What’s Wrong With Grass-fed/Grass-Finished Meat?

In his article “What About Grass-fed Beef and Dairy?”, John Robbins writes:

“We do not yet have studies that tell us what percentage of the health problems associated with eating beef would be reduced or eliminated by the eating of grass-fed beef. I’m sure grass-fed beef is much healthier than feedlot beef, both for the environment and for the consumer. But doing well in such a comparison hardly constitutes a ringing endorsement. While grass-fed beef and other pastured animal products have many advantages over factory farm and feedlot products, it’s important to remember that factory farm and feedlot products are an unmitigated disaster. Almost anything would be better.

I am reminded of a brochure the Cattlemen’s Association used to distribute to schools. The pamphlet compared the nutritional realities of a hamburger to another common food, and made much of the fact that the hamburger was superior in that it had more of every single nutrient listed than did its competitor. And what’s more, the competitor had far more sugar. The comparison made it sound like a hamburger was truly a health food.

The competition, however, was not the stiffest imaginable. It was a 12-ounce can of Coke.

Comparing grass-fed beef to feedlot beef is a little like that. It’s far healthier, more humane, and more environmentally sustainable. It’s indeed better. If you are going to eat meat, dairy products or eggs, then that’s the best way to do it.

But I wouldn’t get too carried away and think that as long as it’s grass-fed then it’s fine and dandy. Grass-fed products are still high in saturated fat (though not as high), still high in cholesterol, and are still devoid of fiber and many other essential nutrients”

Dustin Rudolph – The Plant Based Pharmacist reminds us that:

• All meat has been shown to increase your risk of various types of cancer. Animal-based proteins have been shown to increase the expression and activation of cancer causing genes

• All meat contains iron in the form of heme iron which causes oxidative stress and damage to the body. Heme iron has been associated with cancer of the colon, rectum, stomach, pancreas, bladder, endometrium & ovaries, prostate, breast & lung, heart disease, rheumatoid arthritis, type 2 diabetes and Alzheimer’s disease.

• All meat contains absolutely NO FIBER, NO PHYTONUTRIENTS, & LITTLE to NO ANTI-OXIDANTS all of which are extremely vital in achieving optimal health.

T. Colin Campbell, – Professor Emeritus in Nutritional Biochemistry from Cornell University believes that the strong association between meat and various cancers is due in part to the amino acid profile of animal protein.   His decades-long experimentation with casein – a major dairy protein – revealed its tumor promoting effect. Campbell states that:

“The adverse effects of animal protein, as illustrated in our laboratory by the effects of casein, are related to their amino acid composition, not to the effects of pasteurization, homogenization, or of the presence of hormones, pesticides, etc. Even though pasteurization and homogenization may cause slight changes in the physical characteristics of proteins, I know of no evidence where amino acid contents are altered by these treatments. This is important because it shows that there will be no difference in the biological effects of animal based protein from grass-fed or feed lot fed animals. Moreover, the casein that we used in our extensive experiments was before hormones were introduced and before factory farming became the norm, thus it mostly represented animals that were grass fed.”

The China Project showed that as animal protein intake increased, so did the incidence of cancer and other diseases. It’s important to remember that the animal protein consumed in rural China came from grass-fed animals

My thoughts:

The most important message for people to hear is that eating a Whole Food Plant Based Diet, along with reasonable exercise, gives people the best chance to live long, healthy, full-functioning lives.

There are many variations of WFPB diets. Some people, like me, are 100% plant based. However, one doesn’t have to be 100% plant based to follow a WFPB diet. I strongly encourage people to try to get as close to 100% plant based as possible. If someone is already suffering from heart disease, cancer and/or type II diabetes, I encourage them to go 100% plant based.

Dr. Campbell’s experimental research showed that when animal protein intake surpassed 10% of total calories, cancer risk increased. Therefore, I encourage people who are not 100% plant based to, at the very least, get 90% of their calories from whole and minimally processed plant foods.

Because grass-fed meat has slightly more anti-oxidants and a better fatty acid profile than grain fed meats, WFPB folks eating animal products will probably be better off eating grass-fed animals – just not too much!