5 strategies to reduce meat consumption

Many people, and especially during the last years, have tried to reduce the consumption of meat, either for health reasons, for tastes or for fighting against animal abuse. However, many people ask how to do it in a healthy way.

Reducing meat consumption will reduce the risk of high blood pressure, hypercholesterolemia, problems with uric acid or hypertriglicerolemia.

However, for people who are not used to it, taking this step suddenly can be too radical a change. For this reason, we recommend a series of strategies to start eating less meat and make it easier to adopt this eating habit.

Strategies to reduce meat consumption

1. Meat is not essential for health

There is a widespread myth that meat is essential to maintain the health of the body. However, this myth is false, since we have a wide variety of foods that provide us with the nutrients necessary to maintain the nutritional needs covered.

In this sense, begins by decreasing the weekly frequency with which you consume meat and also reduce the portions you eat. Also, remember that meat is not only red meats or poultry, but also:

• Sausage.
• Sausages.
• Butifarras.
• Patés.

Contrary to what many people believe, it is possible to cover the nutritional needs of the body even if meat is not consumed.

2. Vegetables and legumes, your great allies

A fundamental aspect that you must be clear about is that by reducing the consumption of meat you will have to increase the intake of other foods to be able to complement the nutritional contribution.

This increase will be, surely, of the vegetables that give you iron and proteins that you need. For this, it is essential that you increase the consumption of lentils, since they are a great source of protein, fiber, vitamin B, minerals and iron.

However, there are also other complete foods such as beans and beans, soy or cereals such as rice, oats or wheat.

3. Monitor the weekly purchase

An especially simple strategy that you can carry out to reduce the consumption of meat, it can be stop buying it. If you do not have meat, you will not eat it.

In the weekly purchase, try to buy more vegetables, fruits and vegetables. You will be surprised at the variety of plant-based foods offered by the market as well as the wide range of recipes available.

Read also: Vegetarian recipes to replace pasta, rice and potatoes

4. Reduce meat consumption little by little

As we have already mentioned, it is important that you reduce the amount of meat little by little in order to effectively achieve your goal. For this you can start by:

• Eliminate breakfast meat products.
• You can dine vegetables several times a week in substitution of sausages or other products of animal origin. Salads, omelette or a vegetable preparation can be good options.
• Discover new recipes without meat, since when you discover all the possibilities that there are, you will be feeling much more animated to reduce the consumption of meat.

The recipes made with vegetables and legumes are ideal to start replacing the meat in the diet.

In the case where you want to reduce the consumption of meat for health reasons, The best strategy for this is to opt for light sausages as they can be, for example, turkey, ham or lean meats like chicken.

If the reason you want to reduce meat consumption is by practicing a vegetarian or vegan diet, then you must completely reduce the consumption of any food that contains meat. Of course, it is always easier to do it little by little to accustom the organism to this type of feeding.

5. Fish instead of meat

If you are someone who wants to stop eating so much meat for health reasons and not to adopt a vegetarian diet, a good way to achieve this is by adding more fish to the diet, to replace meats in different recipes.

The blue fish They are an excellent source of omega-3 fatty acids and beneficial fatty oils. For this reason, it is a perfect option to consume it instead of meat. In addition, there are other fish, such as grouper, sea bream or hake, which They are low in fat and very healthy for the organism.

Maybe you're interested in reading too. 5 fish that you should avoid in your diet

conclusion

If you want to change your eating habits and reduce meat consumption, Remember that any change in the diet requires a time to adapt to it. However, when you get it, you will notice the results and you will feel much better with yourself.