I often hear people say that pork is red meat and fish is white meat, but are you clear about what the difference between red meat and white meat is? Is white meat better or red meat better? We can discuss it!
The difference between white meat and red meat
The main factor that distinguishes red meat from white meat is whether the animal has more fast muscle fibers or more slow muscle fibers.
Muscles with slow muscle fibers are usually used during sustained movements like slow walking, standing and flying. Such muscles are characterized by being rich in myoglobin, which stores large amounts of oxygen and is therefore able to support long-term energy expenditure.
Fast muscle fiber type muscles are used during short duration activities. These muscles do not have enough myoglobin and the energy consumption is glycogen.
Different nutrient content
Red meat is higher in saturated fat and cholesterol than white meat, and relatively less in unsaturated fatty acids and protein. The protein composition of white meat is closer to that of the human body, so white meat is a good source of high-quality protein. Red meat is higher in minerals, especially iron, than white meat. Red meat is also a good source of zinc and selenium, while red meat also provides important vitamins B12, B6, and niacin.
Different meat color
The color of myoglobin is red, so raw red meat looks red. Fast muscle fiber type muscles consume mainly glycogen, which has a whitish color, so raw white meat is usually white.
What are the common red meats
Red meat refers to meat that appears red before cooking, specifically pork, beef, lamb, venison, rabbit, etc. The vast majority of mammalian meat is red meat. The color of red meat comes from the myoglobin contained in mammalian meat.
What are the common white meat
White meat generally refers to fish, shrimp, shellfish, chicken, duck, and goose, although salmon, cooked shrimp, and crab are red in color and cannot be considered red meat. The color of the food after cooking well cannot be used as a criterion to determine whether it is red meat or white meat, such as pork, although it turns white when cooking, it is still red meat.
Is it better to eat red meat or white meat?
Just because red meat has a higher fatty acid content than white meat does not mean that red meat should be rejected altogether. In fact, the iron in red meat cannot be replaced by white meat. Red meat is especially important for infants, pregnant women, teenagers and middle-aged and elderly people, and for anemic and menstruating women, it is important to consume red meat for timely iron supplementation.
White meat is high in unsaturated fatty acids, but not the more the better, excessive oxidation is easy to produce free radicals, etc. is not good for the body.
Therefore, red and white meat should be consumed in combination, and the dietary guidelines for Chinese residents recommend not more than 75 grams of livestock and poultry meat per day. There is no data on the ratio of red meat to white meat. As far as the dietary habits of Chinese residents are concerned, the proportion of red meat eaten is greater than that of white meat, so white meat should be consciously supplemented in daily life.
