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Is there any reason to limit beef consumption in the context of the Paleo diet or a Whole30?

I am in the midst of my second Whole30 and find myself rationing my beef intake by tracking how many times I eat it in a week. I understand that variety is important, but I really do prefer beef. I generally try to make no more than 3 dinners a week containing beef (I've done this for years, was a habit I formed before eating Paleo) but now I may eat beef for 4-8 meals depending on leftovers. Is this too frequent? At this point 30 -50% of the beef I eat is grass fed/finished, the rest is whatever I pick up at Trader Joe's (I did just purchase my first 1/2 beef - grass fed and finished, but it won't be ready until August 21 Whoop!)

The other protein I'm willing to eat: Chicken (3-6 meals/week) Eggs (mucho - daily), Fish (2x's/ week) Turkey (rarely because I forget about it)

I'd like to try lamb, but it's hard to find around here and $$$. I am not down with organ meats, they creep me out... perhaps someday I'll get there. Pork and shellfish are also a no-go.

Thoughts?

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Lamb is so delicious! It is more expensive, but what a treat. I have a magnificent medium rare lamb stew recipe. http://www.napastyle.com/recipe/recipe.jsp?productId=2822&parentCategoryId=614&categoryId=700&subCategoryId=724

Seriously, seriously nummy. I subbed coconut flour or almond flour out for the flour, I used a red onion instead of pearl onions, and I did parsnips and turnips. It's a very flexible recipe.

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This recipe looks great, thank you! I need to get brave and give lamb a go. I actually tried to buy some at the farmers market a couple weeks ago, but the farmer ran out. I'm a little worried I won't cook it correctly and it'll be a waste of $, but that's not an good excuse not to try. I love your additions/changes and the idea of a flexible recipe.

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Your post/question could have been written about me. I too love beef and organ meats totally freak me out. I made bone broth soup for the first time a few weeks ago and that was pushing it, but it was wonderful! I bought my first half cow a few months ago and every time I look in the freezer it seems like I hardly have any left. It is soooooo good! I don't believe there are any “restrictions†but, mixing it up, variety, is certainly important. When consuming non-grass fed beef, trim the extra fat off, keep it lean, but you already knew that.

Sounds like you are doing a great job. I am excited for you.

Check out The Foodee Project and Well Fed for ideas to keep it fun and interesting.

Hope this helps!

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Actually, if you were going to limit anything for health reasons, you should limit the poultry. Birds, particularly turkey, are MEGA high in omega 6 PUFAs. Yes, varying your meat sources is important, but keeping beef (ruminants actually. beef, bison, lamb, etc) and fish as standbys, and occasionally throwing in chicken every now and then is the way to go from not only fat profiles, but I believe also from a sustainability/ethics perspective.

I'm not 100% up to speed on the sustainability and ethical treatment literature, but I believe the cost of ethically raised ruminants is much lower than with poultry. (meaning that a. more farmers do it, and b. the end product is cheaper for the consumer)

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No one really answered your question and I'm curious as to what the answer is also.

My belief/understanding based on what I've read is that paradigm that too much red meat is bad for you is due largely to the Omega 3 to 6 imbalance in corn/grain-fed beef. So I imagine if only 30% of your beef consumption is not-grass fed then you could have problems. I think in ISWFthe Hartwigs discuss that too much Omega 6 can cause inflammation.

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I don't personally feel there's a reason to limit beef consumption on the paleo diet or Whole30. The only caveats I would have are:

1) For conventional beef, stay as lean as possible (90/10 ground, lean cuts) and supplement with healthier fat sources. The o3/o6 ratio is very poor, and any antibiotics, hormones and other contaminants are generally stored in the fat, not the lean protein.

2) For grass finished beef, eat fattier cuts of meat and fattier ground because the fat profile is better.

3) Varied protein sources including more exotic ruminants such as bison, yak, lamb, goat, and wild game may provide a more well-rounded nutrient profile than beef as your only red meat source. That being said, red meat variety isn't a hard requirement for a healthy paleo diet.

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Actually, if you were going to limit anything for health reasons, you should limit the poultry. Birds, particularly turkey, are MEGA high in omega 6 PUFAs. Yes, varying your meat sources is important, but keeping beef (ruminants actually. beef, bison, lamb, etc) and fish as standbys, and occasionally throwing in chicken every now and then is the way to go from not only fat profiles, but I believe also from a sustainability/ethics perspective.

I'm not 100% up to speed on the sustainability and ethical treatment literature, but I believe the cost of ethically raised ruminants is much lower than with poultry. (meaning that a. more farmers do it, and b. the end product is cheaper for the consumer)

This is good to know. I had no idea poultry was so high in omega 6 - must go look into this more. I have definitely found pastured chickens to be quiet spendy, and not much discount for buying them in bulk directly from the farmer. What about eggs? I eat (and feed my children) LOT'S of eggs...

Would Yak be a good option (no laughing at my animal ignorance, but I would think they are ruminants...?) Has anyone tried it? I saw Yak burger at my grocery the other day and thought "hmmmm, yak..." but that's as far as I went with it;)

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No one really answered your question and I'm curious as to what the answer is also.

