Grass-Fed Red Meat is a Human Superfood

It makes me really sad when I hear a person say, “I avoid red meat” as a statement of health. It reminds me that so much propaganda has gone into repeating this statement that it must be hard to hear that red meat is a human superfood. I will try my best to convince you that red meat is a superfood because it is one of my missions in life to help my fellow humans lessen anguish when it comes to their health struggles, and that’s exactly what red meat does.

What makes Red Meat a Human Superfood?

Red meat is what’s called a complete protein because it contains ALL the essential amino acids needed for muscle and body function. Besides containing complete protein, red meat also contains essential vitamins and minerals such as B vitamins (B12, B6, niacin, riboflavin), iron, zinc, and selenium, which are crucial for energy production, immune function, and overall health.

Here is a quick summary of these vitamins and minerals:

Vitamin B12: This vitamin helps keep your blood and nerve cells healthy. It also helps make DNA, which is the genetic material in all of your cells. If you don't get enough B12, you might feel tired and weak.

Zinc: Zinc is important for your immune system, which helps your body fight off illnesses. It also helps you heal from cuts and injuries and is important for your sense of taste and smell.

Iron: Iron helps your blood carry oxygen to all parts of your body. If you don't get enough iron, you might feel very tired and out of breath because your body isn't getting enough oxygen.

Potassium: Potassium helps your muscles work, including your heart muscle. It also helps keep your nerves functioning properly and balances the fluids in your body, which keeps you hydrated and helps your cells work correctly.

What good is all this nutrition if our body cannot absorb it? Red meat not only contains all these beneficial nutrients, but they are also highly bioavailable, meaning our bodies can easily absorb and use them. This bioavailability is why red meat gives people energy and vitality, helping the body function at its best and be at peak performance. No wonder it feels so good to include red meat in our diet!

Red Meat is a Sports Super Food

Meat is a natural source of Creatine, Carnitine, Taurine and Carnosine: compounds that support muscle function, improve exercise performance, and protect against age-related muscle loss.

Creatine: This nutrient helps your muscles produce energy during heavy lifting or high-intensity exercise. It can make you stronger and help your muscles recover faster after you work out or play sports.

Carnitine: Carnitine is like a helper that transports fats into your cells to be burned for energy. This means it can help your body use fat as fuel, which is great for staying energetic and healthy.

Taurine: Taurine helps your body maintain a good balance of minerals in your cells, and can even support your nervous system, which helps you stay alert and focused.

Carnosine: Carnosine is a protector for your muscles. It helps reduce muscle fatigue, meaning you can play longer and harder without getting as tired. It also helps protect your body from harmful molecules that can damage cells.

Each of these nutrients plays a unique role in sport performance, and life performance, at that.

But What about the Animal Fat? Isn’t it Bad for me?

The fat in red meat is composed of a mixture of different types of fats, but the one you’ve probably heard of and have been warned against is saturated fat. Did you know red meat also contains omega-3 fat which you’ve also probably heard of as the “good” fat. Red meat actually contains many more types of fat, but we will talk about these two famous ones.

You’ve probably heard that omega-3 fatty acids support brain health, reduce inflammation, and promote cardiovascular health and have been encouraged to include more of it in your diet with fatty fish like salmon and sardines. The good news is that grass-fed red meat also contains these sought after omega-3’s.

What about saturated fat (also known as the “bad” fat)? People have been repeatedly told that it’s bad for them and causes heart disease. It’s no wonder folks give up red meat when they want to “eat healthy”. It makes sense to me. People are afraid of red meat because this rhetoric has been so strong for most of our lives.

What if I told you saturated fat is actually beneficial and has been the source of most of the calories of humans for millennia. Saturated fats provide a dense source of energy that are easily metabolized by the body. Humans have been metabolizing saturated fat since the beginning of our species!

Let’s Dig Deeper into the benefits of Saturated Fat

In our evolution, saturated fat played a huge role in creating our big beautiful brains! Saturated fat is essential for brain health because it forms the cell membranes which are involved in the production and function of hormones and neurotransmitters.

What does Saturated Fat have to do with Cell Membranes?

