Q&A: Why Our Family Eats Animal Products
In part 1 of Why Our Family Eats Animal Products I got a lot of great comments and questions. I loved the discussion and exchange of information that took place. It really is true that the best content on this blog is written by you all.
Many of the questions and comments stemmed out of three different themes that I wanted to address in a full post rather than in the comments section. I am not an expert, by any means, but I thought it might be helpful to simply share our beliefs and where we are coming from on this important topic.
1. Biochemical Individuality.
In the comments section of part 1 Chandelle told us how her body has responded best to avoiding animal products. Then I heard from dj who eats only from the animal kindgom and seems to feel better than ever.I think this is a good example of biochemical individuality – that is every body responds differently to certain foods. Some call this concept metabolic typing, others think of it as dietary ancestral mapping. To me it’s simple – we all have different upbringings, ancestry, and environments which give our bodies specific needs. I, for example, feel my best on a higher fat, protein and vegetable diet while my husband needs some grains and carbohydrates combined with my normal fare in order to feel well.
There is no one size fits all diet, but no matter which food groups we eat from there are some general practices that help us get the most out of our food. Grains, nuts and seeds are easier to digest when soaked, sprouted, or fermented. Fruits and vegetables are always best organic, preferably locally or home-grown. Dairy is best raw and/or cultured. I do believe that most people need at least some animal products in their diet and it is best to find to make it pastured and/or wild.
Generally, though, eating foods that are not part of the industrialized food system will be our best bet.
2. What to Look For.
As with all foods, the closer to home that the animal was raised, the better. God created animals to eat and live a certain way and it seems the only reason we have ever deveated from that is because of greed or convenience. In the end the animal is healthier and so are we when we treat them with care and respect.
Here are a few rules that we have learned and generally follow:
- Seafood – I wrote this article which contains for more specifics, but generally speaking wild caught is best and so is variety. See sources.
- Milk/Cream – 1. Grass-fed Raw/Unhomogenized 2. Grass-fed Pasteurized/Unhomogenized 3. Organic Pasteurized/Homogenized that has been cultured into yogurt or kefir. After everything that we have learned we generally do not purchase or consume milk or cream unless we know the animal and farmer well enough to feel comfortable. So if for some reason our raw dairy source dries up we would most likely go without and add extra non-dairy calcium sources to our diet.
- Cheese – 1. Raw 2. Organic/Grass-fed 3. None at all. We have cut way back on our cheese consumption and generally only use the raw cheese on top of something such as a bowl of soup or chili or in a salad so that it maintains it’s raw properties. See sources.
- Butter – 1. Raw, grass-fed 2. Grass-fed 3. Organic 4. Conventional. We generally buy grass-fed butter and occassionally raw. See sources.
- Meat/Poultry – 1. Pastured or Grass-fed/finished 2. Organic 3. "Natural" (no hormones or anti-biotics) 4. Conventional. A great place to find local farmers who can provide you with quality meats is Local Harvest. You can also order quality meats online (see sources).
- Eggs – 1. From local, pastured chickens. 2. Grocery store eggs. I don’t know that there is much difference between the cheaper eggs and the "cage-free" eggs except the price. Often times "free-range" grocery store eggs never see the sun because the USDA decides what "free-range" means… that their is a tiny door that they may use if they please. Again Local Harvest can help you find a farmer or farmer’s market where you can get real eggs.
3. What if You Don’t Have Access to or Can’t Afford Pastured/Wild Animal Products?
I think a lot of people are in this position, depending on where they live. It seems to me that if we really addressed the root of the problem then we would all start considering homesteading in one form or another. This does require a lifestyle change, though.
Much of what I would say on this topic was said by Kimi a couple of weeks ago in her post Q&A: Best Choice with Limited Meat Options. A lot of it also depends on your family’s needs. If we didn’t have access to local grass-fed meats we would probably put a lot more emphasis on the raw dairy and eggs that we receive, or vice-versa. We would probably eat a lot more sprouted legumes too. Often times the less expensive item (eggs) are more nutrient dense than the more expensive cuts of meat.
Ultimately, though, I stick with my general philosophy: do what you can with what you have.
What about you… do you have any good answers to these tough questions?
Thanks, Shannon, that’s a great post. Because of cost and availablility, most people have to pick and choose to some extent, make compromises sometimes, and just do their best. We can’t all do everything, but we can all do some – and if everyone does some it’s enough to make a huge difference.
