Here’s an excerpt from an email I received today on the benefits of grass fed animals. Some of this may surprise you on the abundance of omega-3’s and CLA. Check it out…

 

I know you’ve heard all of the buzz over the last few years about the health benefits of wild salmon and other fish that have higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids.

However, did you know that there’s a “land meat” that has similar omega-3/omega-6 ratios as wild salmon?  In fact, this “land meat” not only contains as much, or even higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids, but without the possible negatives such as heavy metals (mercury, etc) and PCBs that can be found in fish frequently.

I’ve talked about this type of meat before and how it’s one of the healthiest forms of meat you can possibly eat… It’s grass-fed beef and other grass-fed ruminant meats such as bison, buffalo, lamb, and venison.

Now I know that a lot of people will try to convince you that meat is not good for you… and to be honest I partially agree with them when it comes to your typical factory farm-raised meat where the animals are fattened up with huge quantities of grains & soy that are not their natural diet & given unhealthy doses of hormones, antibiotics, etc.

However, when animals are healthy and eat the diet they were meant to eat naturally, the meat is actually healthy for us.

Let’s take beef for example… When cattle eat mostly grain and soy, the fat composition of their meat becomes higher in inflammatory omega-6 fatty acids and lower in beneficial omega-3 fatty acids.

On the other hand, when cattle eat mostly grass instead of grains/soy, their meat becomes higher in omega-3s and lower in omega-6 fatty acids. In addition, grass-fed beef also contains much higher levels of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), which has shown some promising benefits in studies for losing body fat and gaining lean muscle mass.

A similar comparison can be made between wild salmon and farm raised salmon. Wild salmon is a healthier option than farm raised salmon and has higher levels of omega-3s because the wild salmon eat what they’re supposed to eat naturally. On the other hand, farm raised salmon are fattened up unnaturally with grain/soy based food pellets which detrimentally changes the salmon’s fat ratio of omega-6 to omega-3.

The problem is that it is VERY hard to find healthy grass-fed meats in typical grocery stores. In fact, even at health food stores, you might find some “organic” meats (which is at least a little better than standard), but it is often hard to find any real grass-fed meats.

Wouldn’t it give you peace of mind to know that you and your family are eating meat that is actually good for you instead of the mass produced junk at most grocery stores? I know where I’m getting most of my meat and I know how they were raised and fed. Do you?

 

If you are interested in more information on where you can get quality local grass fed beef at a reasonable price let me know by email at crookedtreecattle@gmail.com

 

Stay healthy and lean,

-Darrin Walton

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Filed under: Fitness