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Chicken vs. Veggie Chicken

Nutritional comparison between chicken and fake chicken.

February 8, 2011 |
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Supplementary Info

Chicken vs. Veggie Chicken, 5.0 out of 5 based on 2 ratings

Sources Cited

U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. 2010. USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, Release 23. Nutrient Data Laboratory Home Page

Acknowledgements

Transcript

 If one compares chicken to veggie chicken, the same amount of chicken has about twice the calories, 4 times the fat, infinitely more saturated fat, cholesterol. Pretty much same sodium and protein; only a third of the iron and no fiber. But what chicken lacks in fiber, it makes up for in mutagenic toxins and arsenic.

To see any graphs, charts, graphics, images, and quotes to which Dr. Greger may be referring watch the above video. This is just an approximation of the audio contributed by veganmontreal.

To help out on the site please email volunteer@nutritionfacts.org

Dr. Michael Greger

Doctor's Note

Please feel free to post any ask-the-doctor type questions here in the comments section and I’d be happy to try to answer them. And check out theother videos on chicken and arsenic. Also, there are 1,449 other subjectscovered in the rest of my videos--please feel free to explore them as well!

For more context, check out my associated blog post, Stool Size and Breast Cancer Risk.

  • http://nutritionfacts.org/members/mgreger/ Michael Greger M.D.

    Please feel free to post any ask-the-doctor type questions here in the comments section and I’d be happy to try to answer them. And check out the other videos on chicken and arsenic. Also, there are 1,449 other subjects covered in the rest of my videos–please feel free to explore them as well!

  • http://nutritionfacts.org/members/alfunnnn/ alfunnnn

    Hi Dr. Greger,

    I definitely can see how veggie chicken can be healthier than real chicken in terms of those nutrients.

    I have a question, however, regarding the processing of veggie chicken. Is it possible that the processing of veggie chicken could be more harmful in terms of salt and other additives?

    • http://nutritionfacts.org/members/laurie-k/ Laurie K.

      Hi alfunnnn, good question, you are clearly aware of the fact that processed foods are detrimental to your health because they contain so many harmful additives. In fact, this video; http://nutritionfacts.org/videos/is-potassium-sorbate-bad-for-you/ goes into more detail about one of the more common preservative used in food manufacturing. In terms of processing veggie chicken, sodium may be the ingredient you want to be sure not to eat in excess. Depending on the brand, most veggie chicken will contain about 25% of our daily sodium per serving. Many people have concerns about their sodium intake, but it’s an electrolyte that’s just important as calcium and potassium and of course OVER consumption of any of these can be harmful. If you are truly eating a diet that’s based on a wide variety of whole plant foods, then eating processed veggie chicken occasionally is perfectly fine. You will also be getting enough protein from a widely varied, whole plant food diet, so no need to worry about how much protein you get each day. The problem however, is that most people exist entirely on processed foods, with the exception of low nutrient vegetables like corn or potatoes, or they have a salad made from other low nutrient veggies, such as romaine or iceberg lettuce and don’t get nearly the proper amount of any vital nutrients, see for example http://nutritionfacts.org/videos/nations-diet-in-crisis. I can also assure you that eating animals, and animal products have far more dangers associated with their consumption than you may even be aware of, namely, anabolic steroids, please see: http;//nutritionfacts.org/videos/anabolic-steroids-in-meat/ Also, a lot of people think that by avoiding chicken and red meat they are fine, as long as they are only eating fish. This is also very dangerous, since so many fish contain many contaminants like mercury: http://nutritionfacts.org/videos/amalgam-fillings-vs-canned-tuna/. This information was in no way intended to frighten you, but rather help you to become more knowledgeable about what foods you should be avoiding, as well as which to include on a daily basis. All of the Nutritionfacts.Org videos are a wonderful source of information to help you become more healthy! In closing, I’ll recommend one more, http://nutritionfacts.org/videos/slowing-the-growth-of-cancer-3/ To your good health!

  • http://nutritionfacts.org/members/wickedchicken/ wickedchicken

    Is this a soy-based or mycoprotein-based fake chicken???? I don’t eat any soy, but I do eat some mycoprotein(QUORN). Would love your opinion on it.

    • http://nutritionfacts.org/members/mgreger/ Michael Greger M.D.

      Great question wickedchicken (and true to your namesake :). Gardein (from “garden + protein”) is a soy and grain (wheat, amaranth, millet, quinoa)-based product. Quorn is more like (though technically not) mushroom based. Unlike Gardein, Quorn has a little saturated fat and cholesterol (has some egg and milk products mixed in). Quorn has more sodium, less protein, and comparable fiber, but regardless, both are superior to chicken for a variety of reasons (e.g., see my 40 videos on chicken).

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