| Omega
3 Fatty Acids
For about 15 years now medical journals
have been reporting on Omega 6 and Omega 3 fatty acids.
In the publication American Society for Clinical Nutrition,
Dr. Artemis P. Simopoulos said in 1991 that modern "western
diets are deficient in Omega 3 fatty acids compared with
the diet on which humans evolved and their genetic patterns
were established."
In the same report, it was stated that
today we know that Omega 3 fatty acids are essential for normal growth and may play an
important role in the prevention
and treatment of:
- other inflammatory
and autoimmune disorders
In summary,
Dr. Simopoulos wrote: "Omega 3 and Omega 6 fatty acids are
not interconvertible in the human body and are important components of practically all cell membranes.
Whereas cellular proteins are genetically
determined, the polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) composition
of all cell membranes is to a great extent dependent on
the dietary intake.
Therefore appropriate amounts of dietary
Omega 6 and Omega 3 fatty acids need to be considered in
making dietary recommendations, and these two classes of
PUFAs should be distinguished because they are metabolically and functionally distinct and have opposing physiological
functions. Their balance is important for homeostasis and
normal development."
Where the fatty acids come from is important.
Dr. Simopoulos states that "Omega 6 fatty acids are represented
by linoleic acid (LA) and Omega 3 fatty acids by "-linolenic
acid (LNA). LA is plentiful in nature and is found in the
seeds of most plants except coconut, cocoa, and palm. LNA
on the other hand is found in the chloroplast of green leafy
vegetables."
Man's Diet Takes
Big Turn
Dr. Simopoulos continued: "On the basis
of estimates from studies in Paleolithic nutrition and modern-day
hunter-gatherer populations, humans evolved on a diet that
was much lower in saturated
fatty acids than is today's diet. Furthermore,
the diet contained small but roughly equal amounts of Omega
6 and Omega 3 PUFAs."
In the past 100 years there has been
a rapid and unprecedented change in man's diet. The modern vegetable
oil industry was developed, and it is based on oil from
seeds rich in Omega 6 fatty acids. Modern agriculture increased
production by emphasizing grain feeds for domestic livestock,
and grains are rich in Omega 6 fatty acids. Therefore, aggressive,
industrialized agricultural management techniques have decreased
the Omega 3 fatty acid content in many foods: "green leafy
vegetables, animal meats, eggs, and even fish."
This imbalance where Omega 6 fatty acid
levels exceed Omega 3 fatty acid levels can be seen by comparing
wild edible plants and wild animals and birds with products
of modern agriculture. Products of modern agriculture frequently
have drastically lower Omega
3 fatty acid levels. It is estimated that man evolved with
a Omega 6 to Omega 3 ratio of one to one from both meat
and vegetable sources.
Today the vegetable sources have an
estimated ratio of 10 to one. The modern diet of
meat, fish, chicken, and vegetable oils has a ratio estimated to be 20 or 25 to one!
With Dr. Norman Salem, Jr., Dr. Simopoulos
also wrote an article in The New England Journal of Medicine
about Omega 3 fatty acids in chicken eggs that gives producers
of beef for the American consumer something to ponder over.
His comments certainly suggest that not only are we
what we eat, but so are our livestock.
Of Eggs and
Bison
"In 1986, we published our findings
on purslane, indicating that it is the richest source of Omega 3 fatty acids of any
green leafy vegetable yet examined.
"On the Ampelistra farm in Greece, purslane
is plentiful and grows wild; the chickens make a feast of
it, along with insects and lots of fresh green grass, supplemented
with fresh and dried figs, barley flour, and small amounts
of corn. We were therefore interested in the Omega 3 fatty
acid content of the eggs from these hens. As we expected,
the eggs contained substantial amounts of Omega 3 fatty acids."
The Greek egg had a Omega 6 to Omega
3 ratio of 1.3 to one whereas the "supermarket egg"had a ratio of 19.4
to one.
The article went on to describe how
modern agriculture's emphasis on increased production has
led to the development of chicken feed that is being reflected
in the out-of-balance ratio of fatty acids in the "supermarket
egg."
