Welcome to Straight Talk on Health. I’m your host Dr. Chet Zelasko. Straight Talk on Health Straight Talk on Health is a joint production with WGVU in Grand Rapids MI. I examine the practical application of health information. Nutrition. Exercise. Diet. Supplementation. I look at the science behind them, and let you know whether it’s something to consider or not. You can check out other things that I do on my website Drchet.com and sign up for my free emails.
Where is the beef? Evidently, making a comeback in the form of beef tallow. Beef tallow is processed fat from cattle but in reality it could be made from any type of animal fat. A number of health gurus have touted its benefit for skin care as well as a more natural form of fat than seed oils. Today we'll take a look at consuming beef tallow as well as the use for skin care.
There are no new or improved health benefits from using beef tallow to cook with than there ever has been. Beef tallow contains high amounts of saturated fat. That can impart better flavor in whatever its cooked or baked with it but it's still a saturated fat. That means it is ideal for making cholesterol, especially LDL cholesterol in our bodies.
I've heard all the arguments about how carbohydrates were the real problem back when they decided to lower the fat intake in dietary guidelines back in the 1970s. That wasn't true then and it isn't true now. If we don't have saturated fat in our diet, and we substitute sugars and other simple carbohydrates, we'll make our own saturated fat. Why? Because we are animals and we will make our own lard.
Should you ever use beef tallow for cooking? There are just some things like French fries and some baked goods that are just excellent. Can it have negative impacts on your health? Sure but that’s just like any other type of fat and that includes seed oils everyone is saying is bad for you. Just focus on the mono-and polyunsaturated fats most of the time. As I’ve said over and over again, it’s not the food that’s bad; it’s the mass quantities we eat.
The use of beef tallow for skin care was something I’d never considered until I was asked about it several times. I used a scientific AI site and asked if beef tallow was beneficial for the skin. The answer was yes but something seemed off. There were no scientific references in the answer. The information was taken from three websites that sell beef tallow for skin care.
Let’s take a look at some of the claims made for beef tallow. I checked out the supporting research to support the claims that beef tallow will moisturize your skin, convey vitamins and minerals into the skin, and may even help eczema and other skin conditions on each company’s website.
I clicked on every link that said it supported the claim. It took me to another post on the website that talked about the claim, made more claims, but contained no scientific references to support the claim. But I’m ahead of myself.
Claim: Tallow is rich in vitamins A, D, E, and K. The claim is that they are naturally occurring and thus more bioavailable then those that are made conventionally. Two issues at least. First, are all the vitamins able to cross the skin barrier. That answer is yes. However, vitamin K2 is light sensitive so whether enough can be absorbed hasn’t been established. It also doesn’t seem to matter whether the vitamins are found naturally in the tallow or added after the fat is rendered. Second question, does the tallow have those vitamins in it? There may be some vitamin E but the rest are non-existent in beef tallow—even grass-fed beef tallow.
Claim: Contains natural Linoleic Acid which is supposed to be beneficial for the skin. Manufacturer’s claim that linoleic acid is an omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acid and antioxidant that works to moisturize, plump, fight inflammation, and rebuild the skin barrier. That it is in beef tallow is true but the amount found in a tablespoon of beef tallow would be .4 gram, a negligible amount and probably not enough to support those claims
Claim: Tallow is naturally anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial when applied to skin. There is no evidence for that claim. Look, there are more claims but the claims get more expansive without any scientific support. The science doesn’t have to be perfect. It can even be based on animal studies but there has to be some science to support what claims a company makes to suit me. Nothing. Nada,
Fortunately, a review study on beef tallow for use on the skin was published this year that examined among other things, the potential benefits and adverse events associated with the use of beef tallow. There is no research on humans, and very limited research on animals, to support the use of beef tallow for skin care.
Fats and oils are the foundation of most skin care products such as moisturizers. It would not be surprising that people had better skin after regular use. Maybe there is something magical about beef tallow but no company has spent the money proving it yet.
When coconut oil first became popular, I was told various cultures massage coconut oil onto babies and children from head to toe. They massage it into their skin on a regular basis. Not only is it a moisturizer, the massage also helps increase blood flow to the skin which can also force toxins out. That’s what I think is happening with beef tallow. The regular attention is giving the benefits.
I think beef tallow for skin care is another fad until the research catches up to the claims. It can’t be that three companies that offer it aren’t making money by charging $30-36 for 2 ounces of the stuff. From grass fed beef or not, that’s a steep price. It would be nice if they actually spent some of it to prove that it does what it claims it can do. Until then, it’s a hard pass for me. But based on the limited animal research, it doesn’t appear to be harmful. Your body. Your choice.
One more thing on a different topic. I recently had some dental work done that forced me to chew only on one side of my mouth, mostly because I didn’t want to knock off the temporary teeth until the crowns were ready. the temporary teeth. I developed a pain in my throat and the way my mind works, I thought all right, now what? Is my thyroid causing me problems? But I felt around and found it was a muscle that was sore. More than likely, one of the many muscles that controls the hyoid bone. That lasted a couple of days, especially after chewing. If I chew too much, it gets sore as any muscle would. I can’t wait for the bridge to be done so I can chew normally again.
But that got me to thinking about the importance of dental care at any age in life. As a society, we’re gifted with great dentistry but it’s something too many people fear. What they don’t realize is that something as simple as a misbalanced bite can impact other areas of the body and contribute to aches and pains. That’s not even considering the foods, especially meat, that people avoid because they avoid foods they know challenge them to chew. How does that impact their nutrition? Take care of your teeth and they’ll take care of you. That’s it for this episode. Until next time, this is Dr. Chet Zelasko saying health is a choice. Choose wisely today and every day.
Reference: British Journal of Nutrition (2024), 132, 1039–1050.
Cureus. 2024 May 24;16(5):e60981.
