The following commentary is provided by Polly Ruhland, Cattlemen's Beef Board CEO
"Diets are boring!"
"I hate trying to lose weight, it's no fun."
"Who wants to eat salad for dinner every night?"
Do these sound like excuses you’ve heard from friends or family when it comes to exercise to lose weight?
Well, if you missed it, the news is out and it’s exciting: the new Beef WISE study found that lean beef, as part of a healthy, higher-protein diet, can help people lose weight while maintaining muscle and a healthy heart[1].
The Beef WISE Study adds to the growing body of research demonstrating the role of lean beef in heart-healthy diets and strong bodies. This includes another beef-checkoff funded study called BOLD (Beef in an Optimal Lean Diet), and independent research DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension)[2].
Building on Previous Research
In recent years, higher-protein diets have become a popular diet strategy for weight loss. Dietary recommendations such as the 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans may suggest that eating patterns with lower intake of red meats are associated with a reduced risk of obesity. However, these recommendations to limit red meat are based primarily on observational studies, whereas clinical trials such as the three I mentioned largely found no detrimental impact of lean red meat consumption on markers of cardiometabolic health during weight loss or weight maintenance.[3-7]
Red meat is a major contributor of protein in the American diet and represents 58 percent of all meat consumption in the United States, thus its exclusion from the diet can pose as a barrier to sticking with a higher-protein diet for the long-term.
A Protein-Conscious Consumer Environment
Few clinical trials have compared different high-quality protein sources to understand their effectiveness in a weight loss or maintenance diet. The Beef WISE study did a direct comparison of the State of Slim eating plan with half the participants consuming four or more weekly servings of lean beef as the only source of red meat, compared to participants who did not consume any red meat during the study. Subjects in both groups lost equal amounts of body weight and fat mass while preserving muscle.
The WISE study, made possible by a research grant from your checkoff, demonstrates that lean beef doesn’t have to be restricted in a higher-protein diet and is just as effective as other protein choices in supporting healthy weight loss and leaner bodies.
In order to get this good news out to health and fitness leaders, your checkoff sent custom emails along with a press release to approximately 150 targeted media outlets and reporters. These selected outlets cover health and fitness for consumers or are nutrition/science-focused publications
Be proud of your checkoff’s work in this arena as this study is great news for people who enjoy beef but may have been told they should avoid it while following weight loss diets. It underscores, once again, lean beef can be part of a healthy, higher-protein diet for weight loss. Read more today!
For more information about your beef checkoff investment, visit MyBeefCheckoff.com.
[1] Sayer RD, et al. Equivalent reductions in body weight during the Beef WISE Study: Beef’s Role in Weight Improvement, Satisfaction, and Energy. Accepted by Obesity Science & Practice 2017, Available at: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/osp4.118/full
[2] Roussell MA, et al. 2012. Beef in an Optimal Lean Diet study: effects on lipids, lipoproteins, and apolipoproteins. Am J Clin Nutr. 95:9-16.
[3] Martens EA, Westerterp-Plantenga MS. Protein diets, body weight loss and weight maintenance. Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care 2014;17(1):75-9.
[4] Astrup A, et al. The role of higher protein diets in weight control and obesity-related comorbidities. Int J Obes (Lond) 2015;39(5):721-6.
[5] Clifton PM, et al. Long term weight maintenance after advice to consume low carbohydrate, higher protein diets–a systematic review and meta analysis. Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis 2014;24(3):224-35.
[6] Phillips SM. A brief review of higher dietary protein diets in weight loss: a focus on athletes. Sports Med 2014;44 Suppl 2:S149-53.
[7] U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and U.S. Department of Agriculture. 2015–2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. 8th Edition. December 2015.
Source: The Beef Checkoff Program
