What’s behind that recommendation to reduce red meat?

Recommendations to adopt a plant-based diet seem to be aimed at the American public every day.

Livestock are blamed for harming the soil, water and atmosphere and the incessant cautions about too much red meat in our diet make me wonder if these celebrities and “Green New Deal” politicians really think Americans eat off platter-sized plates heaped end-to-end with beef.

Instructions to reduce or eliminate red meat, particularly beef, from the diet are part of the one-size-fits-all solution prescribed on radio, TV, news entertainment and social media.

“Get enough sleep, exercise 150 minutes a week and avoid red meat,” seems to be the common slogan to create great health say these professional health commentators.

I agree that we need enough sleep, but I encourage my patients to exercise by doing something they enjoy and to eat a varied diet with a balance of protein and colorful fruits and vegetables. This is a prescription for overall wellness that just about anyone can do.

Beef is a nutrient-dense food that should be in our diets.

A 3-ounce serving of lean beef provides 10 essential nutrients in about 170 calories, including high-quality protein, zinc, iron and B vitamins.

There is not another protein source that offers that same nutrient profile. And, most people already consume beef within global science-based dietary guidelines.

As for the claims that livestock ruin the environment, consider what and where beef cattle eat.

In the face of a growing global population, we need ruminant animals, like beef cattle, to help produce more protein with fewer resources.

Ninety percent of what cattle eat is forage and plant leftovers that people cannot eat and would contribute to the growing problem of food waste.

Our beef carbon footprint in the U.S. is 10 to 50 times lower than other regions of the world because we have improved our productivity with advances in better cattle genetics and better animal nutrition.

Research published in the Proceedings of the National Academies of Sciences found that if all livestock in the U.S. were eliminated and every American followed a vegan diet, greenhouse gas emissions would be reduced by only 2.6 percent, or 0.36 percent globally.