The benefits of eating grass fed meat
We are currently seeing an effort globally to vilify meat-based diets in favour of plant-based under the guise of it being better for our health and the planet. What a surprise, then, that we are becoming confused with what a healthy, balanced diet that is sustainably produced should look like.
Why should we keep animal proteins on the plate?
Dietary protein is a macro-nutrient that we must have in our diet, along with carbohydrates and fats. The main purpose of macro nutrients is to provide energy to fuel our bodies, however they also have other important functions as the building block of muscle, bone, hair, blood, organs and skin needed for growth and development.
Eating a variety of protein foods are important for a balanced diet, however animal protein sources tend to contain more protein per gram. For example, you would need to eat one can of lentils (400g) to get the same amount of protein you could get from 100g of cooked lean rump steak.
In addition, meat provides nutrients in the forms that our bodies absorb and utilise the best known as bioavailability and various nutrients only found in meat are amongst these bioavailable compounds.
How animals are fed impacts the nutrition we receive from meat
Sheep and beef animals are ruminants. Anatomically they are designed to eat grass, not grain. This means that when they are grass-fed, they are able to effectively break down grasses into nutrition for their best health. Grain fed animals are raised in feedlots where they are fed an unnatural diet based on corn or soy. They are often given hormones to grow faster and antibiotics due to unsanitary living conditions.[1]
Grass fed meat protein has huge health benefits with higher levels of essential vitamins and minerals as well as up to five times more Omega 3s than grain fed meat. Omega 3 fatty acids are essential for our heart health, blood lipids, cognitive function and even the eye development in unborn children. Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA) is also more prevalent in grass fed animals. Grass-fed lamb meat has one of the highest levels of CLA and omega-3 fatty acids, both of which are heart-healthy fatty acids with anti-cancer, anti-diabetes and anti-fat properties.
USDA scientists who compared grass fed lamb meat with grain fed lamb meat in a feedlot found that “lambs grazing in pasture had 14% less fat and about 8 % more protein compared to grain-fed lamb.” Grass fed lamb meat is also an excellent source of vitamin B-12, niacin, zinc, and a good source of iron. There is also twice as much of the naturally occurring antioxidant lutein as meat from grain fed sheep. Lutein is readily absorbed by the body and is known to reduce the risk of macular degeneration (a leading cause of blindness) and may help prevent breast and colon cancer.
Understanding the benefits of meat in the diet as well as how that meat is grown enables us to make informed choices about what we eat free from the relentless influence of the latest ‘fad diets’ biased research paid for by agenda driven corporates, political agendas and so on.
References
[1] Grass Fed VS. Grain Fed - Starboard Bio
The Disadvantages of a Diet With Little Meat (sfgate.com)
Grass-Fed Lamb: A Great Source of B12, Protein and CLA (spiritfoods.net)
10 Health Benefits of Lamb Meat (and Complete Nutrition Profile) (nutritionadvance.com)