Good Versus Bad Protein: Consumer Food Issues

Unfortunately, all foods are not created equal. Each food group has foods that are healthy and will benefit the body and those that could be damaging to the body. In this paper, the consumer and health-related issues in relation to fresh tuna versus hot dogs will be examined. Food safety and comparison to the food-guide pyramid will be discussed in an effort to highlight the positive and negative aspects of each food.

The food I have chosen as a good protein is fresh tuna. The serving size examined was a 4 oz serving size, which is a normal serving size for any protein source. Fresh tuna is an excellent source of protein, helping to meet the RDA requirement by offering 27 grams of protein per 4 oz serving. Fresh tuna has a number of benefits that would help an individual to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Tuna is low in fat and calories, with only one gram of fat and 122 calories per serving size. Tuna is high in potassium (503 grams), yet low in cholesterol and sodium (51 grams and 42 grams respectively). A 4 oz serving of fresh tuna also offers more than half the RDA for niacin (56%) and vitamin B-6 (51%), along with high percentages for a host of other vitamins, including thiamin, phosphorus and magnesium.

The food I have chosen as a bad source of protein to examine is a beef hot dog. Hot dogs are processed meats that offer very little, if any nutritional value. One regular sized hot dog has 186 calories and a very high 17 grams of fat. Since it is unlikely that anyone would eat just one hot dog at a time, it is possible that those numbers could double or triple per meal. Hot dogs also are very high in sodium, with 591 grams per one serving. In addition, the protein source is very low. One hot dog offers only seven grams of protein, and at least three hot dogs need to be consumed in one meal to even get close to the same amount in one 4 oz serving of tuna. Hot dogs do not offer any significant sources of vitamins. The closest to the RDA in one hot dog would be vitamin B-12 at 13% RDA, and even eating three hot dogs in one meal would only give 39% of B-12. Hot dogs are a poor source of all of the recommended vitamins required daily to maintain a healthy and balanced diet, not to mention that in order to preserve them for long periods of time, chemicals such as nitrates must be used, which could be very harmful to the body. Processed meats, including hot dogs, have also recently been targeted as a possible cause of certain cancers such as pancreatic and colon cancer.

Safety is very important when shopping for any protein source, as there is a strong risk for contracting salmonella, e-coli, and many other diseases if not careful. On both tuna and hot dogs, the date the item was packaged as well as the sell-by date should be checked. Hot dogs will last longer because of all of the preservatives, but tuna does not have a long life once purchased. It is important to purchase tuna with a recent packaging that offers several days of freshness and safety after the item is sold. The tuna also must be frozen before it reaches the sell by date if it will not be consumed by that date. It is also important to check for proper color and cleanliness of packaging for both tuna and hot dogs and to make sure the packages are not damaged. Proper temperatures must also be maintained, and it is crucial that both tuna and hot dogs are being stored in the grocery store at a temperature of 41 degrees or below.

Once home, both items, unless consumed immediately, should be frozen. Protein can not be consumed past the sell by date if not frozen. It is also dangerous to re-freeze meat after it has been thawed, so it is important to only thaw what is intended to be eaten at that time. Proper temperatures must be maintained for both hot dogs and tuna when stored and cooked. If meats are being frozen, then a temperature of 0 or below must be maintained, if refrigerated, then the temperature must be at 41 degrees or below, and when cooking, 165 degrees and higher is the safe zone for meats. Hot dogs are strongly preserved with nitrates and sodium, and therefore do not need quite as high an internal cooking temperature as fish.

The first resource that I used to evaluate both foods was www.fitday.com. Fitday.com is a website that I have used over the years to help in my weight loss efforts. Foods are entered in to the search engine, and the proper and accurate nutrient information is then provided. The only way that I have to verify the credibility of the source is by the millions of users, including my self that fitday has. I know several people that have used the database to aid in weight loss, and most have had success. Fitday does give accurate information for RDA of all vitamins and minerals and does give proper amounts in all foods researched. There is also a section on the website that shows nutrition guidelines, and these guidelines do match the food pyramid guidelines recommended.

The second source used was website for the food and drug administration, www.fda.gov. The FDA website was used to evaluate the safety and nutritional values of the foods chosen. The websites clearly states that lean meats such as lean chicken, fish, and beef should be consumed over processed meats, such as hot dogs and sausages, mainly due to fat and sodium content. The FDA is a government fun website, with highly qualified individuals providing the information. The qualifications and credentials speak for themselves. Please also note that the safety information noted was obtained from a food safety training class that I took called Serve Safe.

The information that I learned for the food group I chose can easily be applied to all other categories on the Food Guide Pyramid. The main fact to be noted is that processed foods are a poor choice when compared to natural foods, in any case. Low fat vs. high fat should always be a factor in choosing what to eat, because lower fat foods help in preventing high cholesterol that can lead to heart disease. It is always a better idea to choose fresh fruits and vegetables over canned fruits and vegetables, milk over ice cream, whole wheat bread over white bread, and lean, fresh meats over processed meats. Processed foods can be found in all food groups and should be eliminated whenever possible to maintain good health.

References

www.fitday.com

www.fda.gov

ServeSafe food safety training class, certified January 2003