Many people will disagree that eating internal organs of meat is favorable, there is a bad impression when talking about the health content of organ meat especially the liver.
In this article it is briefly discuss and explain the benefits and why we need to consume it.
Are Organ Meats Healthy?
I have family members who don’t consume organ meats because they don’t think that they are healthy since they filter toxins from the animal’s body.
Even those who don’t have a problem with the idea of consuming organs often have somewhat of an aversion to the taste.
What many people don’t realize is that organ meats (especially liver) are nature’s multivitamins. Liver is an excellent source of many nutrients. Chris Kresser has a great post on the topic where he explains:
“Liver is an important source of retinol, which is pre-formed vitamin A. Just three ounces of beef liver contains 26,973 IU of vitamin A, while pork liver and chicken liver contain 15,306 IU and 11,335 IU, respectively. If you aren’t supplementing with cod liver oil, you’ll probably want to eat liver a couple times a week to make sure you’re getting enough vitamin A, especially if you have skin problems.
Folate, choline, and vitamin B12 are three more nutrients that are found abundantly in liver, and they can be especially important in the context of a Paleo diet. Two Paleo staples – muscle meat and eggs – contain a high proportion of the amino acid methionine, and higher intakes of methionine increase homocysteine production. This increases the need for vitamins B6, B12, folate, betaine, and choline, which recycle homocysteine.
Dr. Shanahan compares liver to other foods for nutrient content:
The Weston A. Price Foundation details the nutritional benefits of liver:
“So what makes liver so wonderful? Quite simply, it contains more nutrients, gram for gram, than any other food. In summary, liver provides:
- An excellent source of high-quality protein
- Nature’s most concentrated source of vitamin A
- All the B vitamins in abundance, particularly vitamin B12
- One of our best sources of folic acid
- A highly usable form of iron
- Trace elements such as copper, zinc and chromium; liver is our best source of copper
- An unidentified anti-fatigue factor
- CoQ10, a nutrient that is especially important for cardio-vascular function
- A good source of purines, nitrogen-containing compounds that serve as precursors for DNA and RNA.”
Organs, especially liver (from healthy sources) can be an important part of a pregnancy diet due to its high folate content. As I’ve explained before, liver consumption is encouraged during pregnancy by the Weston A. Price foundation, which recommends:
“3-4 ounces fresh liver, once or twice per week (If you have been told to avoid liver for fear of getting “too much Vitamin A,” be sure to read Vitamin A Saga)”
Do Organ Meats Store Toxins?
This is the most common objection (besides the taste) to consuming organ meats, especially liver. Organs like heart and brain obviously don’t store toxins, but many people are afraid to consume liver or kidney because these organs filter toxins in the body.
While organ meats do function as filters in the body, they don’t store the toxins. The job of organs like the liver is to remove toxins from the body, and as such, they store many fat soluble vitamins and nutrients needed to accomplish this task.
Choosing a Healthy Source
One fact that is well established is that the health of an animal largely affects the health of its organs. For this reason, just as with any meat, it is very important to choose healthy sources.
Often, I can find quality meats and organ meats from local farmers and just make sure that the animal was grassfed, raised on pasture and (if possible) not given grains or antibiotics.
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