The No Red Meat Diet

As its name suggests, the "no red meat" diet excludes all types of red meat, including pork, beef and lamb. These meats have a reddish color because they contain higher amounts of a protein called myoglobin than white meats, according to the USDA. Abstaining from red meats may have several effects on your health.

Protein Sources

Because a "no red meat" diet excludes lamb, pork and beef, it focuses on other foods as protein sources. Other meats, such as white-meat chicken and turkey, fish and wild game meats may serve as alternate sources of protein. Plant-based foods may also provide protein in the "no red meat" diet. These foods include seeds, nuts, legumes, soymilk and meat replacements such as seitan, tempeh, textured vegetable protein and tofu.

Reduced Heart Disease Risk

Red meats are higher in saturated fats than white meats and plant-based proteins, according to Phyllis Balch, C.N.C., author of "Prescription for Nutritional Healing." Saturated fats may elevate triglycerides and low-density lipoproteins -- the "bad" components of cholesterol. Elevated levels of low-density lipoproteins and triglycerides contribute to lipid blockages in your arteries, which restrict blood flow and increase your risk of heart disease. A "no red meat" diet may help prevent arterial blockages that lead to stroke, heart attack and coronary artery disease.

Reduced Cancer Risk

Eliminating red meats from your diet may lower your risk of cancer, according to the American Institute for Cancer Research. Frequent consumption of red meats is linked to the development of several types of cancer, including cancer of the colon, rectum, stomach, prostate, bladder and lungs.

Considerations

Although red meats are the most well-known sources of protein in the United States, a "no red meat" diet does not pose a risk of protein deficiency. White-meat and plant-based foods can easily provide sufficient protein to maintain energy levels and facilitate cellular repair.

Although red meat is a rich source of iron, which is necessary for the production of red blood cells and hemoglobin, dietary iron can be consumed from poultry, fish, legumes, kale and spinach.