Delicious UK - (01)January 2020

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your health.

dietitian with the British Dietetic

Association, says we’re unlikely to

meet our omega-3 requirements

through meat anyway, as the

recommended meat intake is no

more than 70g per day. “The total

intake of omega-3 fat from meat

may not be of significant value

to benefit overall cardiovascular

health,” she says. The best sources

of omega-3s are oily fish. Other

(less effective) sources include

walnuts, pumpkin seeds, rapeseed

and linseed oil, soya and soya

products, and green leafy veg.

ANY OTHER BENEFITS?

The higher levels of conjugated

linoleic acid (CLA) in grass-fed

meat and dairy are often cited as

another health benefit. Some

studies show that people who eat

the most CLA have a lower risk of

conditions including heart disease,

type 2 diabetes and cancer. But Prof

Givens says these benefits aren’t

proven and studies often use high

doses of CLA not available in food.

“There remains uncertainly about

CLA’s benefits, particularly at the

doses normally achieved from diet.”

Some studies suggest health

benefits might flow from other

protective components in grass-fed

foods, such as vitamin K2. This

relatively recently discovered

vitamin plays a role in blood clotting

and heart and bone health. “But it’s

too early to be certain about this,”

Prof Givens says.

There’s also evidence that meat

from grass-fed cattle can contain

more beta carotene (the orange-red

pigment in some fruit and veg that

converts into vitamin A) and

vitamin E than grain-fed. But

again, it’s unclear how beneficial

to human health the difference is.

WHAT ABOUT MILK?

Although milk from grass-fed

animals is widely considered

healthier, scientists generally

agree it has one nutritional

drawback: it contains less iodine.

This is a cause for concern

because in the UK, like the rest

of the world, iodine deficiency is

a growing problem, particularly

among women and teenage girls.

The implications are potentially

most severe during pregnancy:

iodine boosts brain development in

the womb and deficiency can cause

learning disabilities in the child.

“The lower concentration of

iodine in milk from grass-fed

animals is a bit worrying, as milk is

the main dietary source of iodine,

and many women of childbearing

age have marginal to low iodine

status,” Prof Givens says. “If

continued into pregnancy this can

lead to problems.” He adds the lack

of iodine can be addressed by

drinking more milk: roughly 360ml

from pure grass-fed animals (or

300ml from grain-fed) contains

the RDA of 140mg iodine.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Grass-fed meat and milk contain

higher concentrations of some

nutrients than grain-fed, but

scientists and nutritionists say the

nutritional difference between

grass and grain-fed foods is

probably too small to make much

of an impact on health. Milk from

grass-fed cows is lower in iodine

than that from grain fed, and women

need to make sure their intake of

iodine is adequate.

Grass-fed meat can contain more

omega-3s than grain-fed

❑ TRUE ❑ FALSE

The nutritional difference between

grass and grain-fed meat can hugely

impact our health ❑ TRUE ❑ FALSE

Grass-fed meat is the best dietary

source of omega-3s ❑ TRUE ❑ FALSE

Grass-fed meat is a good option for

people who don’t eat much oily fish

❑ TRUE ❑ FALSE

Grass-fed milk contains as much

iodine as grain-fed ❑ TRUE ❑ FALSE

TRUE OR FALSE?

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