North Dakota State University conducted
a study on the nutritional differences between grass-fed and grain-fed bison. The results of that study
closely followed that of the egg studies. The grass-fed
bison had Omega 6 to Omega 3 ratios
of 4.0 to one,
and the grain-fed bison had ratios
of 21 to one.
In 1998 the University of Guelph, in
Guelph, Ontario, Canada published their study on the effects
of forage versus grain feeding on the fatty acid composition
of cattle. Cattle fed grain for 120 days had Omega 6 to
Omega 3 ratios of 11 to one. Forage fed cattle had Omega 6 to
Omega 3 ratios of 3.0 to one.
Additional studies by others clearly
show that the longer cattle are
fed grain, the greater
the fatty acid imbalance.
For instance, after 200 days in the feedlot grain-fed cattle
have Omega 6 to Omega 3 ratios that exceed 20 to one! Many
cattle are fed 200 days or more in the United States.
With the scientific data that has been
published concerning Omega 6 and Omega 3 fatty acids, we
must assume grass-fed beef is
far better for
human nutrition than grain-fed beef. If so, then having
access to grass-fed beef can be very beneficial for one's
health. And since our grass-fed beef has been raised naturally, without hormones, and without having been fed antibiotics
during the final phase of their lives, they have added benefits.
American consumers are becoming ever
more conscious of their environment. They also are becoming
more conscious about what they eat. Texas Grass-Fed Beef
wants to be in the forefront in answering the consumers'
legitimate health concerns. So, we raise and market grass-fed
beef the natural, old-fashioned way.
Grass
Fed Beef
Have you ever heard a
dietitian tell folks to go down to the Top Notch Supermarket
and stock up on all the USDA Prime beef they can find? That's
right, have you heard a dietitian tell folks to buy the
fattest meat they can find?
Of course, the answer
is flat out "No!"
No respectable dietitian in the world will tell
you to eat beef laced with fat. Yet the current focus in
beef production is to aim
your entire genetic program toward cattle that will top the charts in the grid game.
This means when the cattle hang on the rail they will grade
choice or better with a yield grade of two or better.
For the past three years
the Noble Foundation studied the impact of selling on the
grid. They were sure that if you hit the target you'd make
a lot of money. The answer though was that the money was
in final weight and daily rate of gain, not carcass quality.
This study confirmed what cattlemen have known for many
generations.
If there's no money in
topping the carcass contest, then there must be some other
reason folks are trying to get their cattle to marble. Is
it tender meat? Well, the studies on that indicate marbling
only has about a 10% correlation with tender beef. Is it
flavor? Grass-fed folks say their beef tastes like beef,
and grain-fed beef is nearly tasteless in comparison. Is
it juiciness? Some studies indicate that if there is more
fat, there is more juice. But really good lean meat can
be juicy too.
Cattle and Cigarettes
So what possesses cattlemen
to produce beef laced with intramuscular fat? Are they like
cigarette makers? Cigarette makers certainly aren't health
advocates, and their customers have known for many generations
that smoking was bad for their health yet they smoked anyway.
So it's not the cigarette makers' or tobacco growers' fault
that folks die from smoking. But that doesn't stop me from
asking again, "Are beef producers
like cigarette makers?"
In the past 15 years nutrition
scientists have made some major breakthroughs in understanding man's dietary/nutritional needs.
The book The Omega Diet by Artemis P. Simopoulos, M.D. (AMAZON
LINK Needed), and her coauthor Jo Robinson gives readers
the bottom line on the most recent nutritional breakthroughs.
The news is both good and bad for beef.
The bad news is fat beef is not recommended.
Also, grain-fed beef is deficient in Omega 3 fatty acids and loaded
with Omega 6 fatty acids. Since the American diet is deficient
in Omega 3s and overdosed with Omega 6s and that imbalance
is causing heart disease, cancer, attention deficit syndrome,
diabetes, and a whole host of other aliments caused by body
breakdowns rather than bacteria, this is damning news for
beef.
