What happens when you eat too much meat?
You’ve probably heard varying opinions on whether eating meat is good or bad for you. Although the right answer is still very murky, experts and researchers have found that eating too much meat can worsen your risk for several health issues. Here are some things that could happen to your body if you eat too much meat.
You could feel sleepy
Protein has a reputation for providing energy that lasts, so you might be surprised when a meat-heavy diet leaves you dragging. While protein sticks with you because it takes a while to digest, it won’t give you the immediate boost that carbohydrates do: carbs quickly break down into the body’s most readily available energy source, glucose, says registered dietitian, Caroline Passerrello.
Because your brain can only use glucose for energy, its energy supply can lag when your diet features slow-to-digest protein. The fuel is “taking a little longer to get to your brain, so you’re a little less focused,” says Passerrello. The same is true for muscles, which also run on glucose, she points out. The result: fatigue and brain fog.
Your hair and skin might not look their best
If you’re overdoing your meat portions, there’s a good chance you’re skimping on other food groups. Vitamin C is rarely found in animal products, so if you’re eating meat in place of produce, you could become deficient. Vitamin C plays a role in forming collagen, a protein that gives structure to skin, hair, nails, bones, and more. If you’re deficient, you might notice changes in your body, says registered dietitian Jenna Braddock, founder of makehealthyeasy.com. “Your skin could be rough and bumpy. You might see some interesting body hair growth,” she says.
Passerrello adds that her clients have raved about how much better their skin looks after cutting back on animal products to make room for a more plant-based diet. Braddock recommends eating dark, leafy greens every day – a cup of kale alone packs in more than a day’s worth of vitamin C.