I too have always preferred dark poultry meat to white. Unfortunately, it's difficult to find places that serve dark meat any more. Everyone is on the low-fat band wagon, and protein types like me suffer for it.

People think that I'm crazy for eating a high-protein, higher-fat, lower-carb diet and tell me that I'll wind up dead from it. But I'm sure that my death will come much later than if I had stayed on the diet that another doctor tried to kill me with. The more that I cut dark and red meat, eggs, dairy products, and salt out of my diet, the worse I felt and the more bloated with edema I became. Because my blood sugar plummetted between meals, I ate breads and fruits almost non-stop to keep it at a normal level. The other doctor refused to consider that the diet he recommended was part of my worsening problem. In his opinion, I got worse because I needed even less salt and less fats in my diet. He was nearly deadly wrong for me.

I'm thankful that Dr. Mercola's nutritionist helped me find foods that were more appropriate for my body and who told me to salt my food. When I switched to a low-carb diet and put iodized salt on my food (can anyone say "THYROIDS NEED IODINE"?), I felt much better. I eat meats, eggs, cheeses, and vegetables and limit the higher-carb items, including fruit. When I stick to this diet, my blood sugar doesn't bottom out in the 40s and 50s, and I don't feel as if I'm starving to death or about to pass out. I can go several hours between meals without a problem.

I listen to my body because, if I feel literally as if I'm going to die between meals, something definitely isn't right. It's too bad that more doctors aren't smart enough to realize this. No wonder so many older people have so many health problems. What kind of diets are they typically told to stick to? Low protein, low fat, low salt. If that's not the kind of diet your body needs, it will ravage you.

Bison is a really excellent choice.  Far superior to beef.  I have a hard time eating beef now that we have switched to bison.  You can make anything bison that you can make with beef, just less cooking time.  Now when I eat beef, it tastes rancid or sour or something.  Just can't do it anymore.

I was very interested in Dr. Mercola's reference to "nutritional type."  Having read Dr. Peter J. D’Adamo’s “Eat Right 4 Your Type” many years ago, I believe that the answer to what "type" you are is embedded in your genes.  The assimilation of food into our bodies is a complex “chemical” process so it makes sense to me that the transporter of the components (blood) plays a major part.  From the book’s jacket: “Your blood type reflects your internal chemistry…  It determines… the foods you should eat.”

In my personal experience, knowing my blood type and applying Dr. D’Adamo’s principles has made a huge difference in how I feel (and I know many others for whom the same is true).  

Studying how the human body works is absolutely fascinating!  My quest for knowledge has brought me to Dr. Mercola -- kudos to him for providing so much good, sensible, useful information!

This article was very helpful. Im always amazed of the lack of information that consumer base their decisions on.

Personally, I prefer the taste of white meat over dark, but the white meat is usually very dry.  I do not really like chicken, but I do like turkey.  

Pork and beef are a different story.  I really like them.  I also like venison, wild boar, bison, etc.

The issue of bioaccumulation of toxins in fatty tissues of beef which Dr. Mercola touches upon briefly is the primary reason I've been avoiding beef lately. Even grass-fed cattle can accumulate dioxins in their fat. How ?

dioxin laden soot from fires and incinerators can travel in the wind for long distances and fall on grass  that cattle graze upon. House fires are notorious dioxin sources: the PVC pipes, electrical wiring with vinyl insulation, vinyl flooring and carpeting, vinyl venetian blinds, when exposed to fire, release the chlorine they contain which then reacts with carbon and oxigen to produce dioxin compounds. This toxic soot is spread around by the wind. Dioxins of course are the most toxic chemicals known to science. Therefore it's very important to campaign for replacement of PVC and vinyl with safer non-chlorinated plastics.  

I always liked white meat, until I purchased some chicken thighs during the summer and then all of a sudden...BOOM!  I now love dark meat.  I actually eat both, I have no preference of either!

Funny. I hate dark meat. I also have high iron levels. Even when I was pregnant I didnt need to take extra iron cuz my body made enough. I love information like this..

I am truly informed after reading your articles. Thank you so much

Preference doesn't always follow your nutritional type.  I have loved dark meat all my life, and still prefer it, yet I am a carb type, which means I should eat more white meat.  I know I am a carb type because I bought Dr. Mercola's test you take on line.  So you can't always assume one will match the other.

Very interesting. I was taught I should prefer white meat (healthier?) but in fact I've always loved dark meat.  I only recently learned I am anemic and have never eaten enough protein--my body was telling me what it needed, while the "experts" were trying to convince me otherwise.

I've never seen a Turkey with DARK breast meat.  It's always white.  I think this is a typo in the article.

I find that my preference is always dark meat. The white meat always gets left till the last or I buy the parts only that are dark meat to begin with. It is a waste of my money to buy a whole chicken or turkey as I want the dark meat only. I also prefer red meat such as beef, deer, and even moose.

Some years ago I tried the Atkin's Diet and felt so much better. I didn't need to lose weight, but liked the foods that were on the diet. To this day I still go for anything that has protein and the vegetables on a buffet when I am eating out. Even before I took the mini test for my "nutritional type", I knew that I prefered all things protein.

As far as light/dark meat, either chicken or turkey. Growing up as a child was given the hip and wing and to this day still prefer dark meat. To me, it has more flavor; yet will still have some white meat with gravy or in salad.BUT still prefer the dark meat.

So, my question...if one has eaten dark meat since they were children, not because they wanted it but were given it,( and prefer the dark meat still) does that mean they were protien body types since the day they were born?

I think there's more to it than preference in what we continue to eat as we become adults. There's an emotional attatchment to food..say, Macaroni and Cheese, conguers up a cold winter day, after playing in the snow. Coming into a warm house and sitting down with the family for Mac & C. and hot chocolate, animating about my snow fort.Every one is happy and smiling and as a child it felt secure.

Now a days, the food we eat is either shot full of hormones....or raised on big commerical ranches or is genecticly modified. We are told, most of the foods we ate growing up weren't good for us and have to change the way we eat. So, I look for "organic" everything, even drive 20 miles for raw milk...to use in my Mac & C. Belong to a co-op organic farm for vegetables so I can get nutrients from soil that hasn't been farmed beyond depletion.

What will todays children call comfort food? Any type of fat fast food! Most sadly!