Livestock grain/fiber metabolismWASRe: storing kefir grains ingrain

[Guest guest]

Dennis-

>--- I wonder whether oats and barley would affect CLA as much due to

>hi fiber content of these hulled(hull is around each kernel when

>ground and therefore livestock eat it with the grain)grains.For

>humans to eat the oat and barley grain the hull must be removed with

>a dehuller..

I'm not sure I understand, but AFAIK they both dramatically affect the CLA

content of milkfat and tissue fat -- a lot more than fresh alfalfa does,

for example.

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[Guest guest]

It was Dr. Tilak Dhiman (pronounced " demon " ). From Utah State

University.

[Guest guest]

wrote:

>

> When I was reading about the research, it sounded like they got high

> levels of CLA in cows that were producing milk FAST and were eating

> cracked soybeans. I can't remember how much processing was done to

> the soybeans.

>

> I think the thing they found was that feed that provided lots of

> linoleic acid to a cow that produces milk fast gives the most CLA. I

> think they said that grass provides some, but soybeans provide more.

>

> So they were getting high CLA with Holsteins on cracked soybeans, I

> think.

>

> IIRC, if researchers gave the cow any grain AT ALL, it reduced the

> level of CLA in that cow's milk forever. I think it has to do with

> the organisms in the rumen. If you give grain, then the grain-based

> organisms overpopulate relative to the others. And the others are

> the ones that produce the CLA. IMO, it sounded a lot like the

> problem humans have when candida gets out of control.

It does sound like they can manipulate CLA pretty easily

by feeding the cows high-linoleic-acid seeds. Like canola

seeds. Those wouldn't cause some of the digestive problems

that high-starch grains do, but it still makes me wonder ...

bovines are not designed to eat large quantities of seeds of

any type. Also if the amount of CLA is so easily manipulated,

it's not a good marker for a healthy grass-fed cow necessarily.

I also wonder how much CLA is good for you. Plain

ol' regular linoleic acid is associated with heart plaques,

and it's really bad to have a lot of it in your diet (although

it's essential to have SOME of it in your diet).

http://www.ag.ndsu.nodak.edu/aginfo/dairy/dairyexp/cla.htm

3. Increase in Conjugated Linoleic Acid in Milk by Feeding Oil Seeds

The concentration of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), an anti-cancer and

anti-obesity factor, can be increased in milk by including certain oil

seeds in the dairy cow diet. We are investigating the optimum level of

canola seed supplementation to increase the CLA content in milk. A study

using sunflower seed will follow. Click here for a brief pictoral of CLA

from the cow to the human diet.

-- Heidi Jean

[Guest guest]

Heidi-

>It does sound like they can manipulate CLA pretty easily

>by feeding the cows high-linoleic-acid seeds. Like canola

>seeds. Those wouldn't cause some of the digestive problems

>that high-starch grains do, but it still makes me wonder ...

>bovines are not designed to eat large quantities of seeds of

>any type. Also if the amount of CLA is so easily manipulated,

>it's not a good marker for a healthy grass-fed cow necessarily.

Interesting, but there's another factor to consider: which isomers of CLA

are these seed-fed cows producing? Some isomers are apparently

undesirable, including most or all of the CLA to be found in CLA supplements.

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[Guest guest]

> Interesting, but there's another factor to consider: which isomers

of CLA

> are these seed-fed cows producing? Some isomers are apparently

> undesirable, including most or all of the CLA to be found in CLA

> supplements.

>

> -

Good question. I'm not so sure about CLA myself since reading the bit in

Science News about linoleic acid in general. Seems like any of them

would oxidize in the blood.

-- Heidi Jean

[Guest guest]

Heidi-

>I'm not so sure about CLA myself since reading the bit in

>Science News about linoleic acid in general. Seems like any of them

>would oxidize in the blood.

Inasmuch as a form of it is present in grass-fed ruminant meat, I think a

certain amount will probably prove to be useful, but I'd definitely stay

away from supplements. They contain the wrong isomers, they may let you

take too much, and supplemental CLA is missing the cofactors that are

undoubtedly important (such as stabilizing saturated fat).

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