Beef liver can be an alternative to the usual beef, chicken or pork options that you might find in supermarkets. You can use it in salads, sandwiches or appetizer recipes, and it is filled with essential nutrients. Beef liver can be healthy for most individuals as long as you eat it only in moderation and make sure it is thoroughly cooked.
Weight Control
Beef liver can help you control your weight because it has only 135 calories in a serving of 100 g, or about 3 1/2 oz. You gain weight when you eat more calories than you burn, or expend, and low-calorie, filling foods can help you lower your calorie intake without feeling too hungry. Each serving of beef liver provides 20 g protein, which is an appetite-suppressing nutrient because it slows the emptying of food from your stomach so you feel full for longer after a meal, according to the Harvard School of Public Health.
Prevent Anemia
Beef liver might prevent anemia because each 100-g serving has 5 mg iron, or 27 percent of the daily value, and 59 mcg of vitamin B-12, or 988 percent of the daily value. Iron-deficiency anemia is a common threat for women of child-bearing age, children and adolescents, according to the 2010 Dietary Guidelines from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Megaloblastic anemia is a result of vitamin B-12 deficiency, according to the Linus Pauling Institute Micronutrient Information Center. Very high amounts of vitamin B-12 from food do not appear to have toxic effects.
High Cholesterol
Beef liver may increase levels of bad LDL cholesterol in your blood because a single serving has 275 mg cholesterol. Healthy adults should have no more than 300 mg cholesterol per day, and adults with high cholesterol levels should limit dietary cholesterol to 200 mg per day, according to the 2010 Dietary Guidelines from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. For most healthy adults, a moderate amount of beef liver might not be harmful because a serving only has 1 g cholesterol-raising saturated fat, or 5 percent of the daily value.
Vitamin A Toxicity
Overconsumption of liver might lead to symptoms of vitamin A toxicity because a 100-g serving has 16,899 international units, or IU, of vitamin A. The tolerable upper level of intake, or maximum amount that is unlikely to cause harm when you eat it regularly, is 10,000 IU per day, according to the Linus Pauling Institute Micronutrient Information Center. Possible effects of vitamin A toxicity include osteoporosis and drug interactions. The form of vitamin A that you get from meats, other animal foods and supplements is preformed vitamin A, and this kind can lead to toxicity. The form of vitamin A in fruits and vegetables, pro-vitamin A, does not cause toxic symptoms.
References
- Linus Pauling Institute Micronutrient Information Center; Vitamin A; Jane Higdon; January 2003
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2010; January 2010
- U.S. Department of Agriculture: Beef Products
- Harvard School of Public Health: Protein: Moving Closer to Center Stage
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