Chicken

• The healthy aspects of chicken vary according to whether the meat is light or dark and whether it is skinless. Light meat with skin contains the lowest amount of cholesterol of all chicken types. Light meat without skin contains the highest amount of protein, as well as the lowest amount of fat. Skinless, dark meat provides the highest amount of zinc, and dark meat with skin contains the highest amount of calories.

Duck

• Duck is a healthy addition to any diet. However, its benefits vary according to whether you eat the skin. Eating duck with the skin results in more calories (337) and fat (28.35 grams) per 100 grams of the meat than if it was consumed without skin. Yet skinless duck contains more cholesterol --- 89 milligrams, as opposed to 84 milligrams --- for duck with skin. Discarding the skin provides more protein, zinc and thiamine.

Goose

• Goose is a source of many important nutrients. Skinless goose provides less fat and more protein than goose with skin, but it also contains slightly more cholesterol (96 milligrams, compared to 91 milligrams for goose with skin). Skinless goose also contains less calories and more iron and thiamine than goose with its skin.

Turkey

• The nutritional value of turkey varies in much the same way as that of chicken; it depends on whether the meat is light or dark and whether it is skinless. Skinless light meat has the lowest amounts of iron, calories, fat and cholesterol, as well as the highest amount of protein. Skinless dark meat provides the highest quantities of iron, zinc, thiamine and vitamin B12.