Beef liver — natures multivitamin
By Lucy Wilcher.
BENEFITS OF BEEF LIVER
Beef liver is one of the most nutrient-dense foods available to us as humans. It is a true SUPERFOOD.
In western society, organ meats such as liver have become less popular, but beef liver has been a part of our ancestral history and turns out, grandma had our best interest at heart when serving liver on our plate.
Liver is PACKED with vitamin A, iron, B vitamins, zinc, copper, choline, protein and is rich in antioxidants.
Here is the breakdown of the key nutrients in 100g of beef liver:
- Protein: 29g
- Vitamin A: 31714.00 IU
- Choline: 426.00 mg
- Iron: 6.54 mg
- Zinc: 5.30 mg
- Copper: 14.28 mg
- Selenium: 36.10 ug
- B12: 70.58 ug
- Folate: 253.00 ug
- B6: 1.02 mg
Let’s compare this to 100g of beef sirloin steak:
- Protein: 29g
- Vitamin A: 14.00 IU
- Choline: 79.70mg
- Iron: 2.88mg
- Zinc: 4.54 mg
- Copper: 0.06mg
- Selenium: 27.20 ug
- B12: 2.02 ug
- Folate: 5.00 ug
- B6: 0.78 mg.
You can see in this comparison, that beef liver has a much higher nutrient density compared to muscle meats.
Vitamin A is one of the key nutrients found in liver. It is already in its active form “retinol”. This is important to mention, as provitamin A (carotenoids) which we find in plant foods, needs to be converted to retinol within the body. Unfortunately, this conversion within humans can be low, and varies depending on the individual, reducing the overall bioavailability. Vitamin A is important for immune, skin, eye, and reproductive health (1).
So, you have an iron deficiency?
Liver is amazing for iron deficiency. Not only does it contain a high amount of iron, but it contains the cofactors (vitamin A and bioavailable copper) needed for iron metabolism in the body.
Haeme iron (from animal products), is more easily absorbed than non-haeme iron (from plant-based sources). To support the absorption of iron, include plenty of wholefood vitamin C sources in your diet. Think bright colourful fruits and veggies.
Concerns with eating beef liver
Liver consumption during pregnancy.
The current guidelines outline that a pregnant women’s recommended intake (RDI) of Vitamin A is 800 ug/day, with the upper limit (UL) being 3000 ug/day.
There are concerns around excessive vitamin A intake and birth defects due to a study released in 1995 (2) based on synthetic vitamin A. Studies since has shown that vitamin A is crucial for the health of both the mother and baby during pregnancy as well as lowering the risks of birth defects. A study in 1999 demonstrated that pregnant women given 30,000 IU of vitamin A showed that there was no association with birth defects (3).
Due to the amazing nutrients within liver, eating liver as a part of a healthy balanced diet may be beneficial a few times per week during pregnancy. If you are concerned or have questions, book in for a 1:1 consult.
Eating liver toxins
Are you eating the animals’ toxins by eating liver?
The short answer is No. The liver’s role is to neutralize toxins and not store toxins. When eating liver quality matters, choose organic and pasture-raised liver only.
How to include liver into your diet
Have you tried beef liver and don’t like the taste?
Here are a few ways to sneak liver into your foods, so everyone can get the nutritional benefits of liver
- Combine normal beef mince with liver. You should be able to ask your butcher to do this for you. Aim for around 10-15% liver. This helps to mask the flavour of the liver. With this make your favourite bolognaise, meatballs, or lasagne!
- If you usually turn your nose up to liver, try liver pate. Enjoy pate with your favourite seed crackers- YUM.
- If you don’t like to cook with liver, opt for desiccated beef liver capsules. We are so lucky to live in a world where we can purchase supplements to help fill in our nutritional gaps.
My favourite liver-based supplements:
+ The mothers’ blend – Foraged for you
https://www.sheridanjoy.com/mothers-essentials
+ Cell squared organic grass-fed beef liver capsules
https://www.cellsquared.com.au/shop/organic-beef-liver-capsules?aff=6
+ H.E.A.L Organic beef liver capsules
If you are iron deficient, or want to add liver into your diet and would like individualized support, please get in touch by booking a FREE discovery call HERE.
REFERENCES
(1) Underwood, B. A., & Arthur, P. A. U. L. (1996). The contribution of vitamin A to public health. The FASEB journal, 10(9), 1040-1048.
(2) Rothman, K. J., Moore, L. L., Singer, M. R., Nguyen, U. S. D., Mannino, S., & Milunsky, A. (1995). Teratogenicity of high vitamin A intake. New England Journal of Medicine, 333(21), 1369-1373.
(3) Mastroiacovo, P. A., Mazzone, T., Addis, A., Elephant, E., Carlier, P., Vial, T., ... & Clementi, M. (1999). High vitamin A intake in early pregnancy and major malformations: a multicenter prospective controlled study. Teratology, 59(1), 7-11.