[Documentary] ReThink Meat Series - 8 Episodes

Here is the full playlist https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttgJtY-SPpI&list=PLabGT_eoaDQim1TD868KyUDpIbSLxYQO6

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EP 7 - And Nutrient Density - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bXYd5Ic5FwU
Factory-Farmed vs. Grass-Fed: The Shocking Truth About Animal Products Does it really matter how your meat is raised?
The answer might surprise you. In Episode 7 of ReThink Meat, we uncover the often overlooked nutritional differences between factory-farmed and grass-fed animal products—and why they matter for your health.
Why did we start feeding animals grain instead of grass? And how has this shift led to a dangerous imbalance in dietary fats that could be fueling chronic inflammation? We dig into the science, revealing how the way animals are raised affects thousands of nutrients like fats, vitamins, minerals, and even powerful phytonutrients.
Plus, we share human health studies showing why grass-fed beef isn’t just better for the environment—it may also be be better for you. And wait until you hear about the 90% difference in metabolites between plant-based burgers and real beef—proof that we’ve vastly oversimplified the true nutritional power of meat.
What if meat is more nutrient-packed than we’ve ever imagined?
- References https://docs.google.com/document/d/12vTYu0frQlUMiv7wHaa2JekT2QXUPSEQ5MEvOlYbbVA/mobilebasic
  
  :::spoiler Episode 7 - References Part 2
  Claim: And while the massive increase in seed oil consumption and the lack of fish is the main reason for the disruption in this balance, grain-feeding our animals is also contributing (DiNicolantonio & O’Keefe, 2021)…
  Source: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8504498/
  Claim:
  More vitamins and minerals (Daley et al., 2010)
  Elevated levels of antioxidants and phytonutrients (Daley et al., 2010) (van Vliet et al., 2021)
  Beneficial saturated fats and omega 3 fatty acids (EPA, DHA, DPA) (Daley et al., 2010)
  A low omega 6:3 fatty acid ratio (Nogoy et al., 2022)
  And for those of you looking to build muscle and increase the protein in your diet, leaner meats with less fat and more protein - may also be something you can look for (Van Vliet, n.d.) (Daley et al., 2010).
  Sources:
  https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2846864/
  https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/sustainable-food-systems/articles/10.3389/fsufs.2020.555426/full
  https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8728510/
  Highlight:
  Grass-fed beef also contains an increased level of total n-3 PUFA which reduced the n-6 to n-3 ratio thus can offer more health benefits than grain-fed.
  https://understandingag.com/nutritional-comparisons-between-grass-fed-beef-and-conventional-grain-fed-beef/
  https://nutritionj.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1475-2891-9-10
  Claim: Several studies have shown that, when compared to conventionally raised eggs, often from factory farms, pasture-raised (not always the same as cage free and free range) eggs have:
  undefined
  
