Red Meat & Health: What You Need To Know

Red meat has been at the center of a long-standing debate in nutrition—is it healthy or harmful? Should you consume it or cut it out of your diet?

A quick Google search does little to answer these questions. You get tons of conflicting information both advocating for and against the consumption of red meat.

You'll stumble across extreme claims like "Red meat will kill you" right alongside "An all-meat diet cured my diabetes."

With so much mixed advice, deciding whether red meat deserves a place in your diet can feel overwhelming.

So, let’s dive into the latest scientific evidence on the topic to give you a balanced view and help you make a more informed decision.

What is red meat?

Red meat refers to the meat that comes from mammals. It’s typically dark-red when raw. This includes beef, pork, lamb, goat, among others.

What differentiates red meat from white meat, such as poultry or fish, is its higher content of a compound called myoglobin.

Myoglobin is a protein responsible for storing and transporting oxygen within muscle cells. It gives red meat its characteristic red color.

Red meat can be consumed in both processed (bacon, sausages, ham, hot dogs) and unprocessed forms (steaks, chops, roasts, ground meat).

Benefits of red meat

Red meat is considered to be one of the most nutrient-dense foods due to its rich content of essential nutrients.

Here are the most notable ones:

1. High-Quality Protein: Red meat provides all nine essential amino acids, making it a complete protein source that supports muscle growth, repair, and overall bodily function.

2. B Vitamins:

   • Vitamin B12: Red meat is one of the best natural sources of vitamin B12, which is essential for nerve function and the production of red blood cells.

   • Niacin (Vitamin B3): Important for metabolism and the proper functioning of enzymes in your body.

   • Vitamin B6: Supports brain health and helps with the metabolism of proteins and fats.

3. Iron: Red meat is an excellent source of heme iron (which the body absorbs more easily than non-heme iron found in plants) which is vital for oxygen transport in the blood.

4. Zinc: Red meat is one of the best dietary sources of zinc which plays a crucial role in immune function, wound healing, and DNA synthesis.

5. Creatine: Abundant in red meat, it plays a key role in energy production within muscles ensuring muscle performance, strength and endurance especially during intense physical activity.

Concerns about red meat

Despite its vast nutritional benefits, concerns have emerged regarding the long-term effects of red meat consumption.

Of particular concern is the link between red meat and chronic diseases such as heart disease, cancer, and diabetes.

For example, several studies have shown a connection between red meat and colon cancer.

The studies suggest that this could be as a result of:

• Harmful compounds produced when meat is cooked at high temperatures that can damage colon cells and potentially lead to cancer.

• Heme-iron, a pro-oxidant that can promote the production of reactive oxygen species that may damage cells over time.

Other studies also suggest that consuming high amounts of processed red meat, which is often high in salt and other preservatives, significantly increases the risk of heart disease and diabetes.

Interestingly, there’s some evidence that shows when red meat is incorporated into a diet high in fruits and vegetables, the risk of disease is significantly reduced.

One notable thing about all these studies, however, is that the increased risk of disease linked to both processed and unprocessed red meat is relatively small, with an average hazard ratio of less than 2.

This is in stark contrast to something like smoking, which carries a hazard ratio of over 20 for lung cancer.

The smaller the hazard ratio, the weaker the association is.

On the other hand, there are studies that haven’t found enough evidence to prove that unprocessed red meat is associated with poor health outcomes.

Given the mixed findings of these studies then, the question becomes: what data should we rely on?

To get the answer, we need to go deeper.

Digging deeper into the data

Majority of the studies linking red meat and these chronic diseases are what are known as observational or epidemiological studies.

These studies involve monitoring a large number of participants over an extended period (often years or even decades) and collecting data about their dietary habits.

The participants usually fill out a questionnaire or respond to interview questions.

The quality of the findings from these studies is often questioned for a number of reasons:

1. Data collected relies heavily on the recall of the participants. This means that the information given by the participants isn’t always correct.

2. There’s no control over the behavior of the participants. This means that a participant may decide to change their diet during the study period which can alter their results.

3. Findings from an observational study can only suggest a link between certain behaviors (e.g., eating red meat) and outcomes (e.g., cancer) but cannot prove for sure that the behavior causes the outcome.

4. Unlike experimental studies which are done under tightly monitored conditions, it’s difficult to fully separate the effects of red meat from those of other dietary and lifestyle factors in an observational study.

Because of these limitations, many researchers argue that findings from an observational study are relatively weak and, therefore, shouldn’t be solely relied upon to draw firm conclusions about the negative effects of red meat.

And since few experimental studies have been done in humans, it’s remains difficult to prove definitively that red meat directly causes poor health outcomes.

Where does this leave us?

With all this in mind, here’s what we currently understand:

1. Given the small hazard ratios, the risk of cancer, heart disease and diabetes due to red meat consumption is extremely low.

2. The risk of disease is more likely due to a combination of poor dietary and lifestyle habits (such as physical inactivity, smoking, alcohol overconsumption) than on red meat alone.

3. There’s no sufficient evidence to conclude with certainty that red meat is bad for your health. Whether red meat has a direct effect on these diseases remains unproven.

So, what does this mean for you?

If you’re unhealthy at baseline and mostly eat a high-carb, high-fat diet, then consuming a lot of red meat could put you at risk for these chronic diseases.

As such, reducing your meat consumption and/or incorporating a diet high in fruits and vegetables would significantly reduce your risk.

But if you’re in good health, generally eat a balanced diet, and have no ethical or personal reason to avoid red meat, consuming red meat is unlikely to harm you.

So, is red meat healthy or unhealthy?

As research stands today, the answer isn't a simple yes or no.

Whether or not red meat is healthy or unhealthy depends on:

• The type of red meat—processed or unprocessed

• How it's prepared

• The amount consumed—moderation is key

• Individual health profiles—whether you’re generally healthy, at risk of disease or already diagnosed with disease

• The context in which red meat is consumed—whether as part of a balanced diet or alongside unhealthy, processed foods

So keep this in mind as you decide whether or not to include red meat into your diet.

Thanks for reading! I hope you found something valuable :)

To get more actionable tips like these, consider joining other health-curious friends like you by signing up below.