121: The Meat God Said to Eat
God made ruminant animals like cattle, goats, sheep, deer and elk with special digestive systems that break down and detoxify plant matter into vitamins, minerals, amino and fatty acids made available to us through their meat. We reap the benefit of plant nutrition by way of the animal as the intermediary. It is the beautiful and efficient design of our Creator. The Maker of our bodies made the perfect food for our bodies. God is the Master Nutritionist and there’s no better dietary advice to follow than His!
Listen into this week’s podcast to hear more about the meat God said to eat and how much animal-based protein we should be targeting each day.
EPISODE 121: The Meat God Said to Eat
SHOW NOTES
(0:00) Intro
Hello my friend! Welcome back to the club. How are you today?
Thyroid lab results:
Both my TSH and T4 improved
Reverse T3 came back within normal functional range.
Free T3 came back the same
(2:47) We are back to The Genesis Prescription!
This week’s GP goal is to get 70-90 grams of animal sourced protein a day.
This is also the week in The Christian Health CLub that we are doing our Track Your Macs challenge.
I have purposefully timed the Track Your Macs challenges in The CHC with the week we are focusing on animal foods because:
Many of us (especially women) are not getting enough usable impactful protein from animal-based foods.
Protein is the macronutrient that will keep you the most full, help you lose weight and make your body composition more lean and fit.
Plant-based protein is not used nearly as efficiently as animal-based protein plus it usually comes with a load of carbs.
Why You Need More Protein
The Search for the Perfect Protein
The word protein originates from the Greek word “proteios” which means “primary” or “holding the first place.”
Proteins are the primary substance that hold our body in place. We need protein for growth and repair. We need it to make enzymes (involved in every function of the body), hormones and antibodies. We need protein to make all of our cells.
There are twenty-two amino acids in protein that the body needs, but of those twenty-two, only eight are classified as essential.
The essential amino acids can only be obtained from the food that you eat.
Animal foods offer us our best, most efficient and bioavailable sources of protein.
(9:37) So we’lll start today where I always start - in the Bible.
Everything that lives and moves about will be food for you. Just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything. Genesis 9:3
Why did God wait until after The Flood to approve animal foods for us to eat?
There’s much speculation on this, leading some people to believe that we should stick to plants because that was God’s original provision. But, for whatever reason, and I’m sure it was a good one, He decided to allow us animal sources too. We can take Him at His word, His literal Word, that these are intended to be a part of the human diet.
Dr Minkoff, the author of that book I mentioned earlier says,
All people with fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome are protein malnourished.
All depressed people and people with anxiety are protein malnourished.
All osteoporitic patients are protein malnourished.
All patients with cancer are protein malnourished.
All patients with autoimmune diseases Lupus and Rheumatoid Arthritis are protein malnourished.
All patients with sleep disorders are protein malnourished.
All Parkinson’s patients are protein malnourished.
And all Alzheimer’s dementia patients are protein malnourished.
Why did God not give us meat until after The Great Flood and basically as part of the package of the new covenant?
Many people believe that God will reinstate a plant-based diet when Jesus comes back based on verses like this one from Isaiah 11:6-7
The wolf will live with the lamb,
the leopard will lie down with the goat,
the calf and the lion and the yearling together;
and a little child will lead them.
The cow will feed with the bear,
their young will lie down together,
and the lion will eat straw like the ox.
And this one from Revelation 21:4:
He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”
Both of these give us the vision of the peaceable Kingdom that will harken back to the Garden of Eden before death entered into the world.
(15:01) Not only did God give us meat to eat, He even specified what kind:
You may eat any animal that has a divided hoof and that chews the cud. Leviticus 11:3
Animals that chew their cud are known as ruminants. Ruminant animals include cattle, deer, sheep[, goats, antelope, bison, buffalo, moose and elk.
Ruminants are herbivores (plant eaters) with a special digestive system that helps them detoxify and break down plant matter into vitamins, minerals, amino and fatty acids made available to us through their meat.
