Nutritional Benefits of Red Meat in Human Nutrition

Red meat (RM) has been a bigger feature in the human nutrition for many years. However, in recent years, there is a significant decline in consumption of red meat because it is claimed to enhance the threats of cardiovascular disorder and colorectal cancer. Meat is important in the human diet since it provides protein and essential amino acids and red meat serves as a significant feature of these amino acids. Consequently, eating red meat (RM) decreases the demand for wider varieties in an individual’s diet. Many elements characterize red meat. These include proteins, fats and amino acids. Before being prepared, red meat constitutes 20-24 /100 grams average protein in the body and 27-35/100 grams after being cooked. The US health department advises individuals to consume 90 grams or below or red meat on a daily basis. Second, fat contains sufficient energy and nutrients for nutrition. Nonetheless, too much consumption of fats might lead to cholesterol. Fat offers palatability that plays a greater role in marketing various aspects of meat.

Key words-red meat, nutrition, disorders, benefits, white meat, health, risks.

Dietary Benefits of Red Meat

Red meat (RM) refers to the meat of mammals which has red pigment when raw.RM serves as one of the most debated diets in the history of human nutrition.RM (read meat) includes a fresh beef, veal, pork, mutton, lamb and processed meats from animal sources. Subsequently, processed red meat products include hot dogs, canned meat, ham, and salami. Although people have been and continued to consume it since evolution, many individuals believe red meat can cause severe harm because of several factors involved in preparing the fresh red meat. However, RD is nutritious and considered healthy for human consumption. RM is characterized by proteins, amino acids, fats, minerals, vitamins, and antioxidants. Moreover, red meat is rich in essential elements such as carnosine and creatine. Meat consumers are high in nutrients which enhances brain and muscle activities. Despite its benefits, red meat is associated with many health challenges. For example, many observation research shows that RM has a higher risk of cancer, cardiovascular disorders hence high mortality rate (Connelly-Frost et al., 2009). Red meat causes the cholesterol cancer which is the fourth commonly treated cancer across the globe. Additionally, red meat is linked with diabetes, and food processing has been determined as the main element involved in the higher increase of threats related to red meat. Despite all these challenges, red meat has significant dietary benefits to an individual diet and should be consumed with a lot of regulations. Therefore, the essay focuses on the dietary profits of red meat in human nutrition.

The main objective-to determine the dietary benefits of red meat in a healthy diet

Minor objectives

To determine the primary sources of red meat

To determine the negative and positive effects of red meat on nutrition

To determine the mechanisms of producing better red meat without side effects

To determine the major causes of increased consumption of red meat

To assess the key components of red meat

There are numerous benefits of red meat-RM; first and foremost, Derbyshire 2017 shows that red meat contributes to the essential intake of nutrients. Micronutrients that are contained in the red meat encompass, zinc, selenium, potassium and a variety of B-vitamins such as riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B6 and B12 (Binnie, 2014). Polyunsaturated fatty acids are also in taken from red meat. Availability of zinc and iron is more in red meat than in any other source of food.  RM provides iron that is required to assist the red blood cells (RBC) to transport oxygen hence effective blood flow. Besides, iron plays an essential role in children’s cognitive development, immune system, and energy metabolism. Iron deficiencies are prevalent in pregnant women, older adults and children hence they should substitute red meat in their diet. Iron is present in dark-green leaf crops but is best absorbed by the human body from the red meat. Zinc obtained from the red meat is required for the effective synthesis of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and assists the immune systems to perform effectively.  Intake of zinc is vital for boosting the immune system, reproductive development, healing of wounds and promulgates normal growth in children (Binnie, 2014). Despite being present in grains, eggs and fish, the body best absorbs zinc from red meat other minerals contained by red meat are potassium and selenium. Potassium takes part in the regulation of blood pressure while selenium is an oxidant which is elementary for the functioning of the immune system.  Red meat produces B-vitamins such as riboflavin, niacin, thiamin, pantothenic, and vitamin B12 and B6 (Binnie, 2014).  Such vitamins contribute to the functioning of the nervous system and release of food associated energy.