People’s different biological needs are definitely an important subject. And since I don’t really believe you can “test” for these things, it helps to learn to listen to your body and see which foods affect you in a positive or negative way. Of course, it seems like the earlier you start with nourishing foods, the more you can tolerate!
Cost is definitely a factor . . . we choose to just eat less meat, and make dishes that focus on the vegetables and use meat more as an accent (stir fries would be an example).
I believe our bodies, all humans, are designed the way they are to eat animals, insects, fish, ect. I personally don’t buy the metabolic typing idea so much if it means that people become convinced they can’t digest meat. Certainly, vegtables are good too, and one can argue even essential for most folks nutrition, butI really don’t think, baring some extremely rare metabolic disorder that I haven’t heard of, there are people who can’t physically assimilate the nutrients from meat. For what it’s worth i was raised macrobiotic vegetarian for my early years and really didn’t eat meat much until my teens. I have adjusted great to having meat be a large part of my diet.
One quick suggestion – check your local craigs list ads. I’ve found quite a bit on there – from pastured eggs, grass fed meat, local produce, and raw goat milk. It’s out there, you just have to be willing to search in unconventional places.
I recently found out about a deer processing plant near me. Hunters donate their deer because many of them enjoy hunting it more than they enjoy comsuming it, or they have hunted more than they can eat. The processing plant then offers the meat to the public and all it costs is the processing fees. You can get a whole deer for $60-$80. Maybe others have something like this in their area. It makes eating wild and clean meat more of a possiblity for our family.
After much discussion and hemming and hawing, we’ve decided to commit ourselves to eating grass-fed and pastured meat. I found two great resources to keep us supplied, but…I’m having a hard time figuring out the cheaper cuts of meat and what to buy to keep our family of seven fed. We haven’t tried organ meat, though I’m going to buy some and see if I can hide it in meatballs or meatloaf. Ground beef seems to be something that would for us since we already love meatballs. I’d like to do a whole chicken, but for me, a 4 – 5 lb. bird is a better deal than the 3-4 lb. ones that I’m finding. I did find legs which are a combination of thighs and drumsticks and I can work with those. I’m just having a hard time wrapping my brain around this so we can get the most bang for our buck! It seems silly, but a post on your family’s choices for meat would be incredibly helpful as I figure this out. Thanks and sorry for the long post!
I am coming back around to this series a little late to the game, but I think a VERY important point to consider in the discussion of biochemical individuality is the overall health of one’s gut. Lifestyles wreak havoc on healthy intestinal flora–particularly if there have EVER been antibiotics taken (and really, who in this day and age hasn’t had at lease one cycle of antibiotics?). I love the whole series, really, but I feel that this is a key element.
Eating things the way God intended means that our bodies are as healthy as God intended from the start–and the harsh reality is that our bodies usually aren’t in a balanced state of health. For those that have difficulty digesting truly healthy foods, whether they be animal or plant materials, I would encourage everyone to search the balance of microflora in their diets. After healing my gut, I now subscribe to the thought that a healthy diet will include some LIVE (not pill-form) probiotics at every meal. This can include yogurt, kefir, water kefir, cultured butter, kombucha, clabbered milk/cream, lacto-fermented salsas, pickles, and other veggies; salt-fermented veggies including sauerkraut, etc., kim chi, and the like.
I was unable to digest meats (and I have NEVER been a vegetarian) well at all until I began having probiotics regularly. Eating beans, grains, and certain other foods commonly gives people gas; if these foods are properly prepared (sprouted or soaked, etc.), this problem is all but eliminated for most–and more nutrition is absorbed from the foods, rather than minerals being adsorbed from the body.
Please understand that I am not passing judgement on anyone for their choices in eating; I understand that certain people feel better with some things cut way back or even eliminated in their diet. I do, however, want to suggest that some food that seems to cause a reaction or other problem for individuals may not be the food itself, but the body that yet lacks the proper enzymes to digest a particular food. Case in point: my daughter is completely lactose-intolerant to “regular” dairy, but when we give her raw, grass-fed milk or ice cream or butter, the enzymes that haven’t been killed (by pasteurization) work just fine in her body, and she has no reaction whatsoever. For the record, she has had several rounds of antibiotics, and being a teenager, doesn’t eat very healthy when she’s not at the house anyway–which I consider a testament to the wonderful Creator that her body is so resilient that when she IS fed properly, her body behaves just as He intended.