Doctors warn against gorging on meat
Eating too much red meat for even a couple of days can be toxic to those with health issues
Overindulgence in meat preparations during Eid Al Adha celebrations can cost you your health and doctors advise a moderate consumption of meat. Most hospitals report a high number of patients suffering from gastritis, diarrhoea and vomiting at the emergency ward during Eid Al Adha.
Dr Rania Fauzy, General Practitioner, Internal Medicine, Medcare Hospital Sharjah, told Gulf
News: “People tend to have meat preparations for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Meat is heavy to digest and high consumption of red meat after ten days of fasting [which some people observe before Eid Al Adha] triggers indigestion, colic gastritis, vomiting and diarrhoea. We have a 30 per cent rise in these cases during this period.”
Far-reaching impact
Heavy consumption of red meat has a far-reaching impact on cholesterol and heart health and is likely to induce cardiac episodes and result in higher incidences of thickening of arteries. Heavy consumption of red meat even for a couple of days can prove to be toxic for those already suffering from high cholesterol, obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular diseases, doctors warned.
Dr Juliott Vinolia, clinical dietician and head of nutrition department at Medeor 24/7, told Gulf News: “According to the recommendations of the American Dietary Association, it is not advisable to eat more than 150 to 200 gm of red meat a day. But with meat stews, cutlets, grills, heavily curried items, burgers and cutlets as part all three meals [of the day], people end up having nearly 500 gm to one kg of red meat.
“Red meat makes the blood very acidic, increases the uric acid and nitrogenous waste compounds in the blood and also results in an excessive load on the kidneys. People who already have kidney stones have a high risk of developing urate stones too. There is also a risk of developing gall bladder stones.”
Dr Vinolia said that even excesses over a day or two can prove toxic for people. “Our digestive system is not designed to handle such high level of protein and this generates a lot of peptic acid triggering nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea. Besides, cured red meat is high in sodium and even the fresh cuts from the butcher, cooked with barbecue sauces and curries lead to a sodium build-up in the body, which is not advisable for patients of hypertension. Even a couple of days of heavy red meat consumption can aggravate arthelosclerosis in heart patients,” Dr Vinolia warned.
Dr Fauzy advised people to not go overboard with meat consumption.
“Even two days of heavy meat consumption can cause a rise in low-density lipoprotein [LDL].
“A single piece of veal, for instance, is 800 calories and such a high-calorie consumption can harm your digestive system as the stomach is already very sensitive after ten days of fasting.”