If you are like many Americans, beef is “what’s for dinner.” We have a major affinity for red meat. Hamburgers, steaks and hot dogs are everyday meals for many people. Like most things nutrition, they should not be eaten in excess, but can certainly be part of a well balanced nutrition plan. However, not all beef is the same. We’ll take a look at five reasons why the beef you choose should come only from grass-fed cows instead of conventional, grain-fed cows. As you’ll see, it’s more than a decision about nutrition.
1. Grass-fed beef is more nutritious(1)
A new review of 30 years of research on the difference between conventionally-fed and grass fed beef was published in the Nutrition Journal. The review showed several health benefits of consuming grass-fed beef over grain-fed beef, including:
- Grass-fed beef has significantly higher amounts of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA). CLA has been shown in studies to protect against cancer and heart disease, help build muscle and promote fat loss(2). It has also been associated with healthy cholesterol, glucose and insulin metabolism(3,4).
- Grass-fed beef has contains a higher percentage of its saturated fat as stearic acid, which seems to not affect cholesterol levels compared to the higher amounts of myristic and palmitic acid in grain-fed beef which have been shown to elevate cholesterol
- Grass-fed beef has higher levels of Vitamins A and E and the body’s most powerful antioxidant glutathione, as well as superoxide dismutase
- Grass-fed beef contains less overall fat per serving
- Grass-fed beef contains less omega-6 fatty acids, associated with inflammation, and more omega-3 fatty acids, which combat inflammation along with providing a host of additional health benefits
2. Grass-fed beef is easier on the environment(5)
Since cattle are not born to eat grain, they have difficulty digesting it. Much like when humans’ digestive systems are not functioning correctly, cattle produce large amounts of gas. There is concern that the methane they produce could have a significant impact on global warming. Beyond that, though, is the amount of wasted fuel needed to produce feed for grain-fed cattle. The following paragraph, from EatWild.com explains it well:
It’s a different story in a confinement operation. Here, the animals are crowded into sheds or kept outdoors on barren land and all their feed is shipped to them from distant fields. On those fields, the crops are treated with fossil-fuel based fertilizers, sprayed with pesticides, and planted, tilled, and harvested with heavy equipment. Each of these operations requires non-renewable fuel. Then the feed is shipped to feed manufacturers where it is dried, flaked or pelleted, and mixed with other ingredients and then, finally, shipped to the waiting animals, using yet more fossil fuel.
There is also a day-for-night difference in “manure management” on the two systems. On well-managed pasture-based farms, the animals spread their manure evenly over the soil where it becomes a natural source of organic fertilizer. The manure improves the quality of the grass, which increases the rate of gain of the animals. It’s a closed, sustainable system.
On factory farms, the excrement builds up in the feedlots and sheds where it fouls the air and releases ammonia and other gasses to the eco-system. The fumes stress and sicken the animals and farm workers, and they lower the quality of life of people in nearby homes. To get rid of the waste, it is shipped to nearby fields where it overloads the land with nutrients. The excess nitrogen and phosphorous pollute the soil and ground water and drain off into streams, rivers, and estuaries where it can create “dead zones” that threaten the fish population.
3. Grass-fed beef doesn’t contain hormones or antibiotics, and isn’t fed food that has other chemicals sprayed on it
Although use of steroids in beef has been banned in Europe, it is still allowed in the United States. There is concern that the hormones found in conventional beef can be transferred to humans by consuming the beef. Although this is area of much controversy, it’s not worth it to take the chance at consuming excess hormones if you don’t have to. With our high rates of cancer, metabolic imbalances, and younger ages of the onset of puberty, there is always the question of what our meat or dairy could do to us(6).
Because cattle raised on a feedlot are more prone to sickness, they’re also more likely to receive regular shots of antibiotics. There’s also the chance of them being passed on to those that eat the meat (or consume the dairy).
4. Grass-fed beef is treated humanely(7)
The life of a grass-fed cow, allowed to move around and eat its natural diet is a stark contrast to the life of a cow raised on a feedlot, where space is minimized and the cows may spend most of their day standing in piles of manure. The ability to move around helps reduce the levels of fat in the meat, which make it healthier for us as well.
5. Grass-fed beef is less likely to contribute to food poisoning(7,8)
Grass-fed beef have a healthier digestive system because they eat the food they’re supposed to (a good lesson to keep in mind for us humans, as well). With a healthier immune system, they’re less susceptible to disease like e. coli. Being allowed to roam the farm, they’re not left standing in piles of manure, or stuck next to another cow that may become ill.
Summary
The two common reasons people use for not making the switch to grass-fed beef is the taste and the cost. Some people fall in love with the tastes of grass-fed beef immediately, and others have to acquire the taste for it. As for the cost, the more people that make the switch, the lower prices are likely to drop based on supply and demand. We also have to understand that when we’re getting ground beef for $2 per pound, or are able to buy a ¼ pound burger for less than $2, some kind of nutritional / environmental shortcut is being made.
Finally, as you think about what happens to a cow when it’s provided a diet it is not intended to eat, consider what can happen to yourself if you’re not following a diet you are intended to eat. Although it’s a bit of a different topic, you can’t help but wonder: If feeding a cow a diet of grains when it’s intended to eat grass causes this many issues, imagine the issues we do to ourselves when we choose to follow a diet we’re not intended to.
In health,
Tom Nikkola
1. Daley C, Abbott A, Doyle P, Nader G, Larson S. A review of fatty acid profiles and antioxidant content in grass-fed and grain-fed beef. Nut Jour. 2010;9:10
2. Gnadig S, Rickert R, Sebedio JL, Steinhart H. Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA): physiological effects and production. Eur J Lipid Sci Technol. 2001;103:56-61
3. Eyjolfson V, Spriet LL, Dyck DJ. Conjugated linoleic acid improves insulin sensitivity in young, sedentary humans. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2004;36:814-20
4. Moloney F, Yeow TP, Mullen A, et al. Conjugated linoleic acid supplementation, insulin sensitivity, and lipoprotein metabolism in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Am J Clin Nutr. 2004;80:887-95
5. eatwild. Grassfarming Benefits the Environment. EatWild online article, http://www.eatwild.com/environment.html
6. Jim LaValle. Cracking the Metabolic Code. 2004. Basic Health Publications. Laguna Beach, CA
7. Food, Inc. the Movie
8. eatwild. Grass-Fed Products are Clean and Safe. EatWild online article, http://www.eatwild.com/foodsafety.html
This article is not intended for the treatment or prevention of disease, nor as a substitute for medical treatment, nor as an alternative to medical advice. Use of recommendations in this and other articles is at the choice and risk of the reader.


