  50% more B9 (important for mental health and energy production) (Tolan et al., 1974) 70% more B12 (important for brain health, DNA, and nervous system function) (Tolan et al., 1974) 2X as much vitamin E (Research Shows Eggs From Pastured Chickens May Be More Nutritious, 2010) (Karsten et al., 2010) 38% higher vitamin A concentration (Karsten et al., 2010) 3-4X vitamin D which Americans are widely deficient in (Kühn et al., 2014, #)
  Sources:
  Note: B9 = Folic Acid
  Full study, from 1974:
  https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/51FBC924D0AA5A932D10BB01BFF1954A/S0007114574000250a.pdf/studies-on-the-composition-of-food-5-the-chemical-composition-of-eggs-produced-under-battery-deep-litter-and-free-rage-conditions.pdf
  See table 4 for B9 (folic acid) and B12
  https://www.psu.edu/news/agricultural-sciences/story/research-shows-eggs-pastured-chickens-may-be-more-nutritious/
  Original study:
  https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/renewable-agriculture-and-food-systems/article/abs/vitamins-a-e-and-fatty-acid-composition-of-the-eggs-of-caged-hens-and-pastured-hens/552BA04E5A9E3CD7E49E405B339ECA32
  https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/renewable-agriculture-and-food-systems/article/abs/vitamins-a-e-and-fatty-acid-composition-of-the-eggs-of-caged-hens-and-pastured-hens/552BA04E5A9E3CD7E49E405B339ECA32
  https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24607306/
  Highlight:
  The study shows that the vitamin D3 content of egg yolk was three- to fourfold higher in the groups that were exposed to sunlight
  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK532266/
  Claim: Research has also shown that pastured eggs can contain more than double (study says “three times as much”) the total omega 3 fatty acids and less than half the omega 6 to omega 3 fatty acid ratio which is vital for healthy inflammation levels (Karsten et al., 2010) (Sergin et al., 2022).
  Sources:
  https://www.psu.edu/news/agricultural-sciences/story/research-shows-eggs-pastured-chickens-may-be-more-nutritious/
  Study actually says " three times as much omega-3 fatty acid content"
  Original study:
  https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/renewable-agriculture-and-food-systems/article/abs/vitamins-a-e-and-fatty-acid-composition-of-the-eggs-of-caged-hens-and-pastured-hens/552BA04E5A9E3CD7E49E405B339ECA32
  Claim: That being said, most factory farmed chickens consume exclusively grain and do not live on pasture, while pastured birds consume grass, bugs and a little bit o f grain - and these differences do affect the nutritional composition of their meat (Sergin et al., 2022)….
  Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9658713/
  Highlight:
  Pasture-raised hens are able to forage on phytochemically diverse grasslands and scavenge for invertebrates, allowing them access to nutrients such as fats, vitamins and minerals, and secondary compounds including antioxidants that benefit both animal and human health
  Claim: Research has shown pasture-raised chickens have significantly higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids, a lower 06:03 ratio, sometimes more iron and antioxidants and even, higher protein levels than conventionally raised chicken as was seen in chicken farmer, Matt Wadiak’s analysis (Husak et al., 2008) (Badger, n.d.),
  Sources:
  https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0032579119393885?via=ihub#bib16
  https://apppa.org/The-Nutrition-of-Pasture-Raised-Chicken-and-Meats#%3A%7E%3Atext=Pasture-raised+chicken+meat+tends%2Cvitamin+D%2C+and+more+antioxidants.
  Claim: We typically think of pork as the “other white meat,” but what may surprise you is that most pork you buy at the grocery store has a very inflammatory 06:03 fatty acid ratio as was noted by pioneering pig farmer John Arbuckle (Dugan et al., 2015)..
  Source: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4693156/
  Claim: Other research has revealed pastured pork can have higher levels of heart and immune-supportive vitamin C and D, iron, antioxidants and that consuming omega-3 rich pork may even reduce certain risk factors for heart disease (Lindqvist et al., 2009) (Is Bacon Paleo?, n.d.). (Larson-Meyer et al., 2017) (Rivero et al., 2019) (Coates et al., 2008)
  Sources:
  https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18634706/
  full study:
  https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/british-journal-of-nutrition/article/herring-clupea-harengus-intake-influences-lipoproteins-but-not-inflammatory-and-oxidation-markers-in-overweight-men/30991EEFBA2B5D9F99FBEB0F83C16F1F
  https://thepaleodiet.com/is-bacon-paleo/
  https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6680544/
  Full study for omega-3 rich pork:
  https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Alison-Coates-2/publication/5262196_Regular_consumption_of_n-3_fatty_acid-enriched_pork_modifies_cardiovascular_risk_factors/links/004635372cbbce2a97000000/Regular-consumption-of-n-3-fatty-acid-enriched-pork-modifies-cardiovascular-risk-factors.pdf
  https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0377840103002530?via=ihub
  Claim: All cows begin their lives on grass. But it's what they consume in the last 30 to 90 days that totally changes the nutrient profile of the meat. (Gomes da Silva, et al., 2017)
  Source:
  https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5625619/
  Claim: Nonetheless, grass-fed beef consistently offers several advantages.…
  #1. Higher levels of protein, typically because it is leaner (Van Vliet, n.d.)…
  Source:
  https://understandingag.com/nutritional-comparisons-between-grass-fed-beef-and-conventional-grain-fed-beef/#%3A%7E%3Atext=Research+results+show+that+grass%2Ccompared+to+grain-fed+beef
  https://www.rootsofchange.org/wp-content/uploads/Nutrient-Density-Data-Report-Sample.pdf
  Claim: 1.5-3x higher (study says 2-4 x) levels of a special and beneficial type of trans fat called conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) that is inversely related to the risk of colorectal and breast cancer and may have heart-protective and weight loss benefits (Van Vliet, n.d.) (Benbrook et al., 2018) (Dhiman et al., 1999, #).
  Source:
  https://understandingag.com/nutritional-comparisons-between-grass-fed-beef-and-conventional-grain-fed-beef/
  CLA levels in grass-fed cows’ milk were about double those of grain-fed cattle as well.
  https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29876120/
  https://www.journalofdairyscience.org/article/S0022-0302(99)75458-5/pdf
  https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10531600/
  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4429457/
  See table 2
  https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17449580/
  https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12196420/
  Claim: Increased antioxidant levels that protect our cells from oxidative stress like GSH and SOD (van Vliet et al., 2021) (Descalzo et al., 2007) (Gatellier et al., 2004)
  Sources: https://understandingag.com/nutritional-comparisons-between-grass-fed-beef-and-conventional-grain-fed-beef/
  https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22063662/
  https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22061512/
  Claim: higher levels of vitamins like B vitamins (thiamine & riboflavin), Vitamin A & its precursors and Vitamin E & its precursors. (Magan et al., 2020) (Daley et al., 2010) (Descalzo et al., 2005)
  Sources:
  https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7278826/
  https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2846864/
  https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22063278/
  Claim: Several advantages were also noted in the largest study to date which I got to play a small role in, the Beef Nutrient Density Project, with Dr. van Vliet and the Bionutrient Institute (Defining Nutrient Density in Beef — The Bionutrient Institute - Understanding the Science… From Field to Plate., n.d.)….
  Sources:
  https://www.bionutrientinstitute.org/beef
  https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4869019/#__ffn_sectitle
  https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2846864/
  Claim: The research also found more minerals like iron and calcium in Grass Fed Beef. Which aligns with previous research showing higher levels of Calcium, Potassium, Zinc, Iron, Sodium and Phosphorous in Grass Fed meats (Williamson et al., 2005).
  Sources:
  https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1467-3010.2005.00525.x
  https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0085300&type=printable
  :::

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