Is kosher food safer or healthier?

In Yiddish, kosher means “fit” or “proper.” It refers to religious laws that govern what and how Jews can eat. Kosher is not a way of life. Almost any food can be kosher if prepared according to religious rules except pork, rabbit, catfish, sturgeon, shellfish. No cheeseburgers — dairy and meat don’t mix. A dairy product that has never been near meat has a capital D on the package. Many “Kosher for Passover” foods are gluten-free.

Finding a kosher symbol like the Orthodox Union’s letter U in a circle or Star-K Kosher’s five-pointed star with a K inside is the only way to tell if food is kosher.

There is no strong evidence yet indicating safer food but certainly, these foods are certified under stricter regulations. Kosher inspections reject roughly three times more than the USDA does, making it safer and healthier. Animals that can be eaten must be slaughtered quickly with a razor-sharp knife, as per Jewish tradition.

To make kosher food, a Jew known as a shochet must kill each animal individually. A second expert inspects the carcasses for disease. They have no effect on food safety.

The meat must then be salted to remove any blood. In a USDA study of chickens, salting weakened the bonds between salmonella bacteria and chicken skin, allowing bacteria to escape. However, another USDA study found kosher and organic poultry to be highly contaminated with salmonella and listeria, which is a totally opposite result.

The benefits of salting are offset by the prohibition of scalding kosher meat, which helps kill bacteria but makes blood draining more difficult. It is added to non-kosher meat.

A Technion-Israel Institute of Technology study found that because kosher poultry is not scalded, the chickens must be de-feathered longer. This increases the risk of listeria contamination, a nasty bacterium that the CDC lists as one of the top five causes of foodborne illness death.

None of these studies considered the final step in kosher eating: preparation. This is where extra food safety precautions come in.

Looking at Kosher food from health aspect, it actually does help according to few main principles. Notable health benefits of kosher foods include no unknown contaminants entering the food being consumed. Insects and bugs are prohibited from entering “vegetables, fruits, and grains prior to packing” under special regulations.

The production of different foods is separated in different facilities, ensuring that no mixture or accidental combination of products occurs. This is important for those allergic to shellfish, which is often a by-product of packaged foods. If you’re allergic to shellfish, stick to kosher products because Jews aren’t allowed to eat any shellfish.

Kosher rules also benefit food allergies. Vegans can rest assured that kosher products are free of dairy and meat and have not come into contact with dairy or meat equipment. If you’re allergic to dairy but crave salami or hot dogs, you can rest assured that they’re not made with a milk sugar preservative like many non-koshers types of meat. Anything marked “pareve” or “parve” is for lactose intolerants. Same to those experiencing allergies to seafood. Bottom feeders like crab, lobster, and shrimp are prohibited as Kosher food due to pollutants like Mercury that can harm humans. However, salmon and other healthy fish are allowed and can be very beneficial to your diet due to their low fat and high protein content. Overall, higher food processing standards can help reduce the risk of harmful hormones transferring from meat to our bodies, as well as many other risks associated with items like seafood that may contain toxic pollutants.

Changing to a kosher diet doesn’t have to be difficult. Limiting or eliminating foods that are prohibited by the kosher diet (i.e., pig meat) can be a good first step towards a healthier diet. Another example, reducing intake of a combination of dairy and meat, like a cheeseburger or lasagna, the body struggles to digest them. They stay in your system longer, raising cholesterol and causing other issues. Anyways, please go Ask a Doctor for any enquires.