The next question on the poll was about iron. There are two forms of iron you can find in food. Heme--the most bio-available form--and non-heme, which your body doesn't absorb as efficiently. It's an important dietary distinction. But unfortunately, most people have no idea it exists. More than half of the people surveyed incorrectly assumed that you get the most iron from sources like spinach, kale, and other leafy greens, which contain the non-heme form. Meat and poultry are the best sources of easily absorbed heme iron. According to the CDC, iron deficiency anemia is the most common nutritional deficiency in the U.S. Yet I don't see any ads touting the benefits of meat. (Meanwhile "iron-enriched" junk like bread and cereal somehow gets a reputation as "health food.") So let me make this as clear as I can: Protein is an important part of a healthy diet. And contrary to what you may have heard, most people consume far too little. As a general rule of thumb, I usually recommend eating your weight in grams of protein every day. (And up to twice your weight if you're hitting the gym hard in an active effort to gain muscle mass.) So if you're a 140 pound woman, you should eat 140 grams of protein per day. And a 200 pound man should aim for 200 grams. Luckily, these days, it's easier than ever to keep track of how much protein you're getting. All you need is an app. The one I use is called Lose It--and it's absolutely free. But there are lots of others out there like it. (And most of these tracking tools also have websites, so you don't have to have a smartphone to use them.) Please understand: I'm not trying to convert anyone who has given up meat on ethical grounds. That's a personal decision that I support fully. But the claims that going vegan is good for you? They've got to stop. Cancer patients in particular have been on the receiving end of some pretty appalling dietary advice along these lines in recent years. But that's a much larger topic than I could possibly cover here. Which is why I devoted a full article to it in the most recent issue of my monthly newsletter Logical Health Alternatives. If you're not a subscriber yet, consider signing up today. Especially if you or someone you love is battling cancer, this is an issue that you can't afford to miss. Until next time, Dr. Fred Source: "Consumers underestimate health benefits of meat: survey." Foodnavigator-usa.com. 28 April 2014.