Hormone-free
beef. Is it your dinner?
Holly
Bellis, Posted Sep. 14, 2006
If one was to visit a local Chipotle restaurant in downtown
Columbia, they would be greeted with a sign that reads “We
strive to serve the finest naturally raised meats. We serve
humanely raised, vegetarian fed meat with no added hormones.”
As they proceed through the line and create their own meal,
one might begin to wonder if the hormones in their meat actually
affect their body. Can hormones be harmful? Is it necessary
to eat beef that is hormone free?
Hormone-free beef or “naturally raised” meat is
becoming more and more popular in today’s society. Beef
consumers begin to get the idea that hormone-free beef is
better for their bodies. There is a growing and demanding
market for this naturally raised product.
Dawn Thurnau, marketing director for the Missouri Beef Industry
Council said, “The use of growth promotants leads to
leaner cattle and a more efficient use of feed. Twenty-nine
cuts of beef meet government guidelines for being lean.”
According
to the United States Department of Agriculture, these growth
promotants are typically a small pellet that is implanted
under the skin on the back of the animal’s ear. The
pellet releases tiny amounts of hormone and safely dissolves
as the treatment is completed. Thurnau said, “Growth
promotants contain hormones, such as estrogen, which are naturally
occurring and exist in all plants and animals.”
Thurnau said she uses the National Cattlemen’s Beef
Association as her source when she says that “Growth
promoting products are approved by the Food and Drug Administration
based upon rigorous scientific testing procedures similar
to those used for human medications.” The USDA says
that these growth hormones have been used in agriculture for
more than 50 years and there has never been a negative affect
on human health. Beef also has nearly 20 times less estrogen
than what the FDA permits and thousands of times less than
what our bodies naturally produce, according to the USDA.
So exactly how much estrogen does beef supply us with? The
answer, found by the NCBA, is very little. The difference
between a hormonally implanted 3-ounce serving of beef and
that which was not implanted is only 0.7 nanograms. This amount
of hormones seems even smaller when you account for the fact
that “Approximately 10 percent of hormones ingested
are absorbed by the body,” according to the USDA. An
8-ounce serving of milk contains 34 ng of estrogen compared
to a 3-ounce serving of beef that only holds 1.9 ng.
Thurnau
said “When you consume 4 ounces of cabbage, you are
getting 710 times the amount of estrogen than you would from
a hormonally implanted hamburger.” Also surprising is
that 1-ounce of wheat germ supplies the body with 567.4 ng
of estrogen and an egg gives you 993 ng. A 3-ounce serving
of beef containing its 1.9 ng is certainly minute.
According to the USDA, the lowest dosage of birth control
available feeds your body over 35,000 ng of estrogen everyday.
This low dose birth control pill is over 18,421 times worse
than beef.
When beef consumers walk into restaurants such as Chipotle,
they read the sign and may feel as if the product they are
buying is actually better for them. The demand for hormonally
free beef may be growing, but the fact is that your body views
it exactly the same way.
Common things consumers eat such as eggs and cabbage supply
our bodies with more estrogen than beef possibly could. This
food with integrity may seem like a great product, but in
reality beef with hormones is leaner and only affects your
body in the most minute way.
