By Catherine Crépeau – The Rumor Detector – Agence Science-Presse
Over the last few years, commercial burgers made from “vegetable meat” have multiplied on store shelves. Their healthy aura and their environmentally friendly image have helped sell them. If the environmental impact of a reduction of red meat consumption is beyond doubt, the Rumor Detector has discovered some small problems concerning the supposed health benefits of these “meatless” burgers.
Beyond Meat is in Quebec supermarkets and at A & W; Impossible Burger is at Burger King. These new era vegetable patties, which imitate the meaty taste, color and texture of ground beef, are described as healthier than traditional beef burgers. Red meat is notably associated with an increase in cancer risks and cardiovascular ailments. So faking beef in a veggie patty seems to be a good health choice. But the reality isn’t so simple.
The first issue: ultra-processed foods.
With their 20 or so ingredients, veggie burgers find themselves in the category of ultra-processed foods, if we rely upon the Nova classification system, which is a reference for determining the extent a foodstuff is processed. Generally richer in salt, saturated fats and sugar than foods made at home, ultra-processed foods are related to increased risks in obesity, cardiovascular issues, some cancers, and even death.
In fast food restaurants, veggie patties are often cooked with fats and slid between white flour bread buns, with accompanying mayonnaise and sauce. These are also ultra-processed foods. By comparison, there would be a different classification for a veggie patty prepared by a consumer in their own kitchen using fresh ingredients.
The second issue: vegetarian doesn’t always mean healthy
It is tempting to think that a veggie product is automatically healthy, since many studies have concluded that vegetarians are in generally better health. But it is not always necessary to eliminate meat from one’s diet to be healthy. A Harvard study of almost 200,000 health professionals reminds us that there are healthy vegetarian diets (rich in fruits, beans, nuts etc.) and unhealthy ones (rich in potatoes, fries, chips, as well as products made from refined flour like bread, crackers, etc.). A healthy vegetarian diet reduces risks of coronary disease by 25% compared to meaty and animal-based diets, which increase the risks by 30%.
To know if your veggie patties are part of the “good” veggie diet or the “bad,” check the ingredients.
The third issue: mitigated nutritional value
The main ingredients in the Beyond Meat patty are pea protein isolate, canola oil and refined coconut oil; the Impossible Burger is made with soy protein, coconut oil and sunflower oil. Neither contains cholesterol, but they have as much saturated fats as a thin beef patty thanks to the coconut oil. Studies indicate that this ingredient increases your LDL cholesterol – a cause of cardiovascular disease – as much as other sources of saturated fats such as butter, beef fat or palm oil. And it does so more than unsaturated fats like olive oil.
Another disadvantage: the Beyond Meat patty is six times saltier than a thin beef patty, providing relatively as much protein, according to what the Canada Food Guide has to say about ground beef.
On the other hand, the Beyond Meat patty is twice as rich in iron compared to lean meat. But it is difficult to say who has the advantage: it is the iron contained in lean meat, called heme, which is better absorbed by the body than that from plant sources, at a ratio of 30% to 10%. It’s also the iron in lean meat that is involved in mechanisms associated with the development of colorectal cancer. That is why the International Agency for Research on Cancer classifies the regular consumption of red meat as cancer-causing.
In any case, nutritionists say it is always preferable to obtain fresh vegetables and prepare your own patties with green beans, lentils or quinoa, in order to control your consumption of salt and saturated fats.
Verdict
Commercial vegetable patties and commercial meat patties each have their health advantages and disadvantages, if we look at their nutritive value and the risks associated with mortality and chronic diseases. Veggie patties are better than lean meat in terms of cancer risks, but it remains an ultra-processed product rich in saturated fats and sodium, so we should only eat them occasionally.
Environmental value: Advantage vegie patty. Those who opt for the Beyond Meat patty to protect the environment can cite a study that says that its production requires 90% less greenhouse gases, 46% less energy, 99% less water and reduces the use of soil by 93% compared to the production of a quarter pound of beef. You should always know where the ingredients of different veggie patty recipes come from in order to clearly establish the impact of their production on the environment.
This article is part of the Détecteur de rumeurs series. Click here for other articles in the series.
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