Organic food may provide some environmental and health benefits over conventionally grown food. However, it can be a lot more expensive. If you can't afford to buy all organic foods, you should concentrate on purchasing those for which the organic version provides the most benefits over the conventional version. Organic meat is one of these foods, according to "Consumer Reports."
Hormones
Organic livestock cannot be grown with hormones. Conventional livestock, however, is grown using hormones to increase the growth of the animals. These hormones may have health risks for people who eat the meat and dairy products that contain them, according to Princeton University. For example, the hormone IGF-1 is present in milk from cows given growth hormones in concentrations two to 10 times higher than the milk from cows not treated with these hormones. This hormone may increase your risk for cancer.
Antibiotics
The widespread use of antibiotics to prevent disease in animals is causing antibiotic-resistant bacteria to develop at a faster rate, including bacteria resistant to common antibiotics used for people. Eating the meat from these animals isn't necessarily dangerous to your health, but you may become infected with these antibiotic-resistant bacteria if the meat you eat isn't thoroughly cooked or if the water you drink becomes contaminated with these bacteria.
Other Health Benefits
Mad cow disease can almost certainly be avoided if you eat only organic meat, according to the University of Minnesota. Animals raised for organic meat cannot be fed anything but organic feed, unlike conventional livestock, which can be fed animal byproducts and manure. Organic meat is also slaughtered separately from conventional meat, so there isn't a chance that it will be contaminated during this process.
Considerations
For a meat to be considered organic, it must have the "organic" label. Foods labeled "hormone-free," "all-natural," "grass-fed" or "free-range" are not necessarily organic. On the other hand, animals raised for organic meat are not necessarily free-range or grass-fed, since organic regulations only mandate that the animals need to have access to the outdoors. The healthiest options for meats are those that are both free-range and organic.
Expert Insight
If the expense of organic meat is stopping you from going organic, you can take a number of steps to find less expensive meat. First, check the prices at the stores near you, since prices for organic foods vary from store to store. Look into buying organic meat from local farms, since this tends to be less expensive, or from national providers who will ship the meat to you, recommends "Consumer Reports."
