Beef Nutrition News

Greetings,


Red meat and heart health: It's been a topic of debate that has led some to restrict one of the most nutrient-rich foods available and yet the body of evidence supporting lean beef in a healthy diet is strong.


Just this week, the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition published a study demonstrating that a heart-healthy diet incorporating lean beef daily is as effective at improving cholesterol levels as traditional heart-healthy diets, such as "Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension" (DASH). In a randomized controlled study, researchers at The Pennsylvania State University investigated the effects of lean beef in cholesterol-lowering diets in a study called "Beef in an Optimal Lean Diet" (BOLD).i


Researchers tested two levels of lean beef in heart-healthy diets: the BOLD diet, which included 4 ounces of lean beef every day, and the BOLD-PLUS diet, which contained 5.4 ounces of lean beef every day. Study participants consuming both the BOLD and BOLD-PLUS diets experienced a 10 percent decrease in their LDL cholesterol levels from the start of the study. The improvements in heart health risk factors seen from these two diets were as effective as DASH. For more details, a fact sheet is available for you to download at BeefNutrition.org.


As you may be aware, Harvard researchers recently conducted a review of 20 epidemiological studies encompassing more than a million participants and concluded that red meat is not associated with increased heart-disease risk.ii The consistency of these findings with this week's BOLD study further strengthens the body of evidence pointing to the benefits of adding lean beef to a healthy diet. 
 

Researchers have suggested unnecessarily restricting beef may reduce adherence to low-fat diets, defeating their long-term effectiveness.iii Flexibility to include more nutrient-rich foods people enjoy is important for health professionals to consider as we strive to help Americans build healthier diets that include popular foods like lean beef.
 

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

  • Recommending 4.0-5.4 ounces of lean beef per day as part of a heart-healthy diet with less than 7 percent of calories from saturated fat is now supported by a rigorously designed clinical study.
  • By including lean beef daily, study participants in this randomized controlled clinical study experienced a 10 percent decrease in LDL cholesterol from baseline.
  • Nutrient-rich cuts of lean beef, such as Top Sirloin steak, Tenderloin and 95% lean Ground Beef, are readily available in grocery stores today. In fact, 17 of the top 25 most popular fresh meat cuts sold at retail are lean and can be part of a solution to building a heart-healthy diet. 
     

This latest study on beef's role in a heart-healthy diet provides you with additional science to make evidence-based recommendations. I encourage you to read more about the beef checkoff-funded BOLD study and add it to your reference materials. Please visit http://bit.ly/BOLDAJCN. Or, to find lean beef recipes like those used in the study, visit us at www.BeefNutrition.org/recipesearch.aspx.

 

Healthy Regards,

Shalene's Signature

 

Shalene McNeill, PhD, RD

Executive Director, Human Nutrition Research  

National Cattlemen's Beef Association
  

 

 

     

 

i. Roussell MA, Hill AM, Gaugler TL, West SG, Vanden Heuvel JP, Alaupovic P, Gillies PJ, Kris-Etherton PM. Beef in an Optimal Lean Diet study: effects on lipids, lipoproteins, and apolipoproteins.  Am J Clin Nutr 2012; 95(1). Internet: http://bit.ly/BOLDAJCN (accessed 14 December 2011).

 

 

ii. Micha R, Wallace SK, Mozaffarian D. Red and processed meat consumption and risk of incident coronary heart disease, stroke, and diabetes mellitus: a systematic review  and meta-analysis. Circulation 2010; Jun1: 121 (21): 2271-83.
   

 

iii. Hunninghake DB, Maki KC, Kwiterovich PO, Davidson MH, Dicklin MR, Kafonek SD. Incorporation of lean red meat into a National Cholesterol Education Program Step I diet: A long-term, randomized clinical trial in free-living persons with hypercholesterolemia. J Am Coll Nutr. 2000; 19:351-360.