Beef
Cattle Diet
Grass is the traditional diet
for cattle. In recent decades, the use of grain to feed cattle is preferred
due to its lower cost and faster harvest time. The most popular are wheat,
maize, rice, barley, soybean, and cane sugar.
While grains are cheap and
provide an easy source of energy, the rapid rise in blood sugar from grains
intake causes the pancreas in humans or animals alike to overwork in an
attempt to lower blood sugar by increasing insulin production. This leads
to an increase in blood insulin level and ultimately to insulin resistance
and diabetes. In animals,
a diet rich in grains promotes rapid growth and weight gain. Excess calories
are transformed into fat and stored as adipose tissue. Grain fed cattle
therefore have a higher level of saturated fat than grass fed cattle.
The craving for fat laden beef is carried to the extreme with Kobe beef,
a special type of "gourmet" beef that comes from cattle fed with beer (which
comes from grains). Cereal grains also contain low and undetectable amounts
of vitamin C, B12, and other vitamins
and minerals. They act as anti-nutrients by competing and displacing nutrients
that are associated with a decreased risk of heart disease and many forms
of common cancers.
The grain fed diet leads to increase
in the amount of fat
in the meat, as excess sugar from grain is converted into fat.
In the case of beef, the fat and
cholesterol
is around and inside the meat. The fat is in the meat and on the skin in
the case of poultry. Both the saturated
fat and oxidized cholesterol, through free radical pathology, have been
identified as causes of atherosclerosis, heart attack, high blood pressure,
cancer, and other life-threatening degenerative diseases.
Essential Fatty Acid
Ratio
Beef from grain fed cattle
is also high in saturated fat, which is not subject to lipid peroxidation
and free radical pathology. Such
beef, unfortunately, also contains a high level of PUFA and cholesterol,
both of which undergo auto-oxidation. This results in free radical generation
and contribute to a wide variety of free radical related diseases including
atherosclerosis, cancer, and arthritis, just to name a few.
Polyunsaturated
fat (PUFA) is a prominent component of grains such as corn. Omega 3
(N3) and omega 6 (N6) essential
fatty acids (EFAs) are two important subgroups of PUFA. Both are essential
for normal growth and may play an important role in the prevention and treatment
of coronary artery disease, arthritis and cancer. N3 in particular is critical
for cell membrane stabilization. A proper balance of N6 to N3 EFA ratio
is an important determinant of optimum health.
In the past 100 years, there
has been a rapid and unprecedented change in the diets of both men and animals.
Modern agriculture increased production by emphasizing grain feeds for domestic
livestock. Grains are rich in N6 EFAs compare to N3 EFAs. The result
is an overall increase of N6 EFA and decrease of N3 EFA in the diet. N6
and N3 EFAs should be clearly distinguished because they are metabolically
and functionally distinct. Although both are important, they have opposing
physiological functions. Researches have now shown that the proper balance
of N6 to N3 EFA ratio is more important than the ratio of PUFA to saturated
fat for determining optimum health. Taking in grain fed beef leads to an
imbalance of the N6 to N3 ratio in favor of N6 EFAs.
The products of modern agriculture
frequently have much lower N3 EFA levels. Our modern day diet is heavily
dependent on grains, grain fed beef, refined carbohydrates, and processed
vegetable oils. This combination has an estimated N6 to N3 EFA ratio of
20 or 40 to 1. For
optimum anti-aging health, a diet rich in green leafy vegetables, and small
amount of lean meat and fish, with a N6 to N3 EFA ratio of 4 to 1, is recommended.
It is obvious that we are what
we eat. It is also important to note that our animals too, are what they
eat. Unfortunately, like us, their grain fed diet is not the best.
Antibiotics
The diet of cattle includes antibiotics.
The major purpose of feeding antibiotics to cows, sheep and other livestock
is to promote growth. Animals that receive antibiotics in their feed
often gain 4 to 5 percent more body weight than animals that do not receive
the drug. More than 5,000 tons of antibiotics are added to livestock
feed every year. This adds up to about half of the amount manufactured in
the United States. More than 70 percent of beef cattle and beef calves get
daily drug doses during their lifespan.
A report from the National Research
Council has acknowledged that there is a link
between the use of antibiotics in food animals, the development of bacterial
resistance to these drugs, and human disease. This is despite
the fact that contracting the disease is rather low. Those at the greatest
risk include infants, the elderly and those with weakened immune systems.
Overfeeding of antibiotics in
cattle raising poses serious effects on human health. Antibiotic resistant
bacteria inevitably develop in the cattle, which can easily be transmitted
to humans through consumption of meat or through human contact with living
animals. This leads to a reduction in the efficiency of antibiotics in fighting
infections and reduced levels of favorable intestinal bacteria, which could
increase susceptibility to intestinal infections (such as acute gastroenteritis
with fever, pain, and diarrhea). A depressed immune system also results
which could lower resistance to infections and increase allergic reactions.
Antibiotic resistance could pose
serious medical implications. For example, some strains of Salmonella bacteria,
which can be transmitted to humans through food or contact with animals,
are now resistant to commonly used antibiotics.
Environmental Hormones
Besides antibiotics, an array
of natural and synthetic hormones found in meat is given to cattle and other
livestock to promote growth and cause their meat to be tastier for human
consumption. These hormones enter the human body via external sources and
are therefore called environmental hormones. The Food and Drug Administration
approve these hormones.
For instance, diethylstilbestrol
(DES), a sex steroid hormone which was prohibited from human use, could
cause a 15 to 19 percent increase in weight (mostly fat) and a 7 to 10 percent
improvement in feed efficiency (that is, weight gained per pound of feed)
in beef cattle.
However, when meat laced with
DES is consumed, our endocrine balance is upset, even in minute amounts.
These compounds are very potent and are measured in parts per trillion.
In fact, the endocrine system produces its own hormones to control the various
bodily functions such as the metabolic rate, growth and reproductive systems.
When the system balance is disturbed, it promotes disease.
It is now known that any amount
of hormones beyond the normal level present in a healthy person is capable
of inviting cancer and other serious health problems. Like in women,
increasing levels of the hormone estrogen are related to cancers of the
breasts, ovaries and cervix. Other implications include high blood pressure,
heart attack, and stroke. DES was consumed by 85 percent of all livestock
in the United States until 1979 when the Food and Drug Administration finally
banned it.
Treating animals with varies
types of hormones remains a widely accepted practice within the U.S. meat
industry. Hormone pellets are regularly inbred in virtually all cattle.
The cost was offset by the increase in pounds of beef produced. While DEA
is now illegal, alternative compounds may cause similar problems including
disparity of the endocrine system and increased risk of cancer. Unfortunately,
detection of such insult may not be apparent for decades. When finally discovered,
the damage may have been too great to reverse. Are you prepared to expose
your body to such potential risks? Is there
such a thing as healthy beef? Grass-fed cattle are a healthy source of beef.
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