- With Mayo Clinic nutritionists
Jennifer Nelson, M.S., R.D. and Katherine Zeratsky, R.D.
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Jennifer Nelson, M.S., R.D. and Katherine Zeratsky, R.D.
Katherine Zeratsky and Jennifer Nelson
Jennifer K. Nelson, M.S., R.D., L.D., C.N.S.D.
Jennifer Nelson is your link to a better diet. As specialty editor of the nutrition and healthy eating guide, she plays a vital role in bringing you healthy recipes and meal planning."Nutrition is one way people have direct control over the quality of their lives," she says. "I hope to translate the science of nutrition into ways that people can select and prepare great-tasting foods that help maintain health and treat disease."
A St. Paul, Minn., native, she has been with Mayo Clinic since 1978, and is director of clinical dietetics and an associate professor of nutrition at Mayo Clinic College of Medicine.
She leads clinical nutrition efforts for a staff of more than 60 clinical dietitians and nine dietetic technicians and oversees nutrition services, staffing, strategic and financial planning, and quality improvement. Nelson was co-editor of the "Mayo Clinic Diet" and the James Beard Foundation Award-winning "The New Mayo Clinic Cookbook." She has been a contributing author to and reviewer of many other Mayo Clinic books, including "Mayo Clinic Healthy Weight for EveryBody," "The Mayo Clinic Family Health Book" and "The Mayo Clinic/Williams Sonoma Cookbook." She contributes to the strategic direction of the Food & Nutrition Center, which includes creating recipes and menus, reviewing nutrition content of various articles, and providing expert answers to nutrition questions.
Katherine Zeratsky, R.D., L.D.
As a specialty editor of the nutrition and healthy eating guide, Katherine Zeratsky helps you sort through the facts and figures, the fads and the hype to learn more about nutrition and diet.A Marinette, Wis., native, she is certified in dietetics by the state of Minnesota and the American Dietetic Association. She has been with Mayo Clinic since 1999.
She's active in nutrition-related curriculum and course development in wellness nutrition at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., and nutrition related to weight management and practical applications of nutrition-related lifestyle changes.
Other areas of interest include food and nutrition for all life stages, active lifestyles and the culinary arts.
She graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, served a dietetic internship at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, and worked as a registered dietitian and health risk counselor at ThedaCare of Appleton, Wis., before joining the Mayo Clinic staff.
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Nutrition-wise blog
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June 4, 2010
Red meat — no longer bad for us?
By Jennifer Nelson, M.S., R.D. and Katherine Zeratsky, R.D.
New research is casting doubt on the idea that red meat increases your risk of heart disease.
Researchers at Harvard pooled data from 20 studies to see if different types of red meat — unprocessed versus processed — had different effects on the risk of heart disease, diabetes and stroke. Unprocessed red meat was defined as beef, hamburger, pork, lamb or game. Processed meat included bacon, salami, sausage and luncheon meats — any type of meat preserved by smoking, curing, salting or addition of preservatives.
Data on stroke were too limited for the researchers to draw firm conclusions, but here's what they found regarding heart disease and diabetes:
- Red meat. About 100 grams (roughly the size of a deck of cards) a day was not associated with a higher risk for heart disease and only a slightly higher (but not statistically significant) risk for diabetes.
- Processed red meat. About 50 grams (two-thirds the size of a deck of cards) a day was associated with a 42 percent higher risk for heart disease and a 19 percent higher risk for diabetes.
- Total red meat. A daily total of 100 grams of processed and unprocessed red meat was not associated with risk for heart disease. However, it was associated with a 12 percent higher risk for diabetes.
What is it about processed red meat that seems to increase disease risk? Surprisingly, processed meat has about the same amount of saturated fat as unprocessed red meat — and actually contains less cholesterol and iron. Could it be other ingredients such as sodium? On average, processed meat has about 622 milligrams of sodium in about 2 ounces, while unprocessed meat has 155 milligrams. Researchers hypothesized that salt's effect on blood pressure weakens vessels. What about nitrates added to processed meats? Nitrate preservatives may also damage vessels, reduce insulin secretion and impair control of blood glucose — which may increase risk for heart disease and diabetes.