But in a different light,
beef can be a health food and highly recommended by professional dietitians.
And what is that different light you ask? The answer is
simply grass-fed beef.
- Grass-fed
beef is naturally leaner than grain-fed beef
- Grass-fed beef has the recommended ratio of Omega 6
to Omega 3 fatty acids (It's 3:1.)
- Grass-fed
beef is loaded with other natural minerals and vitamins,
plus it's a great source of CLA (conjugated linoleic acid)
a fat that reduces the risk of cancer, obesity, diabetes,
and a number of immune disorders.
Beef, in its natural grass-fed state,
is a health food of the highest order.
Do the
Math on Grass
But what about the economics? Should cattlemen even consider raising beef
on grass? Here's how we view the numbers.
It takes 12,500 pounds
of grass to support a cow for one year and raise a 450-pound
calf. It takes another 4,000 pounds of grass to raise the
calf to 850 pounds. If the calf is retained another 10 months,
it will take another 9,450 pounds of grass to get it to
weigh 1,250 pounds. The total for grass is 25,950 pounds.
At one cent per pound that's a feed cost of $259.50, plus it covered the cow.
Compare this to a $290 feed bill at a feedlot
to raise a 500-pound calf to 1,250 pounds. And that's just
for the calf post weaning.
On the revenue side, the packers are paying around
$68 per hundred for grain-fed cattle. That's $816 for a
1,200-pound steer. TGFBC's current pricing structure is
$1.35 per pound hanging on the rail. Depending on dressing
percentage, a 14-month old, 1,000-pound calf could be worth
$790.
If all this is true, then what are cattlemen doing?
From what I see, it looks
like they're doing their best to raise fat beef and sell
their calves at weaning to folks who will eventually place
the cattle in a feedlot and turn them into grain-fed beef.
I don't understand it?
Do you?
DR. MERCOLA'S COMMENT:
Grass fed beef, as this extensive
and well written article article suggests is clearly best.
You can use the extensive resource list I have compiled
to help you locate local vendors of this valuable health
food.
Some points to consider. Just because
beef is organic does NOT make it as good as range fed beef.
There is no question that cattle that have not had antibiotics,
growth hormones and grains sprayed with pesticides will
be better than those that have received those.
It is important to note here that
natural food stores like Whole Foods sell foods that are
NOT range fed and NOT given grains that are organic. Their
beef is only marginally better than commercial grocery stores
the grains these animals are fed are not organic. So don't
pay twice as much for your meat and continue to get inferior
quality.
The key is in the fatty acid composition
of the meat, as this article so carefully points out. Range
fed is best and one should seek that out. The best way is
to find a farmer who is growing the cow and develop a relationship
with him to make sure that you can confirm how the cows
are raised. I am not so interested in "certified organic"
That is only necessary if you don't personally know the
grower.
When you purchase meat this way,
you can generally get find three friends and each of you
can purchase one-quarter of the animal and have the animal
slaughtered and distributed among all four families. One
quarter of a cow is about 150 pounds and generally takes
about two freezer shelves.
Be sure to confirm that the cow was
range fed though as that is one of the MOST important characteristics
of the meat.
The same precautions apply with respect
to eggs. Make sure those chickens are range fed. In fact
if you can only get one food as organic it should be eggs.
They are generally fairly easy to get. They must say range
fed ORGANIC on the box though or they are not (unless you
buy directly from the grower). Caged free is NOT the same.
Many companies use this term to charge you more and give
you the same egg nutritionally.
Organic range fed chickens and their
eggs are a completely different food than commercially raised
chickens and eggs. The fatty acid ratio of omega 6:3 is
2 or 3 to 1 in the former and 20 to one in the later. In
my book there are not many excuses to not have these types
of eggs. Most health food stores and even many commercial
grocers now carry them.
Related
Articles:
Suppliers of Grassfed Products
Mostly Organic
Is Meat From Diseased Animals Safe
for Consumption?
Omega-3 Fatty Acids Slow Heart
Disease
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