Similarly, red meat is rich in fatty acids. Red meats such as pork, beef, and lamb contain same proportions of monounsaturated, saturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids (Binnie, 2014). The major fatty acid that is found in red meat is stearic acid, and it does not affect the level of cholesterol. Another type of saturated fatty acid in red meat is palmitic acid which increases the level of cholesterol.

Another essential nutrient content of red meat is protein. Red meat provides an optimal amount of protein and meets the quality requirements. Biologists recommend provision of a higher quantity of proteins in children’s dietary to promote healthy growth and development amongst them. For optimal health, researchers argue that between 2-3 meals should contain high-quality protein which is best obtained from red meat. The recommended dietary protein allowance is about 50%. For children, an optimal utilization is estimated to be 0.95g/kg per day while the approximate of adult’s requirements is 0.8g/kg on a daily basis.  A higher intake of protein probably between 1.1-1-5g/kg daily is elementary among the ageing as it in better maintenance of bone and muscle thus adults can age well. Effective muscle and bone maintenance reduces the risk of falling, physical disability, and fractures of bones amongst the ageing.

According to McNeill 2014 higher protein intake correlates to healthy weights when the energy content from protein is kept high while that from carbohydrates low reduces the overall energy intake. Substituting carbohydrates with protein has a likelihood of improving cardiovascular risk factors such as reducing the blood pressure. Research that has been done by measuring the composition has shown people taking red meat loses more fat which is accompanied by greater loss of weight. Besides, they lose a greater percentage of their lean body mass. Scholars have also indicated that intake of red meat is often linked to very low-calorie diet. Weight loss is a dominant beneficial factor of having red meat in the dietary because it is linked to low calories. Those that take a lot of red meat stand a chance of reducing the risk of being obese (Krebs et al., 2010). Also, coordinated action of multiple proteins is critical in fostering a complex process of bacterial cell division. The process involves the separation of daughter cell to facilitate growth.  Wyness 2016 posits that protein is associated with such process of cell division is acetylmuramic-L-alanine amidases AmiA/B/C.

Disadvantages –raw red meat is likely to carry severe bacteria hence should be stored, cooked or handled properly. Red meat is associated with many disorders such as cholesterol, cardiovascular, and diabetes due to bacteria (Dillon et al., 2016). Therefore, it is recommended not to eat red meat more than once after preparation to avoid the occurrence of food poisoning. Therefore, it is necessary to heat red meat through to ensure the bacteria contained in it are killed.

Cancer-red meat might increase the likelihood of an individual developing various types of cancer disorders in many ways. For instance, iron provided by red meat contains heme protein that might undergo severe chemical reactions to form the carcinogenic-N-nitroso compounds related to colorectal cancer (Connelly-Frost et al., 2009). The report of the scientific advisory committee of 2010 recommends that to decrease the risk of getting colorectal cancer, one should reduce the consumption of red meat.  Consequently, fat contents in RM can be a contributing feature in the occurrence of breast cancer due to estrogen and progesterone production. Higher consumption of processed red meat is associated with high risks of developing the type 2 diabetes. Processed meat might contain various preservatives like nitrosamines that are very toxic to a pancreatic cell that produces insulin. Moreover, adverse chemical changes during the preparation of red meat are likely to result in insulin resistance in body tissues and cells. These severe impacts of red meat might be reduced by consuming foods rich in fibre which modifies the absorption and essential excretion of features and compounds.

Despite such limitation, a diet characterized by intake of red meat is often ranked the lowest in amongst the risk factors that to the disease burden. Eating of red meat is one of the guidance offered by the experts as a new approach to diet that emphasizes a healthier dietary pattern that is fundamentally consisting of naturally rich nutrients (Binnie, 2014).  Red meat is not processed, it is natural. Eating of red meat ascertains the fundamentals of traditional and healthier way of eating. Red meat is associated with low salts, saturated fat, trans-fat, and refined carbohydrates. In contrary, red meat is characterized by higher fiber content, minerals, unsaturated fats, photochemical and antioxidants. Substituting red meat in the diet makes the diet to be more satisfying and has lower energy content.

