There are of course commendable reasons to avoiding red meat, beef in particular; environmental considerations* and animal welfare.

The guidelines, however, say that eating too much red meat can lead to an increased risk of heart disease, obesity, and certain types of cancer. Once again this is based on the fear of saturated fat and cholesterol. If cholesterol is the real concern, the guidelines would not be able to recommend lean cuts and white meat instead – the cholesterol amount is roughly the same for all meat. So it’s only about the fear of visible fat then.

The real issue for meat in general is the amount of antibiotics when meat is produced on an industrial scale. Any meat including white meat. Eating meat that contains antibiotics can affect your gut health negatively, and can lead to antibiotic-resistance in humans.

If you do reduce meat in your diet for health reasons, be very mindful of what you’re putting in its place. More pasta, rice or potatoes will only lead to more health issues.

*) 15,000 liters of water is needed to produce one kilogram of beef. To illustrate, it takes a family pool to produce 5 kg beef.