Beef is an important source of high-quality protein and several micronutrients, including iron, zinc, and B vitamins. We determined beef intake and its relationship with intakes of nutrients and their adequacy using 24 h dietary recall data from 5868 older adults. Usual intakes from foods were determined using the National Cancer Institute method, and the percent of the population below the estimated average requirement or above adequate intake was estimated. A high percentage of older adults did not meet nutrient recommendations for vitamin D (96%), choline (96%), vitamin E (84%), potassium (70%), calcium (63%), magnesium (60%), vitamin C (46%), vitamin A (39%), zinc (21%), vitamin B6 (19%), and folate (15%). About 68% of older adults were beef consumers with a mean intake of 56 g/day. Beef consumers had higher (p < 0.05) intakes of energy, protein, calcium, iron, phosphorus, selenium, sodium, zinc, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B12, and choline, and a higher (p < 0.05) proportion met nutrient recommendations for protein, calcium, copper, zinc, thiamin, folate, and vitamin B12 than non-consumers. Consumers of fresh, ground, and processed beef also had generally higher intakes and lower inadequacies of many nutrients depending on the beef type. In conclusion, older adults generally had poor nutrient adequacy from their diets, while beef consumers had higher nutrient intakes and adequacy for certain key nutrients, which are inherently generally available from beef or from foods consumed with beef.

Beef is an important source of high-quality protein and several micronutrients, including iron, zinc, and B-vitamins. The objective was to assess the association of beef intake with nutrient intake and adequacy among pregnant and lactating women using 24-h dietary recall data. Usual intakes from foods were determined with the National Cancer Institute (NCI) method and % population below Estimated Average Requirement (EAR) or above Adequate Intake (AI) were estimated. A high proportion of pregnant and lactating women had inadequate intakes for vitamin D (94%), vitamin E (82%), vitamin C (52%), and vitamin A (50%), magnesium (35%), folate (31%), zinc (25%), and vitamin B6 (22%); only 4% and 35% met AI for choline and potassium, respectively. About 67% of pregnant and lactating women were beef consumers, consuming 49 g beef/day. Beef consumers had higher intakes (p < 0.05) of energy, protein, calcium, iron, phosphorus, selenium, sodium, zinc, thiamin, riboflavin, and niacin, and a higher proportion (p < 0.05) met nutrient recommendations for protein, calcium, iron, zinc, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B6, and vitamin B12 compared to non-consumers. In conclusion, pregnant and lactating women generally have inadequate nutrient intakes from their diets. Beef consumers have higher intakes and adequacy for certain nutrients, many of which are inherently available in beef or in foods eaten with beef.

Evidence-based dietary advice regarding meats (including beef), requires accurate assessment of beef and other red meat intakes across life stages. Beef intake is subject to misclassification due to the use of broad categories such as \"red and processed meat\". In the current study, intake trends for total beef (i.e., any beef type) and specific beef types (fresh lean, ground, processed) among Americans participating in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2001-2018 (n = 74,461) were characterized and usual intake was assessed using NHANES 2011-2018 (n = 30,679). The usual intake amounts of beef were compared to those of relevant protein food subgroups modeled in the Healthy U.S.-Style Dietary Pattern (HDP) reported in the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA). Total per capita beef consumption declined an average of 12 g (p < 0.0001) for ages 2-18 years and 5.7 g (p = 0.0004) for ages 19-59 years per 2-yr NHANES cycle, over the 18-year timeframe, while remaining unchanged for Americans aged 60+ years. On a per capita basis, Americans aged 2 years and older consumed 42.2 g (1.5 ounces) of total beef per day. Fresh lean beef per capita consumption was 33.4 g (1.2 ounces) per day. Per capita intake was similar across all age groups and below the daily HDP modeled amount of 3.7 ounce equivalents for the \"Meats, Poultry, Eggs\" (MPE) subgroup, while approximately 75% of beef consumers\' intakes of total beef was within HDP modeling. Evidence from intake trends suggests beef is not overconsumed by the majority of Americans but rather within the amounts for MPE and red meat modeled in the HDP of the DGA at the 2000-calorie level.

Beef represents an important source of high-quality dietary protein and several micronutrients including iron, zinc, and B vitamins. Consumption of lean meat including lean beef is recommended by the Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2020-2025 as part of overall healthy diet. Given beef intake has been declining, the objective of this study was to provide updated evaluation of the nutritional contribution of beef types. Twenty-four-hour dietary recall data from adults age 19+ years (n = 19,766) participating in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2011-2018 was used to assess intakes. On the day of recall, 49.3%, 40.2%, 26.3%, and 15.3% adults consumed total beef, lean fresh beef, ground beef, and processed beef, respectively, with mean intakes of 45.6, 36.6, 21.3, and 6.23 g/day, respectively. Intake of total beef contributed to daily intakes of energy (5.4%), protein (14%), vitamin B12 (20%), zinc (21%), choline (11%), niacin (9.4%), vitamin B6 (8.3%), iron (7.6%), phosphorus (6.8%), potassium (5.6%), and magnesium (3%). Lean fresh beef contributed most to the daily intakes of energy and nutrients followed by ground and processed beef. Beef intake also contributed to daily intakes of fat (8.7%), saturated fat (11%), and sodium (2.9%) and lean fresh beef contributed less intakes of fat and saturated fat than ground and processed beef. Beef and particularly lean fresh beef were efficient sources of nutrients and provided more nutrients per 100 kcal than the total diet. In conclusion, based on nutrient contribution, these findings provide evidence to support inclusion of beef (especially lean fresh beef) in dietary recommendations.