week!
It is suspected that a high protein diet is destructive to the body. Amongst other things, too much protein causes acidity and the passage of extra calcium through the kidneys, via the urine. Kidney stones, together with reduced kidney function, can result.
It is interesting to note that Eskimos traditionally live on a diet which is extremely high in meat. The difference is, however, that the majority of their meat is consumed raw. Whereas cooked meat contains no enzymes, raw meat contains the proteolytic enzyme, cathepsin and the fat-digesting enzyme, adipose lipase. These enzymes play a major part in digestion in the stomach. Thus, when the meat reaches the intestine, digestion is completed much more efficiently, resulting in less toxic residue. Even so, Eskimos do not lead long lives. To quote one researcher: 'Old age sets in at fifty and its signs are strongly marked at sixty. Comparatively few live beyond sixty and only a very few reach seventy. People who lead vigorous outdoor lives, are usually healthy in old age, if their diet is sound.' One of the best examples of this is the Hunzas, a small nation of people who live in the Himalaya Mountains. It seems valid to suspect, therefore, that the almost total reliance on meast by Eskimos, could have something to do, with the relative shortness of their lifespan.
Animal proteins can cause toxic overload and be destructive to good health, if eaten to excess. They are best eaten sparingly, and certainly not every day. It is possible to keep in superb health without any animal protein at all. The body requires comparatively small amounts of protein to stay healthy and this can be easily derived from a diet of fresh fruits and vegetables, some grains, or as an alternative, beans, little or no dairy produce and very little meat.
Fish and poultry should always be considered as alternatives to red meat. The sad fact about poultry is that, in our chemically mad world, it is usually loaded with antibiotics, hormones and the residues of feed, containing arsenic and a host of other chemicals. Free-range chickens are much safer. Fish, on the other hand, is relatively free from such chemicals and toxins. However in some parts of the world, they have a dangerously high mercury content, due to industrial effluent contaminating their natural habitat.
Some people may react to certain natural chemicals in fish, which can produce numbness, itchiness, joint and muscle pains, fatigue, diarrhoea, nausea, headache and chills. According to Dr Noel Gillespie, of the University of Queensland, the safest way to eat fish is:
Not every day
Not too much at one meal
Not the same variety each time.
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Allergies