The brain cells have membranes or outer coverings which are held together by two layers of fat molecules all around. These two layers of fats include saturated fats (and other types of fats). In other words, the saturated fats hold the cells together so all the contents don’t spill out. This fat also offers a lot of stability to this outer covering of the cell which means it’s less permeable and more resistant to external stressors.

Brain cells need to communicate with each other and do so by secretion of neurotransmitters which are essentially little molecules that travel from one cell to another, signaling the cell on what it needs to do next. The saturated fat in the cell’s outer covering ensured these signals enter the cell.

Adequate levels of saturated fats support the regeneration of brain cells and thus create healthy brain tissue. It’s no wonder people feel happier and smarter when they eat a diet that contains saturated fat. It’s awesome and feels great to have a healthy brain.

Other Important Roles of Saturated Fat

Helps Certain Vitamins get Absorbed

Saturated fat is vital for nutrient absorption. Essentially, saturated fat helps vitamins get into our cells where they can do their job. There are certain vitamins that need help getting absorbed into the body: vitamins (A, D, E, and K). Saturated fat helps these fat-soluble vitamins get absorbed. These vitamins are crucial for various bodily functions, including immune health, vision, and bone strength.

Helps make Hormones

Saturated fats are necessary for the production of hormones, including sex hormones like testosterone and estrogen. They play a critical role in maintaining hormonal balance and reproductive health.

Helps the Liver do its job

Saturated fats protect the liver from the harmful effects of toxins, including alcohol and medications. They also aid in the liver's detoxification processes.

Helps Bones Stay Strong

Saturated fats are involved in calcium absorption and bone mineralization, contributing to strong and healthy bones.

As you can see, saturated fat is very important for the body and its healthy function.

But I thought Red Meat Causes Heart Disease? I’ve been told that all my life!

Heart disease risk is influenced by overall diet quality and lifestyle factors, not meat consumption and is more complex and involves other dietary and lifestyle factors (like excess consumption of sugar and inflammatory seed oils).

Sugar and seeds oils increase inflammation in the body which plays a huge role in heart disease. Thus, diets high in processed carbohydrates, sugars and seed oils, rather than meat, promote inflammation and heart disease.

Red meat actually promotes health because it is rich in essential nutrients like protein, iron, zinc, and B vitamins, which are crucial for overall health and not directly linked to heart disease. Grass fed meat also contains omega-3 fatty acids which have been shown to reduce the risk of heart disease by lowering inflammation.

It’s also important to note that not all meats are created equal. Unprocessed meats from animals raised on natural diets have different health effects. Grass-fed is important when it comes to meat. As you can see, grass fed meat is unfairly and wrongly linked to heart disease.

Grass-fed Red Meat is a Fat Loss Food

it is packed with protein, which is essential for building and maintaining muscle mass. More muscle can increase your metabolism, helping you burn more calories even at rest.
All the essential nutrients contained in red meat helps maintain great energy levels even while losing weight.
Protein also supports blood sugar regulation can help stabilize blood sugar levels, reducing cravings for sugary and high-carbohydrate foods that are the real cause of weight gain.

Feel Better, Eat Grass-Fed Meat

I see so many of my people suffering because they don’t eat meat. They think the statement, “I avoid red meat” is them being responsible and healthy. I hope you can now see that grass-fed red meat is a human superfood and will help your body function at its best with plenty of energy to go out and live your best life!

How to Start?

I always advise my health coaching clients and my family members to start with grass-fed ground beef. It can be easily made into delicious and easy to eat meatballs or patties or simply sauteed with some veggies. Starting with ground beef is also a gentle way to re-introduce meat into your diet since it is easy to digest.

Also, when someone in my family has surgery, I will always provide them with my famous “algonbiga soup” which is a soup made with meatballs, veggies, and bone broth. This is the ultimate healing combination.

If you are looking for a budget-friendly way to buy grass-fed meat, consider Butcher Box (Affiliate link), which is a meat delivery service that I have been using for 6 years now and I highly recommend. This is an affiliate link and I appreciate your support. Remember, grass-fed red meat is a human super food. Here’s to your health!