Is Pork Really Bad for You?
Is pork really healthy if you have high cholesterol? It all depends on the cut you choose and how you cook it.
"Just like with beef or chicken, there are high-fat and lean cuts of pork," says nutrition expert Lanah J. Brennan, RD, in Lafayette, Louisiana.
Theprotein food groupincludes foods with varied amounts of fat: meat, poultry, fish, eggs, nuts, seeds, beans, and peas. For adults who get less than 30 minutes of moderate exercise a day, men should get about 6 ounces (oz) of protein every day, and women 5 oz,according to the USDA. The key is to get that protein from sources low insaturated fatfor the best nutrition when you're living with high cholesterol.
Saturated fat is fat that primarily comes from animal-based foods, like meat and dairy. It's the type of fat that's solid at room temperature, like butter, lard, and shortening. If you put some fatty leftovers in your refrigerator, what you see clumping at the surface is saturated fat. The risk of having too much saturated fat in the diet is that it's linked to highcholesterol levelsin the blood. This cholesterol may later clump in your arteries in the form of plaque, causing heart disease.
Pork and Cholesterol: Think Lean
If you choose pork as aprotein source, the word to keep in mind is"lean," which means less saturated fat.
"Pork is lean, compact, white meat if you pick the loin cut," says Amanda Meadows, RD at the Methodist Hospital Weight Management Center in Houston. "A serving of pork loin with the fat trimmed off is about the same as eating an equivalent serving of chicken with the skin trimmed off," says Meadows.
Pork tenderloin is another lean cut to look for. "It contains 3.5 grams (g) fat, and 1 g is saturated fat, in a 3 oz serving — that's similar to a 3 oz chicken breast," says Brennan. A pork chop has five times as much saturated fat. When you go shopping, it's good to know that a center cut of pork is also lean meat.
"Ham is red-meat pork, but if you trim the fat, it's also a lean cut," says Meadows. Keep in mind that ham, like other processed meats, is still higher in sodium.
"One ounce of lean pork has about 45 calories, which is the same as 1 oz of chicken. Cutting off the fat helps. A 3 oz serving of roasted pork center loin has about 169 calories with the fat trimmed, but about 200 calories if you leave the fat on," says Meadows.
Pork and High Cholesterol: What to Limit
Some cuts of pork, such as spareribs, can be as bad for you as any red meat when it comes to the fat content. "Pork spareribs are a high-fat cut — 25 g of fat in a 3 oz serving," says Brennan. "Worse yet, out of those 25 g fat, 9 g are saturated fat."
"Pork choices you really ought to limit or avoid include sausage, bacon, and ground pork," says Meadows, adding, "Canadian bacon is leaner as long as you cut away the fat."
Kitchen Cues for Healthier Pork Options
"Lean, white-meat pork is as healthy as chicken but not as healthy as fish," Meadows points out. Current dietary recommendations are to eatfish as your protein sourceat least twice a week.
Try these heart-smart cooking rules when you choose pork:
- Choose lean cuts not marbled with fat.
- Cut any fat off the meat before cooking or eating.
- Skim any saturated fat before reheating leftovers.
- At a restaurant or at home, choose roasted, broiled, or grilled, not fried.
- Avoid breading and frying — breading adds calories and soaks up fat.
- Avoid barbecue sauce and pork gravy.
Trying to spice it up? Reach for herbs and vegetable ingredients when you're doing the cooking. "To flavor pork, try calorie-free herbs and spices," says Meadows. "Salsa is also a healthy flavoring choice."
Porkcanbe the "other white meat" — if you follow these guidelines, you can still meet your main goal to avoid saturated fat when you have high cholesterol.
The 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americansrecommend consuming less than 10 percent of your daily calories from saturated fat. That means skipping high-fat pork options, like sausage, bacon, and spareribs — and thinking lean.
