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Two excellent papers on Fatty Acid
composition of Wagyu Beef delivered at the American Wagyu
Association Annual Conference, 2003.
Wagyu meat differs from other beef in both taste
and tenderness. It also has unique health properties. While
marbling or intra-muscular fat play a significant part in this,
the unique fatty acids are also key contributors.
The following two papers
delivered at the September 2003 American Wagyu Association Annual
Conference by faculty members of Washington State University
contain the best explanation we have yet read on the fatty acid
component and its benefits to consumers.
Our thanks to Charles Gaskins
for giving permission for these papers to be published on our
site.
Fatty Acids
and Wagyu Beef
Jim
O'Fallon, Jan Busboom, and Charles Gaskins, Department of Animal
Sciences Washington State University, Pullman
Summary
All
life on this planet vitally depends on fatty acids. Of the
thousands of fatty acids that exist we concentrate on a few that
really make a difference in human health. These fatty acids are
derived from two parent compounds that go by the names linoleic
acid and alpha-linolenic acid. Some of their metabolites are
arachidonic acid (AA), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA),
docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), and conjugated linoleic acid (CLA).
Wagyu beef is an excellent source of these essential fatty acids
and we describe how this is made possible by an interrelated
combination of genetics and diet. As such, when consumers shout,
“Where’s the beef?” they may mean Wagyu beef.
Introduction
Everyone nowadays seems to be concerned about the fat they eat.
Many of you have heard of ‘good’ and ‘bad’ fats, cholesterol, CLA,
DHA, EPA, omega-3, omega-6 and trans fatty acids. These are just a
few of the exotic words and abbreviations used in newspapers,
magazines and television to describe certain aspects of the fat
you eat. In this paper we present an overview of fats, including
some health implications, and how fatty acids relate, in
particular, to the Wagyu beef product...
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document
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Fatty Acids in Wagyu Beef
Dr. Jan Ro Busboom, Meat Specialist Department of Animal Science,
Washington State University
The purpose of this talk is to
give you a background in lipids and health, talk about the
composition of Wagyu and how to change that composition as well as
other important issues.
Here’s something everyone
recognizes – cholesterol. Cholesterol is a necessary component of
all diets. There really is no ‘good’ and ‘bad’ cholesterol in
foods. In your blood the ‘good’ is that associated with high
density lipoproteins (HDL) and the ‘bad’ cholesterol is associated
with the low density lipoproteins (LDL).
Next are saturated fatty acids
(SFA). They have no double bonds between carbon atoms. SFA are
designated as 12:0, 14:0 etc. This designation for the fatty acid
refers to the number of carbons (ie. 12, 14) followed by the
number of double bonds (ie. 0).
Monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA)
have one double bond. They can be present in the cis or trans
form. For example, the cis form is oleic, with a designation of
18:1. The trans form is eleidic. Oleic is the most prevalent
form of MUFA in beef. The trans form is formed during the
preparation of processed foods such as margarine.
Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA)
have two or more double bonds such as linoleic (18:2) and
linolenic (18:3). Linoleic acid is prevalent in corn and soy oils
and is present in meats. Linolenic acid is found in soy, flax and
forages. Now let’s talk about omega 6 vs. omega 3 PUFA. Omega 6
means there are 6 carbons to the first double bond from the methyl
end of the fatty acid. Omega 3 means it’s first double bond is
three carbons from the methyl end. The compounds formed from one
can’t be formed from the other. Arachidonic acid (20:4) is an
important omega 6 PUFA, and Eicosapentanoic acid (EPA, 20:5) and
docosahexenoic acid (DHA, 22:6) are omega 3 PUFA found in fish
oil. DHA serves an important function in the brain...
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