Should you run out and order a slab of beef? No. For one thing, the studies reviewed had a number of limitations. Additional randomized, controlled studies will be needed to confirm the findings. Keep in mind too that the serving sizes used were quite small — larger servings may have different effects.
I plan to stick with my mostly plant-based diet and keep red meat as an occasional indulgence. And I'll definitely stick to lighter lunch fare in place of subs loaded with processed meat.
How about you?
15 comments posted
March 14, 2012 3:49 p.m.
Processed meats contain tons of glutamate and other ingredients like glucose, like every processed food outhere. Glutamate is an important nerve transmitter, but the amounts we ingest everyday have probably negative effects for the nervous system. Diabetes (excepting MODY type) seems to be more and more an issue with the nervous system, there may be some connection with the humungous amounts of glutamage we ingest and so called autoimmune chronic illnesses. Other than that, meat is one of the healthiest foods outthere, mongols, massai, inuit and a plethora of other folks live long, healthy lifes (if you take their hard and harsh lifestyles, which no vegan would survive for long) and almost exclusively live off animal proteins and fats. The problem with AGEs is found with every cooked food, not only with meat, no matter if it's bananas, potatos or apples.
- Jordi
February 7, 2012 9:33 a.m.
First off, after reading a bunch of comments, many of them were nothing more than jokes. The entire world has seen veggie people living healthier than meat eaters, so then how can one say that meat is required? American Health Association has strong evidence that mostly non veg people suffer with diseases, and veggies are least unlikely to suffer from these diseases. One should eat natural veggie food, not inorganic. And if one explores the human anatomy, he would discover that our body is designed to be the same as herbivores.
- Vayu
November 9, 2011 6:49 p.m.
More people need to read primary sources. I have yet to see a study that condemns red meat that was not purely correlative. Even PETA can't find one, yet they never hesitate to parade around the most questionable correlations between meat-eating and disease. Veggie journalists often make the jump from correlation to causation too, and scientifically-illiterate readers often miss that. Intervention studies show that more red meat and fatty fish can actually lower the risk of heart disease and diabetes. Forget grains and all other pant-based staples. Even just morphologically speaking, humans are vastly more similar to carnivorous mammals than herbivores.
- Dave
September 1, 2011 3:20 p.m.
Until the U.S.D.A and Secretary Tom Vilsack prohibit private oil/gas drilling companies from drilling and disposing of the toxic brine draining from the wells where cattle graze, we are asking for a lot of trouble. Want THAT red meat? Not I ! !
- Cecile
September 9, 2010 2:01 p.m.
I have been studying foods in diet based on the Genetics or even sex of a person. Our personal ancestors have created a way of life that is individually hard to change. We are not taking into consideration of our ancestors eating habbits in accordance with the enzymes we can create in our bodies. We all evolved different and need to eat different. If our body senses a type of food it secretes and produces enzymes for what it senses. If the food is not what it smells or tastes like it will not be digested right and cause a slurry of unwanted chemicals. We have been changing the chemical structure of our food too fast for our body to evolve to it. Sicknesses of all types is the end result. The doctors, even though many know this, won't inform us of this thinking we will not change our lifestyle anyway. Now we need pills that only work for a short time because the body equalizes to their presence. Then another med and sick again. Throughout history man has always eaten different than woman. We are different because we have been brought up different throughout history. Men and women take apart food differently because of a hereditary diet difference. It will take many generations to change this but we are trying to do it in just one or two and we are doomed to sickness. I eat meat and am male. The meats chemical structure has changed and I, like others, am having problems. The difference is I know what's wrong and others won't believe
- Rick
July 23, 2010 9:43 a.m.
Are there more 'advanced glycation end products' found in processed meats or is it soley based on the cooking style?
