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Comment by jbarciauskas | Hacker News Reader

The guidelines created by the USDA have always been and continue to be the product of corporate lobbying, not science. https://www.theverge.com/2016/1/7/10726606/2015-us-dietary-g...

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I believe there is likely a lot of truth to this. I'm sure we can all agree crony capitalism is awful. However, I do not agree with this article that red meat is a cause for health concern. Such claims tend to be based on weak associations from flawed epidemiological studies, which cannot prove cause and effect.

I think there is very strong evidence that replacing "red meat" in the Standard American Diet is healthier, and that is as far as the Verge is going to dive into that particular argument.

I do agree the red meat in the Standard American Diet is a health concern, but that's because the healthiest options to consume red meat in our collective dietary preferences are still going to be laden with sugary dressings or carbohydrate rich mashed potatoes. Meat always comes with additional and excessively plentiful carbohydrates.

That's because people in the United States as a general rule eat tons of cheap, processed meat. When removed, there's a slight chance it'll be replaced by actual vegetables, of which their diet has tremendous lack of, so in almost any case it will be a win-win for their digestive system and cholesterol. It's not the meat it's you

TBH it was a quick citation for the general allegation of lobbying and the USDA, not endorsing any part in particular, just noting that it's a real thing.

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