LifestyleTry this healthier meat alternative to chicken: Dietitians' recommendation

Try this healthier meat alternative to chicken: Dietitians' recommendation

Turkey as an alternative to chicken. Does it make sense?
Turkey as an alternative to chicken. Does it make sense?
Images source: © Canva | bhofack2

1:22 PM EST, November 15, 2023

Dieticians continually emphasize the need to consume more of this specific meat. Nevertheless, many still prefer chicken or red meat high in saturated fatty acids. Could the lack of a Thanksgiving tradition be the cause? Spoiler alert: we're talking about turkey!

Raising turkeys, the subject of this article, is notably more demanding than mass chicken production. These peculiar birds have distinct needs and a longer growth time; they are also more sensitive. Thus, the final product's quality largely depends on satisfying these conditions.

A typical turkey diet should include garlic, wormwood, and onion, among other things. Non-chemical food and natural rearing is a challenge for producers. However, it's still worth undertaking because turkey meat is significantly healthier compared to not only pork and beef, but also chicken. Therefore, the demand for turkey meat is steadily increasing.

The health benefits of turkey

Dietitians unanimously agree that turkey is a healthy substitute for the more universally consumed meats. Celina Kinicka, a clinical dietitian and diet coach at Damian Medical Center, extolled the nutritional benefits of turkey meat. She stated that turkey contains more ash content or total nutritious value, than chicken. Regarding caloric content, she added:

When comparing turkey breast with chicken breast meat, both have low fat content. However, turkey possesses even lower fat content and hence a lower energy value.

Aside from this simple comparison, there are other unique attributes found in turkey. This meat is a rich source of high-quality protein, vitamins B and D, and a host of minerals including potassium, phosphorus, magnesium, iron, and zinc.

An intriguing fact about the Thanksgiving turkey

Given the above data, it's easy to conclude that Americans knew what they were doing when they assigned turkey as the traditional Thanksgiving meal. They don't hold back either! If you thought Poles consumed a lot of carps for Christmas, you'd be amazed to learn that Americans consume over 45 million turkeys in just one day for Thanksgiving. Despite this, there's no risk of turkey extinction since production keeps up with the demand.

Turkey not only for Thanksgiving Day
Turkey not only for Thanksgiving Day© Canva | Monstera Production
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