Good News for Meat Lovers? A Closer Look at Meat and Brain Health

Meat is a mainstay of my Nutrition First diet. And I'm sorry, but I will not apologize! You simply cannot beat beef for bioavailable protein, natural fat, and other nutrient goodies.

But in the real world, meat continues to be demonized. Sad.

My mission is to empower people to achieve real health through real food such as meat. Today, an observational study from Sweden gives us yet another reason to love our burgers and steaks.

Let's talk about it.

🥩 Eating Meat for Nutrition First

I have been touting my Nutrition First diet, what I once called "clean low-carb."

I changed the name to change the emphasis. Sure, limit carbs and avoid additives. But we need to do more than avoid excess carbs and unnatural ingredients. We need to feed our cells what they crave, the two essential macronutrients: protein and natural fat.

And when it comes to putting protein and natural fat on the plate, you cannot do any better than beef.

In spite of what the fearmongers say.

🥩 The Anti-Meat Message is Still Loud

If you feel uncertain about meat, you’re not alone.

For years, the message has been consistent:

Eat less meat. Be careful with red meat. Treat it as something to limit.

The American Heart Association still recommends shifting toward plant-based protein sources.

The Mediterranean diet limits red meat to just a few servings per month.

And the MIND diet groups red and processed meat together and recommends keeping intake low.

Sadly, anti-meat message is still out there.

But in January of this year, something changed.

New Dietary Guidelines, available on RealFood.gov, no longer frame meat as something to avoid.

Instead, the USDA now emphasizes protein as essential and includes meat among nutrient-dense foods across all life stages, from infancy to older adulthood.

There is no directive to limit meat.

Meat appears loud and proud at the top of the inverted food pyramid.

There is no warning language around red meat itself.

Instead, just a focus on getting enough high-quality protein, with meat listed as a top, if not the top, option.

That is one big positive shift toward nutrition.

🥩 New Research on Meat and Brain Health

A Hopeful Trend

A recent study out of Sweden and published in the JAMA Network Open followed more than 2,000 older adults and examined how meat consumption related to cognitive decline and dementia risk. Researchers compared people based on how much meat they reported eating over time.

Those with higher meat intake experienced slower cognitive decline, with the effect most noticeable in individuals with higher genetic risk for dementia.

This is an important point.

The study did not prescribe a specific amount of meat. “Higher intake” simply meant more relative to others in the group, not an extreme level of consumption.

The researchers also looked at the type of meat consumed.

While total meat intake was associated with better cognitive outcomes in some groups, a lower proportion of processed meat within that intake was associated with lower dementia risk more broadly.

In other words, not all meat was treated equally.

Limitations

It is important to understand the limits of this research.

This was an observational study, based on self-reported diet. It shows associations, not cause and effect. It cannot prove that eating more meat improves brain health.

But it does raise an interesting question.

If meat were inherently harmful to the brain, this is not the pattern we would expect to see.

If you’d like to read the study for yourself, you can find it here:

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2846712

🥩 Chewing on the Meat Question

The current USDA guidance recommends roughly 100 grams of protein per day, spread across meals.

And so do I.

In this study showing positive outcomes for those eating meat, the “higher meat” group averaged about one serving of meat per day. That is not extreme. It is simply one meal built around protein.

And then there is the other half of the equation.

As RealFood.gov puts it, healthy fats “support brain health, hormone function, and nutrient absorption when consumed in their natural forms.” It also states that “healthy fats are a natural part of real food, such as meat.”

That matters.

Because when you choose meat, you are not just getting protein. You are getting protein and natural fat together, in the form your body recognizes.

But. Not all meat is the same.

The lean cuts that have been promoted for years provide protein, but very little natural fat.

And if the goal is to support the brain, that fat is not something to remove. It is something to include.

Which is why, for me, beef is the GOAT, delivering both protein and natural fat in meaningful amounts.

Nutrition First.

☀️ What's for dinner?

For me? Yes, it is usually beef.

And, no, I am not sponsored by the American Cattlemen Association!

Eating for Nutrition First means breaking up with sugar, yes, but, importantly, breaking up with health advice that does not serve us. I no longer fear eggs, fat,... or red meat.

Are you eating for Nutrition First?

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Until next time, stay strong, wise, kind, and good.

Choose real food for real health.