What’s In Your Meat?

By: M. Breeze

Sunday is here and you can’t wait to watch the game with your friends and fire up the grill. The choices of meat for today are huge chicken breast, leg quarters and your famous grilled steak. You may even get a compliment on the size of the chicken from your friends, and then you start to wonder. How did this chicken get so big? Truth is a majority of our meat that we eat are being treated with growth hormones to increase the size of the animal. Now that you know that are you going to allow this to enter into your body? Have you taken the time to wonder, what’s in my meat? Millions of Americans have asked this question only to find that growth hormones are being placed in our foods and it is affecting our health. The usage of hormones in our meat is the cause for a lot of diseases that we are faced with today. In this paper I’m going to discuss the approval for the use of growth hormones, the dangers on the body from the consumption of meat, and the diseases that are linked to growth hormones.

In the early 1950’s the Food and Drug Administration approved for the use of numerous steroid hormones to be injected into beef, sheep, and chicken. The FDA decided to go with a pellet that would be placed behind the animals’ ear and it would dissolve over time. According to the FDA “These drugs increase the animals’ growth rate, the efficiency by which they convert the feed they eat into meat, and the leanness of their meat. The FDA approves these drugs only after extensive studies have shown that the food from the treated animals is safe for people to eat, and that the drugs do not harm the treated animal or the environment. The drugs also have to work as intended.” (U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, 2011). With the earth’s population on a rise we do need more to eat, but are growth hormones the answer? Animals who receive growth steroids are larger than animals that don’t and they produce more meat. More meat can feed more people. More people will spend more money; see how easy it may be to get on the gravy train? Money is the reason why farmers would even consider using hormones. On one hand I understand why they approved it. On the other hand it bothers me that it exists.

Although hormones are used to increase the yields of meat they have been linked to negative health effects on the human body. Consumption of high levels of red meat have been linked to the risk of women getting breast cancer before they reach menopause. Hormones in food have also been linked to a lowered immune system also. A lowered immune system can be detrimental to our health rBHT, a growth hormone, is a genetically engineered copy of the naturally occurring hormone in cows, is used to increase milk production on cattle as well as a 20% growth. According to Dr. Hall, “growth hormones increase a cow's chances of getting mastitis, or udder infection, severe reproductive problems, and digestive disorders. These growth hormones can also make humans sick by lowering the strength of the immune system functioning, increasing a person's susceptibility to getting sick” (Hall, 2010). With that being said it’s funny how the FDA allows the use of growth hormones in our food, and we can’t do anything about it. Although not proven the implantation of hormones into U.S. beef may have adverse human health effects.

Some drugs that are used as hormones have been linked to diseases such as cancer. One in particular is the drug Paylean. Paylean is used primarily in pork and has been the drug of choice for pork farmers because of the daily gains in meat production. The thing that baffles me is even though the FDA approved the use of Paylean in 1999, the USDA warns people not to touch it with their bare hands and do not inhale it. The label on Paylean clearly states that this product is not for human use and people with cardiovascular diseases should do their best to stay clear of the product. So how it is that the FDA allows pork farmers to use it with no consequences? No matter how you like it there is a 95% that the hot dog you consumed is loaded with this deadly drug. Not all countries agree with the use of this. Apparently China has learned about the dangers of this drug and refuses to purchase pork that has been treated with Paylean from America. If the Chinese government understands the dangers of Paylean why doesn’t our government do the same? The answer is profit. According to Barbara L. Minton, “Conventional hog producers love Paylean because it improves feed efficiency by 13 percent, and increases average daily gain in hogs by 10 percent. It reduces average daily feed intake by 6 percent, and increases lean gain by 25 to 37 percent according to research results. Use of Paylean can net a pork producer an additional $5 to10 per hog. A producer who runs a fairly large operation can increase profits by $320,000 a year or more by using Paylean” (Minton, 2009). I can guarantee that these farmers have a different stable with the pork in it that they eat. It would be silly for them to consume the hormone infested meat and they know the consequences.

It has been said that low levels of dietary steroids should not affect a human being in any way. Even though they say it’s safe, many people are becoming concerned with the thought of the levels of steroids in our food. It’s not just our meat, since we drink milk from cows we have been exposed to the dangers that have been placed in our milk. The milk that we drink has been said to have high levels of estrogen, which has been linked to early ovulation in females and earlier puberty ages. It’s true that estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone are naturally occurring hormones that the body produces and they are necessary for the reproduction, growth and development of animals as well as humans. According to the FDA, “People are not at risk from eating food from animals treated with these drugs because the amount of additional hormone following drug treatment is very small compared with the amount of natural hormones that are normally found in the meat of untreated animals and that are naturally produced in the human body” (U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, 2011). Although not proven, high consumption levels of estrogen in milk are believed to have links to cancer in the ovaries, testicles and breast.