It takes ruminants much longer to process food than non ruminant animals because of their multichambered digestive system - it takes like 24 hours whereas a pig which is a monogastric animal - one stomach like us take closer to 4 hours.
An intricately formed digestive system allows more time for toxic and pathogenic material to be destroyed.
The Earth nourishes the animal and the animal, in turn, nourishes us. It is the beautiful and efficient design of our Creator.
You cause the grass to grow for the livestock and plants for man to cultivate, that he may bring forth food from the earth. Psalm 104:14
God not only created the perfect food for us, He created the perfect food for animals too.
(18:36) Discussing the work of Dr. Stephan Van Vliet:
He is doing research on how the nutrient profile of meat and milk changes depending how what the animal eats and how it’s raised.
There are studies showing we get a healthy dose of phytochemicals from the meat and milk of grassfed animals like cattle, sheep and goats but those are significantly reduced when they are switched to grain -
Corn and soy are full of Omega6 fatty acids.
Too many Omega-6s and not enough Omega-3s leads to serious inflammation in the body on a cellular level.
Our intake of Omega-6 fatty acids had sky rocketed over the last 50-75 years.
In the podcast I listened to, Dr. Van Vleit talks about how there is study suggesting that grass-fed meat is also higher in thiamine and riboflavin which is vitamins B1 and B2 than grain-fed meat and ones those are 2 important vitamins that people are often deficient in.
He talked about a study on pecorino cheese which comes from sheep milk that compared grass-fed and grain-fed and the grass-fed had higher anti-inflammatory properties.
(25:35) Dairy Discussion— Biblical Times vs. Modern Times:
Cow, sheep and goat meat and dairy were all a part of life in Biblical times.
He then brought some curds and milk and the calf that had been prepared, and set these before them. While they ate, he stood near them under a tree. Genesis 18:8
In the book Everyday Life in Old Testament Times, author E. W. Heaton says:
“Since water was scarce and not very palatable, a good deal of milk was drunk. As soon as the fresh milk was put into the goat-skin bottle, it thickened slightly and went sour. All the better, it was thought, for quenching the thirst.”
Differences in the gut microbiome and food quality.
Their food was clean and prepared in a way that optimized nutrition.
Bible people were eating dairy that came straight from the animal in its raw, full fat form.
When it comes to dairy you want to buy the highest quality that you can - grass-fed if possible, I can’t get that where I am and if you can’t either then at least buy organic, full fat dairy.
(36:00) A few more meaty things to discuss:
Once I read in the Bible that God gave us meat and then was so specific about what kind -which included beef - that shut down the argument for me.
But it’s not just about beef, it’s about all of the ruminant meat.
Now then, get your equipment--your quiver and bow--and go out to the open country to hunt some wild game for me. Genesis 27:3
Of the birds, the following ones must not be eaten: the eagle, the vulture, the kite, the falcon, the raven, the owl, the hawk, the osprey, the stork, the heron, the hoopoe and the bat. Lev 11:13-19.
We don’t see eggs mentioned really in the bible - they were likely eating eggs from ducks and geese and quail. One of the more famous Bible verses when it comes to eggs is very indirect:
“Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? 12 Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? Luke 11:11-12
(39:39) Closing thoughts:
We know that our Father is our Mighty Provider - and gives us good things - including food.
Food will not make us acceptable to God. We are not inferior if we don’t eat, and we are not better if we do eat. 1 Corinthians 8:8
The Maker of our bodies did make the perfect food FOR our bodies. He specifically tells us which foods are best for us to eat. The more we stick to clean plant and animal foods the healthier we will be. Our prescription for good health is found right there in His Word. These are the meats God said to eat. He is the Master Nutritionist and there’s no better dietary advice to follow than His.
He is THE essential nutrient, the primary substance that holds us together in Spirit, Mind and Body. Give thanks and praise for the blessing of His generous provision which keeps us strong and healthy.
(42:35) Outro & Disclaimer
Thanks for listening! Have a healthy and blessed week!