Bacon! Bacon! (Free) Bacon!
Bacon! Bacon! Bacon!
Does that word make your mouth water too? I love it and have so much fun with the mugs, t-shirts and memes out there about it.
But the question I get asked is, can I (or should I) eat it everyday?
I love bacon, the salty crunch definitely does it for me, but sadly to say, most of the bacon out there is actually very unhealthy for you. I know, I died a little inside writing that…but it’s true.
40 years ago, it was common knowledge that bacon was like the WORST food on the planet to eat. But the reasoning back then was because of the high salt and saturated fat content. Well today, we are a bit more salt conscious (by eating fewer processed foods) so its ok to have a little more in our natural foods AND we’ve come a long way in learning that saturated fat isn’t the villain we thought it was.
The real story behind bacon…
So why are you still telling us we can’t enjoy bacon every morning? Well unfortunately, pigs raised for pork here in the US have got to be the most poorly treated, fed and raised animals in our farming system. It’s heartbreaking. Their diets (which are essentially our diets) are horrible and since the pesticides and hormones these animals are given are stored in their fat…we eat it in the bacon.
The good news is (you were hoping I’d say that, I know you were), that there ARE ways you can have bacon. There are companies out there that offer pastured, organic, family farmed bacon…but you’re going to pay for it. But I see this as a very good thing, here’s why:
- With it being pretty expensive, you’ll savor each bite and not overdo it. There’s no need to have 6 pieces of bacon with your omelet, 1 or 2 is plenty.
- It should sit well with your soul to know that these animals have been raised happy and humanely. I don’t know about you, but I’d rather be vegan than support conventional farmers who abuse their livestock.
- By it being an occasional (1 to 2 times a week) part of your diet, you allow yourself to eat more variety, which also means more variety in your micronutrients.
There are many wonderful websites willing to ship healthier bacon right to your door. I just want to really stress to my fellow bacon lovers out there that where your bacon comes from REALLY matters. I want you to avoid it like the plague if it’s from a source like Oscar Meyer! Your quality standards have to be especially high with pork but once you’ve found a source to get it from (look for pastured, organic, sugar, hormone, pesticide and nitrate free), then by all means, have a little bacon!
Here are a few places I trust to get some healthier bacon:
No such thing as a free lunch??
Free, delicious (uncured and sugar-free bacon), plus $15 off your first order, using this link from Butcherbox
You’re welcome!