What is it in many meat products that make them less healthy food choices? Elizabeth Tracey reports

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Do you need to eliminate all meats and animal products from your diet in order to improve your health? Johns Hopkins dietician Jaqueline Rose says while many people may choose to simplify matters by switching to a vegetarian or vegan diet, blaming everything on meat is too simplistic.

Rose: It does not necessarily mean that animal products are all to blame. Traditionally what we look at is sodium, sugar as well. Sugar sweetened beverages, sugar that we have in certain foods or sauces or side dishes, and saturated fats that can come from higher fat meat products. And that’s kind of why meat gets a bad name, is because certain meat does contain higher levels of saturated fat than plant-based sources.  :26

Saturated fats are implicated in heart disease and other chronic illnesses so keeping them to a minimum is likely a good idea. Rose notes that sugars and salt must also be accounted for in a healthy diet. At Johns Hopkins, I’m Elizabeth Tracey.