Do you know the Six Benefits of Meat Consumption to the Human body? Find it out....

   Meat is the flesh or other edible parts of animals which is usually domesticated cattle, swine, and sheep, used for food, including not only the muscles and fat but also the tendons and ligaments. 

Similarly, meat refers to the flesh of animals that humans prepare and consume as food. It serves as a very rich source of different kinds of nutrients prominent among them is Protein. Meat is valued as a complete protein food containing all the amino acids necessary for the human body. The meat of an animal is commonly referred to as Animal Protein.

there are ten different types of meat and they include, pork, beef, lamb, goat, chicken, turkey, duck, rabbit, seafood, and game meats. 

In Old English, the word meat (“mete”) was a general blanket term for food. These days, the definition of meat most commonly refers to the edible flesh of an animal, though you could also use it when describing the edible part of a plant, like a coconut meat or nutmeat. The meat industry is one of the largest in the world, and according to the USDA, the United States is the largest producer of beef. 

Results indicate that beef is the most frequently purchased meat product in Ghana as well as having the highest mean quantity (23.89 kg) of meat consumed and constitute about 52% of the meat budget. Mutton and chevon have the strongest substitution relationship. The marginal expenditure elasticity indicates that about 70% of the future meat budget of Ghanaian households will be spent on beef and chicken.

With the average kilograms and the frequency of purchase of the various meat products consumed by Ghanaian households, the consumption of beef is the most widely purchased meat at the national level followed by chicken and chevron. Within the rural-urban distribution of the frequency of purchase, the trend is the same with beef being the most purchased meat product in Ghana, however, the frequency of purchase of the game is larger in the rural areas than that of the urban areas.

The availability of game meat is largely produced from hunting in rural areas with supplementary production from urban areas through livestock farming. Considering the mean quantity of meat products consumed, beef recorded the highest mean value of 23.89kg

with mutton having 23.29kg. 

Game meat is the least meat consumed in terms of kilograms; the mean quantity consumed in the urban areas is generally higher than that of the rural areas. Generally, income levels in the urban areas are higher than that of the rural areas, perhaps this is accounting for the higher quantities of meat consumed in the urban areas.

Research shows that the planting for food and jobs initiative has cut down the percentage of the import of meat consumption to Ghana. Then, Ghana uses to import about 50% of her meat consumption and these are large chicken, beef, and pork products. Chevon, mutton, and game are predominantly locally produced and specifically from rural Ghana, however, the urban areas are consuming more of this meat than that of the rural areas. The study, therefore, reveals that meat product is highly tradable in Ghana. The budget share of meat products is the ratio of the expenditure on that food group to total expenditure on meat. In terms of budget expenditures on the various meat products, beef has the highest (52%) budget share of meat followed by chicken with game and mutton having the least budget shares. In both rural and urban areas, the game has the least of the budget shares. Even though urban areas consume more of a game than rural areas, the budget share of games in rural areas is more than of the urban areas. Again, the budget shares of rural areas on pork are about twice.

SIX BENEFITS OF MEAT CONSUMPTION

• The intake of meat gives the body protein. It is a very rich source of protein which are necessary for body function and virtually every origin in the human body needs proteins. Cell repair, the formation of new cells is the work of protein in the human body.

• Meat in the body also gives vitamins B-12. This vitamin is commonly found in meat, especially red meat. This function is to repair and enhance the functioning of nerves in the body. Vitamin B-12 gives us the sensation of touch, response to our environment, and related brain functions.

•  Vitamins are also a big part of one’s diet, and Vitamin A, B, and D are commonly found in meat as well. Not only do these vitamins promote good vision, stronger teeth, and bones but it also supports the central nervous system thus promoting mental health as well. Another big benefit of eating meat is the maintenance of your skin’s health.

• The consumption of meat gives the body iron. Iron forms the haem component of the red blood cells that enables the red blood cells to carry nutrients and oxygen around the body. Therefore, without iron, there are no red blood cells.

• The consumption of meat gives a reduced appetite. As a matter of fact, meat gives high protein content which increases metabolic rate and enhances full satisfaction.

• Meat contains lipids. Of course, meat contains rich deposits of fat that when consumed, will help to cushion the body cells.

By: Justina Amoah

[Source]: Carl Grant; The Readers Hub