Hormones in Meat

1. Hormones in Meat By Joseph Vincze

2. hor·mone • ˈhôrˌmōn • noun PHYSIOLOGY • plural noun: hormones • a regulatory substance produced in an organism and transported in tissue fluids such as blood or sap to stimulate specific cells or tissues into action. • a synthetic substance with an effect similar to that of an animal or plant hormone. • a person's sex hormones as held to influence behavior or mood. • Origin:early 20th century: from Greek hormōn, present participle of horman ‘impel, set in motion.’

3. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a number of steroid hormone drugs for use in beef cattle and sheep since the 1950s, including natural estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, and their synthetic versions: • Zeranol which mimics estradiol • Trenbolone acetate which mimics testosterone • Melengestrol acetate (MGA) which mimics progesterone

4. As per FDA “No steroid hormones are approved for growth purposes in dairy cattle, veal calves, pigs, or poultry.” However, these animals can be fed growth enhancers and feed additives in order to make the animal grow faster. These additives are not considered hormones, but there is concern that they might affect human health.

5. In 1993 the FDA approved Monsanto’s New Animal Drug Application for Posilac - a recombinant bovine growth hormone (rBGH a.k.a rBST) for use of dairy cows. Since the FDA found no significant difference between milk from rBST-treated cows and non-treated cows it could not impose additional labeling requirements.

6. International Dairy Foods Association v. Boggs, the 6th Circuit found that rBST milk is “materially different”, which is in contrast to the FDA’s prior determination. The court cited the three reasons for the differences are: • Increased levels of the hormone IGF-1. • A period of milk with lower nutritional quality during each lactation. • Increased somatic cell counts in the milk. The court noted that higher somatic cell counts indicate milk is poor quality and will turn sour more quickly.

7. In order to remedy this, the FDA recommended the inclusion of a disclaimer accompanying the statement “from cows not treated with rBST” with the statement that “No significant difference has been shown between milk derived from rBST-treated and non-rBST-treated cows.”

8. Diethylstilbestrol (DES), one of the first hormones used to stimulate growth in poultry and cattle before slaughter in the 1950s. • FDA banned the drug in poultry in 1959 after a cluster of male workers in poultry-processing facilities developed Man-boobs and sterility. • It would be another twenty years before the FDA bans DES for cattle in 1979.

9. In addition, DES was being prescribed to women as an anti-miscarriage agent between 1938 and 1971. • During that period it was found that women who were prescribed DES had a higher risk for estrogen-based cancers. • DES-daughters too had a higher risk for estrogen-based cancers, in addition to reproduction abnormalities. • DES-sons showed a higher risk for testicular cancer.

10. Precocious puberty came on the radar screen in the early 1990s, the first suspects were the hormones used in the beef and dairy industries. Other causes: • Xeno-estrogens are endocrine disruptors found through out our man-made environment; examples of which are: Parabens, Bisphenol-A, Phthalates (plasticizers), PBDEs (flame retardants), PCBs, certain plastics, insecticides, etc.

11. Metalloestrogens - metals capable of binding to cellular estrogen receptors and then mimicking the actions of physiological estrogens: Aluminum, Antimony, Arsenite, Barium, Cadmium, Chromium, Cobalt, Copper, Lead, Mercury, Nickel, Selenite, Tin and Vanadate. • Obesity can alter the levels of reproductive hormones, prompting the body into premature puberty. • Stress, family conflict and depression is associated with early puberty.

12. E.U. ban U.S. hormone treated meat and dairy dating back to 1988. Historical context: • British Mad Cow outbreak affected approximately 180,000 cattle from 1986 through 2001. • In 1977 there was a widely publicized school epidemic of breast enlargement in very young girls and boys in Northern Italy. • In 1980 samples of veal-based baby food tested positive for traces of DES. Prompting the E.U. to ban the application and use of anabolic growth promoters in agriculture since 1985.

13. In 1998 the World Trade Organization rejected the EU’s ban due to a lack of evidence conclusively proving the harmful effects of consumption of hormone-treated meat. In response the EU invoked the precautionary principle (PP), a step possible when there is insufficient evidence to conclusively dispel or confirm fears of a health risk

14. Antibiotics were the largest segment of the animal growth promoters market and were valued at $4.5 billion in 2013.  According to a World Health Organization report this overuse of antibiotics in animal diets during the raising of livestock may throw the global population into a post-antibiotic era marked by common infections and minor injuries becoming lethal

15. Beta-agonists (Ractopamine and Zilmax) can be used for a number of purposes, including promoting growth by decreasing muscular degradation and fat synthesis. • Side-effects seen in animals from these two drugs include behavioral problems, muscle tremors and rapid heart rates. • Zilmax in sheep found detectable levels in liver and muscle tissues up to nine days after discontinuation of the drug.

16. The New York Times (2013) reported that the FDA announced that it will rescind approval for three of the four arsenic drugs that had been used in animal feeds after recent studies showed levels of arsenic in chicken that exceeded amounts that occur naturally. They had been added to feed for chickens, turkeys and pigs to prevent disease, increase feed efficiency and promote growth

17. The Answer…