Saturday, May 5, 2018

The Advantages To Grass Fed Beef And Pork

By Ronald Miller


Healthy nutritional content is concerned with the fatty acid composition of foods. Meat is one of the big culprits. Grass fed beef and pork is a winner every time. The contrast between these and that from concentrated animal feeding operations is significant. Human consumption and impact on humans is the most significant.

The major problem with Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFO) is the atrocious hygiene. Runoffs from the animal wastes have caused E.Coli and other diseases. The food fed to these animals is also an atrocity. They are fed any type of waste products the industry wants to get rid of. They are also fed unfit meats, their own manure, and plastic, which is supposed to replace the fiber of grass, which they are not fed. They are also given things that are supposed to make them gain weight more quickly, such as antibiotics.

Antibiotic usage in the feeding of animals is a major concern. Over 80% of antibiotic usage in the United States is given to animals to protect them from disease due to the atrocious conditions they are subjected to. These antibiotics cause "super germs" that become immune to the antibiotic. When humans eat this meat, these germs are passed on to them and cause resistance to antibiotic in illnesses of the human. This makes many illnesses difficult to control.

The type of food these animals are fed is also a problem. Feed given factory/farm raised animals contains arsenic, in an attempt to improve growth and color. Even small amounts of arsenic from a very small amount (less than most people eat) causes a dangerous concentration of arsenic that is well above the World Health Organization's recommendation of only 2 micrograms/kg/day.

Although pigs require food beside just grass, they do have natural diet needs. Since they eat other things, they are termed, not grass fed, but pastured. This means they are raised in an open pasture where they are free to roam and dig up things that are preferable to them naturally.

Fat quality, meaning the ratio of Omega-3 to Omega-6 oils, is a big issue in nutrition. Pigs in the wild or pastured, east mostly foods high in Omega-3. Barn raised pigs are fed primarily corn and soybean meal. These are high in Omega-6, which makes the meat from them also high in Omega-6, which is transferred to humans when they eat it. The problem with Omega-6 is that it is an inflammatory, whereas Omega-3 is an anti-inflammatory. The recommended ratio for the two fats are 1:1 to 4:1 of 06:03.

The benefits to pastured pigs is evident from a couple of studies done. The pastured pigs have a lot more Omega-3's. Acorns, a natural food preferred by pastured pigs, is a high source of Omega-3 that barn-raised pigs don't get. The natural diet of these pigs gave them much more benefit than the foods chosen for commercial pigs or barn-raised ones that are raised to fatten them up.

A study of foods fed to pigs showed the impact this has on human consumption. One group was fed linseed oil, high in Omega-3. A control group was fed foods normally fed to barn raised pigs. Ham harvested from the first group had a ratio of 2:1, while the control group had a ratio of 12:1




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