Bacon is one of America’s favourite foods. Apparently, collectively Americans spend about five billion dollars on bacon every year, and each of them eats almost 20 pounds of it on average annually. It’s their favourite breakfast option and a lot of Americans would actually like to give bacon the status of America’s national food. What’s interesting is that even though they eat so much bacon, most of them know that it’s not exactly healthy. Most people treat it as junk food they just can’t resist. It’s something they know can’t be good for them, but they’re willing to take the risk because it’s that yummy. But is bacon actually that bad for you? Or does it have some redeeming qualities? Let’s take a look at what could happen to you if you were to eat bacon every day.
1. Heart Disease
Bacon is high in saturated fats. Almost half of the fat in bacon is saturated fat and we know that leads to heart problems. It can cause a buildup of plaque inside your blood vessels which would eventually prevent normal blood flow, cause serious health issues and eventually lead to either a heart attack or a blood clot that can be deadly.
2. Less Inflammation
What’s unusual and is talked about way less is that the other 50% of fat that’s in bacon is the good kind that’s actually beneficial for your body and is the kind that fights inflammation. It’s an omega-9 fat that helps your cells have a strong membrane and it raises the levels of good cholesterol. So you know, it’s pretty much 50/50 when it comes to bacon fat.
3. Psychiatric Disorders
There have been studies done that show a link between overconsumption of processed meats, the likes of bacon and severe psychiatric disorders and manias. Apparently, people who are likely to go into a manic, which is an altered mental state, are advised against eating processed red meat.
4. Essential Vitamins
At the same time, bacon is a great source of a whole lot of essential vitamins and nutrients that our body needs. First of all – it’s a great source of protein, averaging at about 3 grams per one strip of bacon (and no one has just one, am I right?). It’s also full of vitamins B2, B12, B6 and B3. Not to mention magnesium and zinc.
5. High Blood Pressure
We know that bacon is a cured meat, and that means it’s got a crazy amount of sodium in it. Some would argue that this is what makes it so tasty. But excess sodium is bad for our bodies, it causes high blood pressure at best and cardiac arrest at worst. Is that really a risk anyone wants to take?
6. Less Anxiety
What’s strange is that many people say that eating bacon every day makes them feel happier, and they might not be exaggerating. After all, bacon has decent amounts of magnesium and zinc, which can make you feel calmer and happier. In fact, being zinc and magnesium deficient can literally cause anxiety and inability to deal with stress.
7. Diabetes
Some studies show that eating a lot of processed meat products like bacon is linked to a higher risk of developing diabetes. Let’s be honest, that study didn’t really take into consideration that people who eat a lot of processed foods generally have a less healthy lifestyle, but maybe not eating bacon every day would be a good way to keep diabetes away?
8. Better Memory
Bacon contains a good amount of choline which is essential for memory. Our bodies produce choline in the liver but nowhere near enough, so we need to supplement with choline-rich foods. Bacon seems like a good option if you want to have a good memory or at least ward off memory loss that many encounter as they age. All in all, there are positives and negatives when it comes to bacon consumption, but we will say that the positive side effect that bacon has can also be achieved by eating other, less processed foods that are rich in similar nutrients.
