9 Meat Nutrition
Meat plays a significant role in the Western diet. Meat is almost completely digestible and rates high on the nutritional scale as it contains high levels of proteins, consisting of both essential (indispensable) and dispensable amino acids. Essential amino acids need to be supplied on a daily basis by diet, while the body is capable of producing dispensable amino acids on its own. Meat and other animal proteins can supply all the essential amino acids required for the human body. Meat is also rich in B complex vitamins, such as thiamin, riboflavin, and niacin, but the fat-soluble vitamins are not all found in meat. Minerals essential for the diet, with the exception of calcium, are found in meat, including phosphorus, iron, copper, and trace minerals.
Table 4 lists the vitamins and main nutrients found in meat and meat products.
| Vitamins | Sources |
| A | Certain oils, egg yolk, mammalian liver |
| D | Fresh liver oils and fatty tissue |
| E | Green leafy vegetables, animal organs (pituitary gland, adrenals, pancreas, and spleen), milk, butter, and abdominal fat |
| K | Green vegetables, potatoes, fruits, and liver oils |
| Thiamin B1 | Meat, liver, and kidney |
| Riboflavin B2 | Milk and meat |
| B6 | Red meat, liver, kidney, brain, cod liver, egg yolk, and milk |
| B12 | Liver, kidney, and egg yolk |
| Niacin | Liver and red meat |
| Pantothenic acid | Liver, kidney, muscle meat, brain, and egg yolk |
| Biotin | Liver, kidney, muscle meat, egg yolk, and milk |
| Folic acid | Liver, kidney, muscle meat, milk, and cheese |
Table 4 – Nutrients in meat and meat products (Canadian Professional Meat Cutters Association)