Beef Tallow: Doctors Group Shares Consumer Health Alert Warning

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Doctors and dietitians with the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine are sharing their concerns about the health risks associated with beef tallow, which is high in saturated fat that raises cholesterol levels, increasing the risk of heart disease.

“Scientific studies show that beef tallow poses concerns for heart health. Beef fat is approximately 50% saturated fat, which raises cholesterol levels,” says Anna Herby, DHSc, RD, CDCES, a nutrition education specialist with the Physicians Committee, which has more than 17,000 doctor members. “While the beef industry has suggested that the stearic acid in beef should limit its cholesterol-raising effect, testing shows that beef tallow has cholesterol-raising effects similar to that of other meats.”  

Research shows that eating foods high in saturated fat, such as beef tallow and other animal products, raises LDL “bad” cholesterol levels, which increases heart disease risk.

Red and white meat raise cholesterol levels equally, according to a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Researchers tested the effects of low-saturated-fat diets that drew their protein from red meat (beef and pork), white meat (chicken and turkey), or nonmeat sources (legumes, nuts, grains, and soy products) in 51 participants—all of whom tested each of the three diets separately for four weeks. They then did the same with high-saturated-fat diets, drawing their protein from the same red, white, and nonmeat sources, in 62 participants.

It turned out that both white and red meat raised LDL (“bad”) cholesterol, compared with plant-based proteins, and did so to about the same extent. The researchers pointed out that their findings supported favoring meatless protein sources and that white meat was no better than red meat when it comes to heart disease risk.

Replacing saturated fat with plant sources of fat has been shown to be beneficial against heart disease. A review in the journal Circulation looked at 13 studies totaling 310,602 participants and found that replacing 5% of calories from saturated fat from animal sources with linoleic acid—found in vegetable oil, nuts, and seeds—was associated with a 9% lower risk of heart disease and a 13% lower risk of death from heart disease.

A study published in JAMA Internal Medicine earlier this month found that substituting butter, another animal product high in saturated fat, with plant-based oils, particularly olive, soybean, and canola oils, may help prevent premature death from heart disease and cancer. The authors of the study say, “These results support current dietary recommendations to replace animal fats like butter with nonhydrogenated vegetable oils that are high in unsaturated fats, especially olive, soy, and canola oil.”

The Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Department of Agriculture are currently developing the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines, which are expected to be released this year. In December, the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee’s Scientific Report recommended maintaining the current Dietary Guidelines’ advice for limiting total saturated fat intake to less than 10% of calories per day.

The Scientific Report states: “Evidence indicates that when reducing butter, processed and unprocessed red meat, and dairy, substitution or replacement with a wide range of plant-based food sources, including plant-based protein foods (e.g., beans, peas, and lentils), whole grains, vegetables, or monounsaturated fatty acid (MUFA)- and PUFA-rich vegetable oils and spreads, is associated with cardiovascular disease risk reduction.”