Are Plant-Based Meat Alternatives Actually Healthier? | Healthy and Beyond

Evaluating the Health Benefits of Plant-Based Meat Alternatives

Plant-based meat alternatives have exploded in popularity in recent years. Products like the Beyond Burger and Impossible Burger aim to mimic the taste, texture, and satisfaction of eating beef while being made entirely from plants. But the big question remains: are these meatless alternatives actually healthier than eating meat?

The Rise of Plant-Based Meat

Plant-based meat sales grew 45% in just the past two years in the United States. Big brands like Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods have led the charge, creating products that try to perfectly recreate the experience of eating beef, chicken, pork and other meats using plant ingredients like peas, soy, coconut oil, and natural flavors.

These companies market their products as better for both human health and the environment compared to animal meat. But with ingredients lists featuring oils, sodium, and highly processed proteins, are these meatless alternatives living up to their healthy hype?

Examining the Nutrition of Beef vs Plant-Based Burgers

At first glance, plant-based burgers seem to have an impressive nutrition profile. Let's compare the Beyond Burger to an equal serving of ground beef:

• The Beyond Burger has lower overall calories (270 vs. 288)
• It has less total fat (20g vs. 23g)
• It contains no cholesterol (beef has 80mg)
• It provides more iron (25% vs. 15% daily value)

However, looking closer reveals that the Beyond Burger's fat content includes 16g of saturated fat, compared to just 9g for 85% lean beef. Too much saturated fat has been conclusively linked to increased LDL "bad" cholesterol levels and heart disease risk.

Sodium Content Concerns

The Beyond Burger and Impossible Burger also contain very high levels of sodium, with about 16% and 13% respectively of the daily upper sodium intake limit per patty. Most health experts recommend limiting sodium intake to less than 2,300mg per day, as excess sodium is associated with high blood pressure, stroke, and heart failure over time.

While beef certainly isn't low sodium, even 75% lean ground beef only contains around 75mg sodium per 4oz uncooked patty, compared to 390mg of sodium in the plant-based patties.

Ultra-Processed Ingredients

Animal meats contain just one ingredient: the meat itself. In contrast, most plant-based meat alternatives include a long list of additional ingredients used to mimic real meats texture and taste.

Ingredients like methylcellulose, maltodextrin, andmixed natural flavors point to these meatless patties being highly processed foods. Significant research shows that ultra-processed food intake is tied to higher risks of obesity, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and even certain cancers compared to whole, minimally processed foods.

The Verdict: Moderation Is Key

While plant-based meats make efforts to recreate the satisfying taste and texture of beef and chicken, from a nutrition standpoint they may not be objectively healthier based on current evidence.

Ingredients like coconut oil and sunflower oil add a lot of saturated fat relative to animal meat, while sodium levels also tend to be very high to help with flavor and food safety.

That being said, eating the occasional plant-based burger in place of beef likely won't have negative health effects for most healthy people. Choosing grilled preparations instead of fried, and watching sodium intake from other foods can help reduce potential downsides.

Other Considerations of Plant-Based Meat Alternatives

When weighing whether products like the Beyond Sausage or Impossible Breakfast Sandwich are healthy options, it's important to look past just their nutritional pros and cons. Other factors play an important role as well.

Gut Health & Digestibility

Protein digestibility and amino acid bioavailability refers to how efficiently our bodies can digest and utilize protein from different food sources.

Most whole food sources of meat have a near perfect protein digestibility score of 1.0, meaning nearly 100% of it can be digested and utilized by our bodies. In contrast, early research shows common ingredients used in meatless alternatives like peas and soy may only have digestibility scores around 0.7 to 0.8.

This may mean you need to eat more of the plant proteins to meet your body's amino acid needs compared to animal sources. Their digestibility and absorption may also vary more person-to-person based on unique gut microbiome activity.

Allergies & Restricted Diets

Those following restricted diets like gluten-free, nut-free, or soy-free may also want to exercise caution with meat alternatives. Despite aiming to recreate meat, ingredients like wheat gluten, sunflower oil, mustard, yeast extracts, and soy are common.

Always carefully read nutrition labels and ingredient lists before consuming, even if you have tolerated meatless burgers previously.

In the case of allergies and intolerances, it may be safer to stick to quality sources of animal protein like beef, poultry, fish and eggs when possible.

The Takeaway

Plant-based meat alternatives provide a potentially appealing option for those looking to reduce their meat intake and carbon footprint. However, their actual health impacts are more complex than basic nutrition facts panels suggest.

Moderation with these ultra-processed foods is important. Keeping intake to 1-2 weekly servings and watching out for unwanted side effects on digestion or existing food intolerances seems prudent.

At the end of the day, high quality minimally processed lean meats, fish, eggs, legumes, nuts and seeds likely remain the "gold standard" to meet our protein needs while supporting optimal health.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always consult with a healthcare professional before starting any new treatment regimen.