05/28/08 No real science

It was only a few ounces of ink and a small amount of paper, but it sure made me feel good. I'm Jeff Keane; I'll tell you about it right after this. A very small info-article in Wallace's Farmer magazine gave me a nice little lift and maybe feel, even vindicated. This little spot talked about how beef has been vilified as the culprit in high cholesterol levels and subsequently contributing to cardiovascular disease. For years the trend of many of the nation's doctors and nutritionists was to tell patients not to eat beef or at least cut back. Hamburger was a real no-no, way too much fat. I know one doctor I saw said my cholesterol was high so I should quit eating meat. I told him I do more than walk around. I'm silly enough to still do physical labor and lettuce just wasn't going to keep me going, I need meat. He said try tuna fish. I didn't go back to that doctor. This nifty little article went on to say some researchers are now wondering about the lack of real scientific testing that really proves beef is harmful in our diets. Research has shown increasing oleic acid intake actually lowers harmful LDL cholesterol and raises beneficial HDL cholesterol. Guess what, oleic acid is the major monosaturated fatty acid in beef. That's good enough for me, sounds almost like a health food, but like mom's always say be sure to eat your fruits and vegetables too. I'm Jeff Keane. Wallace's Farmer January 2008