- k
June 24, 2010 3:21 p.m.
thank you for your article. I wonder if you would consider beef jerky as processed red meat? Though it is salty, it has very little fat or cholesterol. I've worked in a nutrition store, and find your comments interesting. In my experience, the ladies tend to lean towards a diet high in fruits and vegetables, where as the guys leaned towards a high protein diet. If you are interested, please check out "The Balance of Good Health", at http://www.exercisenutrition.net/ Though we all need protein, and fruits and vegetables, I suspect their is difference between the needs of the 2 sexes which has yet to be recognized.
- stan
June 10, 2010 11:22 a.m.
MDs have mislead folsk for quite some time. A plant based diet leads to diabetes. The body is fuelded by fat, protein and carbs, but FAT is the PRIMARY fuel. Carbs cause insulin releases and leads to fat storage instead of using it for fuel. Eat plenty of fat, limit your protein and drink loads of water! Plant based diets require supplements that only come from animal products. If plant based was the best and natural it would not need to be supplemented. Meat is fat, protein and water and it produces very little waste! Eat more red meat and stay healthy and fit!
- Dwayne
June 9, 2010 2:42 p.m.
Dr. Zeratsky You mentioned in your article about Sushi and how to lower the calories. You mentioned that one way to cut the calories is to decrease the amount of rice or now rice at all. I Have lived in Japan for a long time and know what Sushi is. If you eliminate the rice, it is not Sushi. Sushi is not raw fish or any other knid of Fish for that matter. Raw Fish is called "Sashimi" and there are many variants of Sushi that do not contain any kind of Fish at all. "Sushi" Is cooked Rice (the "sticky" kind which has rice vinegar and a little sugar added to it. THIS IS SUSHI, NOT RAW FISH. When I returned from Japan I began to realize that Americans think that Sushi is raw Fish which it is not. Please clarify this misnomer.
- Arnold
June 8, 2010 7:39 p.m.
I want to see research on grass fed and organic beef !!!
- Andre
June 8, 2010 6:48 p.m.
I am 61 years old and I have been a red meat eater all my life. We raise Beef Cattle and I am here to tell you that all the hype about eating red meat is just hype. I am in perfect health and all I take is a multi vitamin every day. Enjoy that rib eye steak!
- Joyce
June 8, 2010 2:54 p.m.
This information is interesting and the advice wise, I'm sure; but here's an addendum: meat from grass-fed animals has less sat. fat. Grass-fed beef and lamb and free-range chicken are therefore, presumably, less damaging than the feedlot animals.
- Jane
June 7, 2010 2:09 a.m.
Hi, nice post. I have been wondering about this topic,so thanks for sharing. I will certainly be subscribing to your blog.
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June 5, 2010 11:02 a.m.
Jeff you can enjoy all of the hormones, saturated fat, and heavy metals found in our over farmed meat supply. Nobody is going to take that away from you. Do you really think Gary Taubes the writer of your book, and maybe the only book on nutrition you've read other than online articles would disagree with this article? This article is not about weight loss. Pick up a first year textbook on nutrition. You think Gary Taubes is against portion control, sodium content, and not eating nitrates? It concludes with not eating processed meats. Kinda like how Taubes is against refined carbs. Refined = Processed (not the best option). How is the writers bias evident? and what studies are they going to ignore? Taubes has no formal training in nutrition or medicine, he also says exercise is an inefficient weight loss tool. No wonder people love this book, they have an excuse not to do anything and continue being fat and lazy. I know when I look at runners, cyclists, and other athletes I think what fat slobs. This guy must be right....
- Sean
June 4, 2010 10:18 a.m.
the bias evident in 'sticking with a plant based diet' is what is wrong with medical science. you ignore studies that don't support your own bias. read 'good calories, bad calories' and stop giving advice contrary to real science because a) you are too brainwashed to read science with a critical eye and/or b) you are brainwashed by the barrage of pharmaceutical-based money that drives medical 'opinion' while dooming people to continued illness.
- jeff
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