Micronutrients & recovery
Mainstream dietary guidelines recommending low red meat intake are not supported by robust scientific evidence and may cause harm by promoting nutritionally inferior plant-based diets.
Do not automatically reduce red meat intake based on current guidelines. Current evidence does not support a causal link between moderate red meat consumption and chronic disease, and restricting meat may lead to deficiencies in critical nutrients like B12, iron, and zinc, especially for children, pregnant women, and the elderly. If you choose to reduce meat, ensure you are supplementing B12 and monitoring iron and zinc levels, or prioritize nutrient-dense animal products to maintain nutritional robustness.
We argue that claims about the health dangers of red meat are not only improbable in the light of our evolutionary history, they are far from being supported by robust scientific evidence.
Why this rating
The paper is a narrative review criticizing observational studies; it cites RCTs showing no harm but does not present new primary RCT data itself.
Source
Should dietary guidelines recommend low red meat intake?
Frédéric Leroy et al. · Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition · 2019
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