Healthy Protein from Meats & Eggs

It is important that Candida sufferers, and anyone who is sick or unhealthy, eat adequate amounts of healthy protein from meats and eggs. Proteins are found in all types of food, but only meats, eggs, cheese, and other foods from animal and seafood sources contain complete proteins, which provide the eight essential amino acids your body cannot produce on its own.

Vegetables, fruits, grains, nuts, seeds, and legumes contain incomplete proteins, and they also do not contain fat-soluble vitamins A, D and E, "true" B₁₂, and other important fats the body needs so it can use protein and other nutrients.

Amino acids, which are made within the body from proteins that are eaten, provide the structure of all living things. In the body they make up the muscles, ligaments, tendons, organs, glands, nails, hair, and body fluids (except bile and urine). Enzymes, hormones and genes also are made up of various amino acids.

Protein in the diet has the unique quality of slowing the breakdown of carbohydrates, which decreases the need for insulin secretion by the pancreas and also stimulates glucagon release; that hormone that unlocks our stored fuel. Protein also helps the stomach produce hydrochloric acid.

Healthy Protein Sources

Meats from animals that are not mass-produced, such as lamb, bison (buffalo), ostrich, venison, or other wild game.
Meats from naturally-raised animals, i.e. poultry, beef, and pork.
Eggs from naturally-raised chickens.
Seafoods that are not farm-raised and those that contain the least amount of mercury and toxins.

Poultry

Chickens and turkeys that are naturally-raised will come from farms that are lush with pastures, where they can eat their natural diet of fresh grass, grains, seeds, insects, bugs, worms, and small animals. Local conscientious farms are the best source of healthy free-range poultry. These farms will produce organic or certified organic meats and eggs, which are free of antibiotics, hormones, pesticides, and herbicides.

Poultry from such farms are not "stressed," while mass–produced chickens are raised in severely cramped quarters and fed foods that are unnatural to them, i.e. all vegetarian foods containing soy, which makes them sick. This results in not only reduced health value, but also less taste and less good fat.

Please note: Use of the word "free-range" is not regulated so it can be used by anyone at will, just like the words "natural" or "organic." However, "certified organic" is a highly regulated word that can only be used by meeting specific high standards.

Eggs

Eggs are one of the most nutritious foods you can eat! They are a great source of high-quality protein and rich in vitamins and nutrients essential to health, including B vitamins, vitamins A, D, and E, essential fatty acids (omega-3 and omega-6), etc. In fact the only reliable and absorbable source of vitamin B₁₂ are meats and eggs. Vitamin B₁₂ is vital to a healthy nervous system and healthy blood and it is the one of the important nutrients lacking in vegetarian diets.

Raw, whole, certified organic free-range eggs are phenomenally inexpensive, and they are an incredible source of high–quality nutrients that many of us are deficient in, particularly high-quality protein and fats. Eating raw eggs is a simple way to improve your mind and your overall health.

Eating cooked eggs will not have the same effect as raw eggs. The less you cook the egg yolk, such as soft-boiled or poached, the better it is nutritionally. The easiest way to consume raw eggs is by making Bee's Raw Egg Drink. Also see these articles for more information about eggs. Contrary to popular belief Eggs [Are] Not a Likely Source of Salmonella Contamination

Grass-Fed Beef

Beef that is truly grass-fed is a natural source of essential fatty acids (omega-3 and omega-6), and oil soluble vitamins A, D, and E. True vitamin A, called "retinol," is only found in animal, fish, and egg fats, and it is particularly high in organ meats like liver. On the other hand, plants contain beta-carotene which is not "true" vitamin A. It can be converted into vitamin A (retinol) in the body if certain conditions are present. However some people have difficulty converting beta-carotene into vitamin A, primarily those with thyroid problems which includes most candida sufferers.

Grass-fed beef is also an ideal source of taurine and carnitine, which are nutrients needed for healthy eyes and a healthy heart. It also contains Coenzyme Q10, another key nutrient for the cardiovascular system, and it is an excellent source of minerals, i.e. magnesium, zinc, etc.

All cattle are grass-fed to some small extent, but during the few months prior to being processed most cattle are fed grains in order to fatten them up. Feeding them grains seriously depletes nutrients in the meat and also makes the animals sick, which requires giving them high doses of antibiotics.

The best sources of grass-fed meats are local farmers who practice organic or certified organic farming, and who provide their animals with lots of room to free-range and forage on grass. Beef should be butchered in the Fall after a Summer of feeding on fresh green grass.

Seafoods

Seafoods, unlike mammals, birds, and reptiles do not respond to sunlight therefore they must feed upon phytoplankton and other fish in order to obtain and store significant vitamin D in their fat, flesh, skin, and organs. Fish liver oil is the best source of omega-3 essential fatty acids and vitamins A and D.

Unfortunately, most fish that are available contain high mercury levels and other toxins, particularly farm-raised trout, salmon, and shrimp. The safest sources of fish are those that are fresh and wild-caught from the ocean, and not from inland lakes, rivers or streams.

Fresh fish is not labeled thoroughly so it is wise to ask about the source of the fish, i.e. farmed, from inland waters or from the ocean, in order to find out whether it is good to eat. Shellfish and fish roe (fish eggs) from clean waters are also healthy to eat.

The best fish to eat include Wild Alaskan or Pacific Salmon, Summer Flounder, Croaker, Haddock, Arctic Char, fresh sardines, shrimp, herring, and anchovies. Fresh cold-water fish are also good, i.e. tuna, cod, haddock, herring, perch, and snapper, since they spend their lives in the open seas distant from contaminated coastal waters.

Canned skipjack or albacore tuna are safer than canned bluefin or yellowfin tuna. Small seafoods, such as oysters, sardines, anchovies, and shrimp are okay to eat since they are small enough to have minimal contamination. Buy all canned fish packed in olive oil or spring water.

Avoid fish species that stay in coastal waters and who are from inland lakes, rivers or streams. Also avoid fish that consume near the top of the food chain, i.e. bluefish, carp, catfish, striped bass, trout, etc.

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