What does this effect have on our children? Since a majority of kids have milk with their cereal everyday how does this affect their bodies? In 1956, a study was done with Mongolian 3rd graders who were exposed to American milk. After a month of giving the kids milk from American cow’s their hormone levels jumped. The high levels of estrogen in our milk may be the blame. But why would the government allow the use of high levels of estrogen? Many of the cows that are milked for dairy are milked on average about 300 times a year. A majority of the time the animals are pregnant and they have 33 times more estrogen than the milk that comes from a non-pregnant cow. Since the female human body naturally produces estrogen, consuming extra may lead to early puberty and the development of breast. This may be the reason why some kids look much older than they really are. Once it was approved by the FDA, Obovine somatotropin (BST) was injected into cows and was seen to increase milk production by as much as 50%. That’s a good thing right? More milk for the kids and adults to enjoy on a daily basis. Here is the funny part; BST is a naturally produced hormone which is secreted from the cow’s milk gland. The problem is that the FDA allowed cows to be injected with a synthetic BST, even though it’s produced naturally by cows. It’s like injecting a man with more testosterone, there are bound to be side effects. Milk has once been described as “nature’s perfect food” but today that may be far from the truth. The hormones in milk and meat have also been linked to gynecomastia, or enlarged male breasts. In one school in Italy, nearly one in three boys aged 3 to 5 and more than half of boys aged 6 to 10 were found to have enlarged breasts, and the hormones in meat were suspected to have caused the disorder. I know the FDA knows about this but they choose to do nothing about it. What can we do about it? You can stop drinking milk, but seriously, what are we going to eat with our delicious processed Captain Crunch Cereal.

Everyone knows that diseases have been on the rise every day and it’s not hard to see where they come from. We are consuming products that are making us sick on a daily basis. We know the dangers of certain foods but we choose to ignore the warnings. Our health may have to pay the price for our foolishness. Although there are no studies that have been produced to link the hormones in meat to breast cancer, it’s hard to deny the fact that this is where it begins. Even though the FDA says that hormones are safe for human consumption, have you ever heard of any tests being performed that may prove otherwise? I doubt it. According to David Gutierrez "Increased levels of sex hormones are linked to the escalating incidence of reproductive cancers in the United States since 1975 - 60 percent for prostate, 59 percent for testis and 10 percent for breast" (Gutierrez, 2011). America also has the highest levels of breast cancer compared to any other country except for Switzerland, whose national food is cheese. Compared to other countries that do not use growth hormones in their food we have the highest disease rate.

Another rising factor in this country is the rising number of Prostate cancer recipients. As I stated in the previous paragraph these diseases which were minor at one point are causing Americans to wonder what is going on. According to research done by the Cancer Project “Prostate cancer is one of the leading cancers among men in the U.S., and researchers have explored a number of possible dietary factors contributing to prostate cancer risk. These include dietary fat, saturated fat, dairy products, and meat, as well as dietary factors that may decrease risk, such as the consumption of carotenoids and other antioxidants, fiber, and fruit. As with breast cancer risk, a man’s intake of dietary fat, which is abundant in meat and other animal products, increases testosterone production, which in turn increases prostate cancer risk” (The Cancer Project, 2009). It has us scared to eat because everything that we thought may be bad for us. Although the hormones in our food have not been linked to the cause of prostate cancer, the increase in the number of people who have it are alarming. No matter what the FDA says, I believe that this is the case. My personal opinion may not hold up in a court of law but I’m sure I can make a difference. Second to lung cancer, prostate cancer is the number 2 killer among men in the United States. Men who consume the most meat and dairy products are at risk to have contract prostate cancer. Since meat grilling is “manly” in this country and we are blind to the fact of what’s in our meat we are killing ourselves slowly.

The next leading killer, colon cancer, has also stolen the spotlight in men’s health. A research done by a Harvard study group suggests that people who eat red meat and pork on a daily basis are three times as likely to receive colon cancer as those who didn’t. Now scientists consider a lot of red meat 3.5 ounces. That’s less than a quarter pounder from McDonalds. So it’s safe to say a burger a day may lead your colon astray. Colon cancer has been on the rise since the late 80s and the numbers keep on rising. With no cure in sight, the government should step in and do something about the hormones that are being placed in our food.

In conclusion, I strongly recommend the government gives the use of hormones a second look. It’s obvious that the epidemic of diseases and the excessive weight gain of our youth come from the use of growth hormones in our food. We can’t deny the fact that we don’t even know what’s organic anymore, because even organic foods aren’t as pure as we think. We as people do have the right to know what we are eating and how it affects our bodies. The government should ban these hormones from being used and should fine manufacture who use these products on their livestock as well. I recommend that everyone really pays attention to what they are eating on a daily basis. The chicken nuggets that we feed on a daily basis can be as damaging in the long run as second hand smoke. Make organic meat cheaper and hormone treated meat more expensive. Dear Uncle Sam, give us a chance to live. So before you take the bite of that hotdog off of the grill take a moment and think what’s in your meat.

Works Cited

Gutierrez, D. (2011, November 11). Hormones in U.S. Beef Linked to Cancer Risk. Retrieved from http://www.all-creatures.org/health/fh-linked.html

Hall, D. P. (2010, October 18). What are the dangers of growth hormones in food. Retrieved from www.livestrong.com: www.livestrong.com/...the-dangers-of-growth-hormones-in-food

Minton, B. (2009, March 17). Paylean: Drug in Conventionally Raised Meat Linked to Cancer and Heart Disease. Retrieved from http://www.naturalnews.com/025861.html

U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. (2011, Feburary 2). Steroid Hormone Implants Used for Growth in Food-Producing Animals. Retrieved from www.fda.gov/AnimalVeterinary/SafetyHealth/ProductSafety.

The Cancer Project. (2009, March 14). The Cancer Project. Retrieved from Diet and Cancer Research: http://www.cancerproject.org/diet_cancer/facts/meat.php

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Works Cited