Why It Makes Cents to Pay for Organic, Grass Fed Meat

If you care about your body, there’s a good chance you make conscious decisions about what you eat. The healthier foods are the ones that pack the most nutrients. And as the saying goes, 'you are what you eat.'

Let’s take it one step further. Because the same goes for the animals of which you consume. If you are eating chicken raised in confinement or burgers from grain-fed, industrially raised cows, the nutritional density of the meat leaves room for improvement. This kind of meat is raised with mass production in mind. These animals are fed low quality grain and antibiotics, are packed into cramped living environments and as a result tend to be higher in total fat than grass fed, happier, healthier animals.

Grass fed cows and free range chicken produce healthier, more nutritious products for us to consume. These benefits include but are not limited to:

-Up to 6x more Omega 3's, which are important for optimizing cell function and brain health

-Higher amounts of CLA, which is believed to be one of the strongest defenders to cancer and is associated with reduced body fat in humans

-4x more Vitamin E, which is associated with lower levels of heart disease

-Vitamin A, Zinc, Iron, Potassium

-Eggs that contain as much as 20x more Omega 3's than eggs from factory raised hens

Eggs are a superfood as they contain all 9 essential amino acids that our bodies must obtain through our diet. But there is a visible difference in the egg yolks of grain-fed hens and free range. Free range yolks are bright orange from all the nutrients, where as grain fed are more of a dull yellow.

So next time you go to the grocery store, find which unhealthy snacks you can leave off your shopping list and use that extra money for grass fed products.

References

Shananhan, C. Food Rules - A Doctor's Guide to Healthy Eating. 2010

Gunnars, K. (n.d.). Grass-Fed Beef vs Grain-Fed Beef - What's the Difference? Retrieved November 23, 2015.

Carroll, A. Red Meat is Not the Enemy. Retrieved November 23, 2015.

European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition. (n.d.). Retrieved November 23, 2015.