Eat, Drink and Enjoy a Rare Steak

The other night I went to my favorite buffet as I was craving a juicy rare steak. As usual, I requested a rare steak as they do not serve it on the buffet rare. Since my last visit there was a new manager. Prior to this visit I was always able to get a rare steak. The new manager was not obliging. His argument was that a rare steak would put me in danger of E. coli infection.

This experience got me to thinking about the excessive concern with E. coli, Salmonella, and the various food borne illnesses. While not intending to minimize the threat or the need for caution, I wonder if our concerns for these things have not grown to an extreme.

Everything in life has risk and we naturally weigh the risk against the benefits. Sometimes the only recognizable benefit is the enjoyment that we experience. While there may be some risk in eating a rare steak, even cooked foods can be contaminated, especially in restaurants. Improper cleaning of utensils, storing of food, poor refrigeration, these factors and others can contribute to contamination.

Does bacterial contamination mean that you will get sick? I venture to say that it is generally the individual's particular health condition rather than the bacteria itself that makes one sick. It is how your own immune system reacts to the bacteria. A healthy immune system prevents bacterial infections by destroying infectious microorganisms that do invade the body.

All sickness is caused by one of two things, lack of proper nutrition and stress. That is to say if your immune system is healthy thru proper diet, reduction of stress and adequate exercise, the risk of bacterial exposures to your system will be limited. A healthy lifestyle that includes regular exercise and a balanced diet helps curb stress which is the real cause of disease and illness.

As a side note: Do a google search for 'Chris Masterjohn' and read his interesting article on the health benefits of eating a rare steak.

It is interesting to note that it is getting difficult to get a rare steak in some restaurants. I surmise that the establishments are fearful of lawsuits. If the restaurants are concerned with law suits, I would suggest that these establishments devise legal waivers that one would have to sign alleviating the proprietor from liability if one chooses to eat a rare steak. This would only be necessary if you were to incur illness from a personal request for a rare steak in a restaurant that did not as a general rule serve rare steaks.

While not wanting to advocate lack of caution, I do suggest balance and common sense. There are many factors in life we cannot avoid. People come in contact with bacteria, viruses and diseases every day. There is also the unforeseen occurrence that befalls us all.

You could be driving home from work and have an accident that could land you in a wheel chair or be fatal, yet you do not stop driving. If we live in avoidance of all risks and dangers we would have to live in a bubble like David Vetter, a boy born with severe combined immunodeficiency. David Vetter had to spend his entire life inside a sealed plastic bubble in order to avoid infections.

So in conclusion, I suggest that you live a healthy lifestyle. Exercise regularly (30 minutes at least 3 times a week), eat a balanced diet, take a multi-vitamin. Be sure to get plenty of sunshine, drink lots of water, avoid toxins, and practice stress reduction exercises.

If you do these things along with keeping a positive mental attitude you should have a healthy immune system. Then go ahead and eat, drink and enjoy a rare steak.