My belief/understanding based on what I've read is that paradigm that too much red meat is bad for you is due largely to the Omega 3 to 6 imbalance in corn/grain-fed beef. So I imagine if only 30% of your beef consumption is not-grass fed then you could have problems. I think in ISWFthe Hartwigs discuss that too much Omega 6 can cause inflammation.

This makes sense. Perhaps I should be limiting beef consumption until the majority of what I eat is grass fed/finished. Thanks for your comment!

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I don't personally feel there's a reason to limit beef consumption on the paleo diet or Whole30. The only caveats I would have are:

1) For conventional beef, stay as lean as possible (90/10 ground, lean cuts) and supplement with healthier fat sources. The o3/o6 ratio is very poor, and any antibiotics, hormones and other contaminants are generally stored in the fat, not the lean protein.

2) For grass finished beef, eat fattier cuts of meat and fattier ground because the fat profile is better.

3) Varied protein sources including more exotic ruminants such as bison, yak, lamb, goat, and wild game may provide a more well-rounded nutrient profile than beef as your only red meat source. That being said, red meat variety isn't a hard requirement for a healthy paleo diet.

Have you tried Yak? Goat? I have no idea how to prepare either one. Do you know if its similar to cooking beef? Is it good?

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I've tried both yak and goat.

I bought some ground yak at the local farmers market to try it out. If you can't find it at a farmers market, check eatwild.com or Google yak ranches in your region. I thought it was very tasty in a stir fry... tasting similar to grass fed beef but with a bit of a veal twist. It was not gamey at all. It's a lean meat because most of the animal's fat is on the outside of the carcass, but still juicy and flavorful.

I've made some bone-in goat leg shank steaks that were pretty tasty. You can find goat meat at middle eastern, asian, and Jewish markets, or through http://getyourgoatmeat.com/. A New York Times article claims that goat is the most widely consumed meat in the world. It's pretty lean, lower in fat than poultry and higher in protein than beef. It can taste similar to lamb. It does well with stewing, braising, and other moist heat. If you grill it, be careful it doesn't dry out...

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This makes sense. Perhaps I should be limiting beef consumption until the majority of what I eat is grass fed/finished. Thanks for your comment!

grassfed beef > lean grain fed beef > poultry in regards to omega 6/omega 3 ratios.

Pretty sure yak's a ruminant (as is goat), but I don't know enough about what yak husbandry looks like to speak to where it ranks.

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I've tried both yak and goat.

I bought some ground yak at the local farmers market to try it out. If you can't find it at a farmers market, check eatwild.com or Google yak ranches in your region. I thought it was very tasty in a stir fry... tasting similar to grass fed beef but with a bit of a veal twist. It was not gamey at all. It's a lean meat because most of the animal's fat is on the outside of the carcass, but still juicy and flavorful.

I've made some bone-in goat leg shank steaks that were pretty tasty. You can find goat meat at middle eastern, asian, and Jewish markets, or through http://getyourgoatmeat.com/. A New York Times article claims that goat is the most widely consumed meat in the world. It's pretty lean, lower in fat than poultry and higher in protein than beef. It can taste similar to lamb. It does well with stewing, braising, and other moist heat. If you grill it, be careful it doesn't dry out...

Thank you Jim! This is great info. I had to re-read the part about goat meat being the most widely consumed meat in the world. What the what? I would NEVER have guessed.

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Q: What's the difference between a buffalo and a bison?

A: You can't wash you hands in a buffalo

hardy har

This is my kind of joke, thank you;)

and now to share my all-time favorite, appropriate for children and still hysterical (to me, anyway)...

What's brown and sticky?]

Wait for it...

A stick.

Bwahahaha you were thinking the answer would be icky, admit it...

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This is my kind of joke, thank you;)

and now to share my all-time favorite, appropriate for children and still hysterical (to me, anyway)...

What's brown and sticky?]

Wait for it...

A stick.

Bwahahaha you were thinking the answer would be icky, admit it...

Oh my god...I STILL die laughing at that joke. My sister thinks I'm completely insane for it.

My second favorite joke is:

A: Ask me if I'm an orange.

B: Are you an orange?

A: No.

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Oh my god...I STILL die laughing at that joke. My sister thinks I'm completely insane for it.

My second favorite joke is:

A: Ask me if I'm an orange.

B: Are you an orange?

A: No.

Oh my goodness, that's now my 2nd favorite joke too. I am dying laughing. LOVE it. The stick joke has been my favorite for 15 years, your joke will now share the spotlight. Can't wait to tell my boys... and my husband who is highly entertained by my taste in jokes.

And now I will leave you with one more, it's doesn't make me roll on the floor or anything, but it gets a giggle and it's appropriate to share with anyone.

Q. Where did the General keep his armies?

A. In his sleevies.

Oh yes he did.

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LOVE it Robin! I think perhaps this forum needs a new category...

I giggled at the "Yak Husbandry" term as well, pretty sure I need to find ways to introduce that one in my conversations...

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