“Doctors should be experts in nutrition and the microbiome,” he declares on this episode of the mindbodygreen podcast, as the gut microbiome can affect everything from immunity to skin to brain function to, yep, heart health. So let’s proceed with the menu—here, Davis shares some of his favorite (and surprising) fridge staples:
A cardiologist who praises meat? Now that’s rare. After all, it’s a plant-based diet that is commonly associated with heart health, as ditching meat in favor of veggies can support blood pressure and cholesterol levels. In fact, a study in the Journal of the American Heart Association showed that those who followed a more plant-based diet had enhanced their cardiovascular health by 16%.
But Davis considers grass-fed, sustainably sourced meat an important part of his heart-healthy food pyramid—especially organ meats, if you can stomach them. Organ meats (liver, tongue, thymus, pancreas, kidney, etc.) are rich in B vitamins, iron, zinc, magnesium, selenium, hard-to-obtain choline, and fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, and K).
Even if you can’t fathom the thought of eating organ meats, Davis says to eat your grass-fed meat bone-in, skin-on. “Modern humans have gotten so squeamish that we no longer eat the brain, heart, tongue, or liver,” he says. “And then we do really stupid things like buy boneless, skinless chicken breast and not take advantage of all the nutrients from the bone, bone marrow, and the collagen and hyaluronic acid in the skin.” According to Davis, you’re literally throwing away the gut- and heart-healthy benefits of the meat. That said, he suggests finding the highest-quality meat you can and reaping the benefits of every single component. “Save the bones, save the fat, and make stews and soups out of it,” he offers.
This content was originally published here.
