In a post a couple of days ago, I gave you a highlight of the benefits of eating grass fed, organically raised beef and animal products (like organic raw milk or cage free eggs), as the essential fatty acid CLA can only be derived naturally from these sources. This time around, I expect to show you the actual research that supports this, and how you can relate it to your own health.
Again, CLA, or conjugated linoleic acid, is an essential fatty acid which is found primarily in meat and dairy products. So, without further ado’, who are the health benefits of grass fed beef and conjugated linoleic acid:
- CLA and Weight Loss:
- Cancer: This study demonstrates the anticarcinogenic effects found in animal foods, or CLA. If you are wanting to reduce your cancer risk, or add another natural method for cancer prevention, then adding CLA to your diet may help.Take, for example, this study, which shows that a small additions of CLA in your diet can reduce your risk for cancer by up to 50%. That is significant, especially if you have a healthy lifestyle already, by exercising, reducing environmental toxins and controlling stress.Another study performed at Kuopio University in Finland with 329 women in a French hospital showed a whopping 74% decreased risk of developing cancer in the women who had higher levels of CLA in their bloodstream.(1)
Many studies are showing the fantastic link between CLA and weight loss, and how it can alter your body composition in a positive way. A study from The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition showed weight loss in overweight individuals with CLA supplementation, equal to 1 pound per month. Combined with exercise and stress reductions, that weight loss could in exceed that limit.
Another study from The Journal of American College of Nutrition presents that studies performed with CLA and animal models show a decrease in adipose tissue, or body fat, whether or not the animal was eating a low-fat or high-fat diet.
- Insulin Sensitivity
- High Cholesterol
- High Blood Pressure
Researchers at Penn State’s College of Agriculture Sciences found that CLA fed to mice prone to adult onset diabetes decreased overall glucose levels in the blood and an improved insulin action.
The researcher also goes on to say that one should be aware of the trans-fatty acids in the foods that contain CLA, like dairy and meat products. However, these products do not naturally contain trans fatty acids, unless fried or cooked with partially hydrogenated vegetable oils. He then recommends margarine enriched with CLA. However margarine contains trans-fatty acids, as it is a partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Hmm. Always be sure to do your own research, because even scientists are always very well educated in nutrition.
CLA supplements have been shown to worsen insulin resistance, rather than their natural counterparts. So, if you are vegan or vegetarian, it is urged that you try to find a source of CLA in its whole, natural form. Perhaps from raw dairy or cage free, organic eggs.
A study on hamsters found that the group fed a diet of CLA had lower amounts of LDL (low density lipoprotein) in the blood, as well as a reduced risk of developing early aortic atherosclerosis. Currently I can only find studies done on animals, such as hamsters, mice and rabbits. But it does give us an idea of how CLA functions in the body.
One study on Iranian adults with rheumatoid arthritis showed a significant decrease in blood pressure after CLA additions. Another study on rats (because scientist love their rats) showed a positive decrease in hypertension.
(1) A. Aro et al, Kuopio University, Finland; Bougnoux, P, Lavillonniere F, Riboli E. “Inverse relation between CLA in adipose breast tissue and risk of breast cancer. A case-control study in France.”InformĀ 10;5:S43, 1999