How Much Deli Meat per Person?

One thing people often use when they are cooking is portion size. It is important because it helps us figure out how much we are eating for a serving.

You do not want to end up eating too much or too little, both of which can lead to excessive weight gain if you aren’t careful enough.

People often use portion sizes with meat, such as deli meat. In this article, we are going to discuss what deli meat is, how much each person should get, if you can eat too much, and finally, the benefits of eating it in the first place!

Contents

What Is Deli Meat?
How Much Deli Meat Does Each Person Get?
Can You Eat Too Much Deli Meat?
What Are the Benefits of Eating Deli Meat?
Final Thoughts

What Is Deli Meat?

Before we jump into how much deli meat each person should get, we will first go into what deli meat is in case you are someone who has never heard of it before.

Deli meats, lunch meats, or cold cuts, as they are often known, are pre-cooked/cured meats that have already been sliced. The great thing about these meats is that you can have them warm or hot. Both work!

Deli meat truly is a quick, cheap, and convenient thing to make if you are short of time or just don’t feel like cooking something that requires a lot of effort.

How Much Deli Meat Does Each Person Get?

The amount of deli meat you need to buy depends on how many people are inviting over.

You should be getting about 2 to 3 ounces of deli meat for every sandwich that is going to be made. Also, most people should only be having one sandwich or two at the most.

Then again, you could be making a big sandwich, which means you really will only need one in the first place!

Can You Eat Too Much Deli Meat?

Deli meat might be delicious, but if you aren’t careful and eat too much of it, it can wreak havoc on your health. Some of the risks include the following:

One problem with eating too much deli meat is that it can raise your risk of cardiovascular disease, which means it could affect your heart. The reason for this is the high amount of sodium.
Speaking of sodium, having a lot of sodium in your diet could put you at risk of high blood pressure. Salt might taste good, but if we have too much, it certainly is going to wreak havoc on our bodies!
Depending on the deli meat you are eating, you could be consuming a lot of calories. This leads to weight gain, which isn’t a huge problem, but if you are eating excessive amounts of it, it can become one.
The perspectives added to deli meats could cause you to develop diabetes later on in life. It’s very possible to live with diabetes, but managing it forces you to completely change your lifestyle. If you don’t, then you can put yourself at serious risk of illness or death.
Eating a lot of delis meat could increase your risk of colorectal cancer. The reason for this is the nitrate in deli meat, which is used as a preservative.
While more studies have to be done, eating a lot of delis meat could increase your risk of thyroid cancer. Again, more research does need to be done on this before a full decision has been made. However, the evidence so far shows that there could be a link between the two things. What is the best way to avoid it? Well, don’t eat a lot of delis meat!

Now that you know the risks, we’ll move on to the benefits of eating deli meat! It’s probably a relief to hear that there are benefits after reading about all these different risks of eating deli meat.

What Are the Benefits of Eating Deli Meat?

There are many benefits to eating deli meat, and they include the following:

Deli meat has a lot of protein, and the best part is they come ready-made. You don’t have to go through the hassle of cooking up the food and then preparing it. With deli meat, the work is already done for you! Plus, you don’t have to eat it on bread if you don’t want to. Just munch on the deli meat itself.
There is a lot of vitamin b12 in deli meat, which is important for your body because it helps produce red blood cells. If the fact that the deli meat has a lot of protein doesn’t sell you, then this should. Your body needs vitamin b12 to function, and if you want a quick and easy way to get it into your system, deli meat is the way to do it.
Finally, the last benefit that comes along with eating deli meat is the fact that it has a lot of iron in it. Iron is very important because it helps produce the hemoglobin that your red blood cells need. If you don’t get enough iron, you could end up becoming anemic, which can cause a lot of weakness in your body, among other symptoms.

Not all deli meats are created equal, so you may have to do some research and look around to see which ones will best fit your health, diet, and just overall preferences.

In moderation, deli meat is good for your body. The risks we listed above do sound scary, but as long as you aren’t eating a lot of it, then you are going to be mostly fine.

Final Thoughts

And there you go; all your deli meat out there! Now you know what deli meat is, how much each person should get if you can eat too much in the first place, and finally, the benefits of eating it.

In a matter of no time, you will be an expert at using portion sizes. You can, of course, overindulge in food now and again.

Just makes you do it in moderation because the last thing you want to do is put your health at risk.

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William Thomas

I have been smoking and grilling meat from an early age and enjoy sharing my knowledge and expertise through the hundreds of articles I have written about BBQ. I hope to make everyone’s BBQ journey that little bit easier.