If you like learning about various foods, the United States Dept. of Agriculture’s FoodData Central might be for you. It is a searchable online database with a massive amount of information about nutrients in a huge range of foods.
Within the publicly available database, I searched used the term ‘almonds.’ The following results page appeared. The portion size is set at 100 grams. According to the information on the raw almonds page, there are 21.4 grams of protein in 100 grams of raw almonds. The page also presents information about amino acids. Raw almonds have all the 9 essential amino acids, meaning their protein is complete. There are also other amino acids present and many vitamins and minerals. (Raw almonds also have a lot of potassium, a significant electrolyte.)
In another browser, I searched for steak. There were many options and I chose raw boneless ribeye steak. The portion size in the web page is also set to 100 grams. The amount of protein is stated to be 18.7 grams. This amount is obviously lower than what is presented for the same amount of raw almonds. The boneless raw ribeye steak has quite a bit more saturated fat, which generally is not regarded as being healthy and is something to limit in one’s diet. The steak also has no fiber whereas the raw almonds have about 10 grams. Fiber is generally regarded as being essential for human health.
The page for raw short loin, or New York Strip steak, states the amount of protein for 100 grams of that kind of steak is 21.3 grams. This amount is about the same as for 100 grams of raw almonds, just a tad less. The New York Strip steak also has no fiber.
The point is not that raw almonds have more protein than all steaks because there are kinds of steak that have more. The point is that almonds have far more protein – and complete protein – than some people may realize.
They also may not know that almonds have a lower carbon footprint than beef. “What’s more, almonds have a lower carbon footprint than many other foods. A University of Oxford study found that nuts are responsible for far fewer greenhouse gas emissions per kilogram of food compared to things like beef, dairy and poultry.” Beef may be the highest carbon food, or is one of of them.
One of the reasons people eat steak is because they assume it has complete protein and that plant-based protein is incomplete. There are plenty of plant-based foods that have all 9 essential amino acids and therefore have complete protein. Eating beef products is not necessary for human nutrition.
Another reason some people eat steak is because they associate it with pleasure and wrongly believe they will be happy if they experience pleasure. As neuroscientist Moran Cerf described in a talk he gave human happiness doesn’t have much, or anything to do with pleasure according to neuroscience research. He says the research studies he examined stated that the 5 factors for happiness are: consistent, adequate sleep, social connectedness, spirituality, volunteering, and exercise. From that perspective, a person who eats steaks will be no happier. This person will also have very much contributed to climate change and animal suffering for no good reasons. In the video, he begins speaking about happiness research around the 14:00 mark.
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