Ludwig Andreas Feuerbach once said “Der Mensch ist, was er ißt”; “you are what you eat”. But what does meat eating have to do anything with manliness? According to a recent study at UBC, Matthew Ruby and Steven Heine polled 273 local individuals and concluded that although vegetarians were considered more virtuous and moral, meat eaters were seen 16% more masculine than their vegan counterparts. But wait a sec, where is this all coming from?
Meat eaters are percieved more masculine. Photo credit: Shuttershock http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/17/meat-men-masculinity_n_1524224.html
The Journal of Consumer Research attempted to unravel the reasonings behind this phenomenon. Interestingly enough, out of all the gender assigning languages, they found 23 associating the male gender to the word meat. They also found that in Western culture, manliness correlated with meat intake, especially “meatier” cuts like steak. Even advertisements today capitalize on such social values; that manly men must be on a “Guy-et“, or are “Meatatarians“.
This meat association to manliness may be a reflection of historically macho activities like hunting, but today’s society largely agrees a pure carnivorous diet is an absurdity for any human being. But contrary to common belief, people who only eat meat exist, and such a diet may have its roots earlier than you might think. Vilhjalmur Stefansson, a Canadian ethnologist, reaccounts his all-meat diet during his arctic exploration. In his article published in Harper’s Monthly Magazine, January 1930 Edition, he explained a typical Inuit diet in detail, including the different types of meats he ate, from basic fish, to penguins and seals. Of the decade he spent with the Inuits, nine of the years composed of a pure carnivorous diet, with no signs of major health problems throughout the entire endeavor. It was also concluded from his observations that Inuits did not show any signs of diabetes, heart disease, cancer, or obesity, albeit their lack of vegetables in their diet.
An Inuit meal of raw fish. Photo Credit: Arctic Photo http://www.arcticphoto.co.uk/gallery2/arctic/peoples/inuitcan/ba0929-08.htm
But before you consider to purge yourself of vegetables and eat like an Inuit, it should be noted that this kind of high fat, high meat diet that Stefansson followed reflects on the extreme living conditions during the process. Even North American versions of exclusive meat diets, like one from the Livestrong Foundation, consider the additive effect of animal fat ontop of the caloric contents of starches and carbohydrates from other food groups, and suggest to consider low fat meats, like fish and turkey or leaner cuts of beef like top sirloin, or round roasts. Heck, if I had the option, I would whole-heartedly try a pure meat diet and live like the Inuits, if I were manlier and could handle the cold frosts of the Artic, or had triple the grocery budget to switch meats for veggies.
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