{"id":25684,"date":"2025-04-14T10:53:00","date_gmt":"2025-04-14T08:53:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.carnisostenibili.it\/?p=25684"},"modified":"2025-06-03T10:59:58","modified_gmt":"2025-06-03T08:59:58","slug":"red-meat-for-cardiovascular-health-and-microbiota","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.carnisostenibili.it\/en\/red-meat-for-cardiovascular-health-and-microbiota\/","title":{"rendered":"Red meat for cardiovascular health and microbiota"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Red meat is an ally for cardiovascular health and gut microbiota in a balanced diet.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A healthy diet<\/strong> can include red meat<\/strong>, an unsuspected ally for cardiovascular and gut microbiota health<\/strong>. This is the conclusion of an innovative study<\/a> from Purdue University<\/em> in the USA, published in “Nutrients<\/strong>“. The research analysed the effects of a balanced diet<\/strong> on the gut microbiota and risk factors associated with cardiovascular disease, providing new insights into the role of red meat in health.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Red meat is not bad for you<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Given the constant smear campaign against red meat<\/strong> that we are used to today, it may come as a surprise that the diet examined in this study included fresh and processed beef and pork<\/strong>. This overturns many current beliefs and suggests that<\/span>\u00a0consuming red meat as part of a balanced diet does not harm one’s\u00a0health<\/strong>. In particular, the study analysed the effects of adopting, abandoning and re-adopting a healthy and controlled diet in 17 young adults aged 20-35 years. The study revealed that changes in diet impact the composition of the\u00a0gut microbiota<\/strong>\u00a0and the leve<\/span>ls of certain cardiovascular biomarkers<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The study on a healthy diet<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The participants were followed for a total of 24 weeks, with a protocol that included an initial period of 5 weeks during which the participants followed their\u00a0usual diet<\/strong>, followed by three cycles of a healthy di<\/span>et, each lasting 3 weeks, and alternating with two periods of\u00a0unrestricted and uncontrolled diet,\u00a0each lasting 5 weeks. All food provided to the participants was prepared according to standardised cooking instructions<\/strong>, with menus rotated every 4 days. The healthy diet followed the model based on US guidelines<\/strong>, the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans<\/a>, including approximately 85 g per day of red meat from beef and pork<\/strong>, both fresh and processed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the study results<\/a>, the alternation between adopting and abandoning a healthy diet determined a cycle of transformations in the intestinal microbiota, which also affected the concentration of LDL <\/strong>(“bad”) cholesterol<\/strong> and total cholesterol. In particular, consuming a balanced diet, including both fresh and processed beef and pork, has be<\/strong><\/span>en shown to improve the composition of the microbiota and reduce cardiovascular risk factors<\/strong>. On the contrary, abandoning this diet negated these benefits, with no improvement in cardiovascular health or gut flora. Therefore, the idea that red meat may harm gut or heart health is rejected<\/strong>, emphasising the importance of assessing the diet as a whole rather than focusing on individual foods.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For science, nothing new<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

These findings are consistent with previous research<\/a>, which has<\/a>\u00a0shown that\u00a0dietary changes<\/strong>\u00a0can rapidl<\/strong><\/span>y alter gut microbiota composition\u00a0and\u00a0improve blood lipid profiles, thereby\u00a0reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease<\/strong>. The study confirmed the close relationship between changes in the gut microbiota and levels of lipoproteins and lipids in the blood, such as cholesterol and triglycerides<\/strong>, strengthening the view that the microbiota can influence fat metabolism<\/a> and play a key role in cardiovascular health.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Health professionals<\/strong>\u00a0and researchers must consider<\/span> these aspects when developing\u00a0dietary strategies to enhance cardiovascular health<\/strong>\u00a0by promoting positive changes in the gut microbiot<\/span>a composition. The inclusion of red meat<\/strong> may be a critical factor in these strategies.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

[…]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":25686,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[681],"tags":[837,6584,738,6582,6583],"class_list":["post-25684","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-health-nutrition","tag-heart-disease","tag-microbiota-2","tag-red-meat","tag-red-meat-for-cardiovascular-health","tag-red-meat-for-microbiota"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t