Staying Healthy and Happy With Horsemeat

  The UK has long had a taboo against the consumption of horsemeat, and the emotional response of recent weeks demonstrated this taboo is in no danger of waning, with the public outcry of horse content in value meat resembling a mixture of horror and disgust. It's interesting to wonder why we have this taboo. It's long been a staple of Europe and Asia, and 30,000 year old cave paintings show the animal being hunted. Some cite the Catholic need to distance the Pagan Germanic lifestyle which preceded it, or simply the fact that a low feed-to-meat ratio and the horse's value as a long-term working animal made it inefficient to eat after intensive farming was invented.

  No doubt, there are sincere problems with our supply. It was provided as a part of criminal activity, and is unlikely to have been held against appropriate health standards. Nonetheless, there's a reason horse meat is still enjoyed outside of England and the US. It's considered to be both tasty and healthy, and is more popular than lamb or mutton in Sweden, Belgium and France.


  Firstly, the meat is incredibly lean. It features much less fat and saturates than pork, along with being leaner than the majority of beef steaks. Where particularly lean options like the top round steak offer good nutrition, the horse holds up extremely well. While strip cuts of horsemeat compare favourably to lean cuts of beef, it's also considered to be considerably sweeter and more tender. One of the main complaints against lean beef cuts is their tough nature, so there's no wonder horse meat has remained a common feature of dinner tables across the globe.

  Nutritionally, there are a fair few more benefits to speak of. Horse meat features over double the iron content of beef, being a naturally more athletic creature. While they have less B6 and Raicin, horse meat also has much more of vitamin B12 than beef.

  Notably, horse meat has high levels of omega-3 fatty acids, especially compared to regular beef. Per 100g of meat, you can expect to find over 350mg of the essential nutrients in horse meat, while strip steak features only 20. Depending on whether you're male or female, you'd have to eat between three and five kilograms of lean red meat a day to hit your recommended amounts, compared to a mere 300-400g of horsemeat.

  Usually we turn to fish in order to find omega-3 fatty acids, while they can't synthesize it, the algae and plankton constituting their diets provide it in high amounts. Horse meat can't compare to the oilier fish, but these omega-3 levels are higher than you'd find in some of the most popular fish, including cod and tuna.

  There are a lot of problems with the horsemeat scandal. Consumers being lied to, breaking taboos without their knowledge, and generally eating meat from unrecognised and untested sources. Though it's interesting to think that if it was properly regulated, horsemeat could be one of the healthiest staples to our diet.

  From the wonders of horse meat to meal replacement supplements, Mira is committed to informing her readers on every nutritional option out there. Now a featured collaborator for Muscle Finesse, she has more time than ever to dedicate to her passions.


 
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