Base on Brouns 2018, he argues that a diet that is containing red meat effective in promoting weight management and reduces the risk factors of some diseases like diabetes, heart disease, and stroke. Only gluttonous eater of red meat has a higher risk of attack by colorectal cancer. The global burden of disease research estimated risk factors that are connected to attack by the disease. One of the risk factors is high blood pressure which for the case of red meat it is regulated by sodium. For complete elimination of the risk factors, diets which are characterized high sodium content must complement high intake of fruits, seeds, nuts, whole grains, and vegetables. Red meat provides the major nutrients whose deficiency in the body can lead to various infections. Substituting red meat into the diet also eliminate other risk factors such high body mass index, sub-optimal breastfeeding and physical inactivity. Governments and health authorities are offering guidance to health dietary by encouraging people to stop eating processed foods. People are advised to prepare and take wholesome and minimally processed foods. For example, in Canada, the government has taken the initiative to promote effective cooking skills as a way of addressing infection by diseases like obesity and type II diabetes (Derbyshire et al., 2017).  In Ontario, for instance, there is an initiative to equip 16-year old skills and knowledge of planning for six meals which is a healthy dietary start for their adult life. Minimally processed foods like red meat are the essentials of a healthy diet.

One may criticize intake of red meat based on growing evidence that outlines the paradigm of shifting diet from incorporating red meat into the diet. Nevertheless eating red meat has a lot of benefits that have been captured in the literature. The benefits are based on essential nutrients that it carries and the capacity to eliminate some of the risk factors that correlates with infection especially when it is included in our diet.  However, it is important to note that consumption of a lot of red meat is dangerous to our health, perhaps we need to substitute partly in our diet to avoid infections such as colorectal cancer. Moreover, before eating red meat, one should ensure that it is properly cooked to avoid bacterial infection. Again, from the study, it is much clear that consumption of processed meat is not healthy and should be restricted. Processed meat has limited nutrients.

References

Binnie, M. A., Barlow, K., Johnson, V., & Harrison, C. (2014). Red meats: Time for a paradigm shift in dietary advice. Meat Science, 98(3), 445-451. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.meatsci.2014.06.024

Brouns, F. (2018). Overweight and diabetes prevention: is a low-carbohydrate–high-fat diet recommendable? European Journal of Nutrition, 57(4), 1301–1312. http://doi.org/10.1007/s00394-018-1636-y

Connelly-Frost, A., Poole, C., Satia, J. A., Kupper, L. L., Millikan, R. C., & Sandler, R. S. (2009). Selenium, Folate, and Colon Cancer. Nutrition and Cancer, 61(2), 165–178. http://doi.org/10.1080/01635580802404188

Derbyshire, E. (2017). Associations between Red Meat Intakes and the Micronutrient Intake and Status of UK Females: A Secondary Analysis of the UK National Diet and Nutrition Survey. Nutrients, 9(7). doi:10.3390/nu9070768

Dhillon, J., Craig, B. A., Leidy, H. J., Amankwaah, A. F., Osei-Boadi Anguah, K., Jacobs, A., . . . Tucker, R. M. (2016). The Effects of Increased Protein Intake on Fullness: A Meta-Analysis and Its Limitations. J Acad Nutr Diet, 116(6), 968-983. doi:10.1016/j.jand.2016.01.003.

Krebs, N. F., Gao, D., Gralla, J., Collins, J. S., & Johnson, S. L. (2010). Efficacy and Safety of a High Protein, Low Carbohydrate Diet for Weight Loss in Severely Obese Adolescents. The Journal of Pediatrics, 157(2), 252–258. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpeds.2010.02.010

McNeill, S. H. (2014). Inclusion of red meat in healthful dietary patterns. Meat Science, 98(3), 452-460. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.meatsci.2014.06.028

Wyness, L. (2016). The role of red meat in the diet: nutrition and health benefits. Proc Nutr Soc, 75(3), 227-232. doi:10.1017/s0029665115004267