Here's another good reason for eating plants. Today, Tyson issued a recall of its five-pound bags of chicken nuggets because pieces of hard plastic were found embedded in the meat. The US Department of Agriculture calls it a Class 1 recall, indicating a health hazard capable of causing serious, adverse health consequences, or death. Of course, we don't need to wait until hard plastic is found in chicken nuggets to realize that this just isn't good food.
The University of Mississippi conducted a study entitled "Autopsy of Chicken Nuggets Reads 'Chicken Little.'" They sampled nuggets from two restaurants, taking them to the lab and putting them to the test. The first sample contained about "50% skeletal muscle, with the remainder composed primarily of fat, with some blood vessels and nerve present." The second had about 40% skeletal muscle with "generous quantities of fat and other tissue, including connective tissue and bone spicules."
The researchers concluded:
Our analysis confirms that chicken nuggets available at national fast food chains operating in a state with an epidemic of obesity and obesity-related disease remain a poor source of protein and are high in fat. Medical professionals should advise patients of the limited nutritional value of many processed foods, including this product.
So taking the advice of these researchers, as a medical professional, I advise my patients that chicken nuggets — like all other animal-derived and processed foods — will not provide the optimal nutrition required for health, vitality, or longevity. I urge all my patients to adopt a Starch-Smart® diet of low-fat whole plant foods. No plastic parts included.
For additional information:
(1) Chicken "Fecal Soup" Contamination