Health Longevity Secrets
A podcast to transform your health and longevity with evidence-based lifestyle modifications and other tools to prevent and even reverse the most disruptive diseases. We feature topics including longevity, fasting, ketosis, biohacking, Alzheimer’s disease, heart disease, stroke, cancer, consciousness, and much more so that you can find out the latest proven methods to optimize your life. It’s a mix of interviews, special co-hosts, and solo shows that you’re not going to want to miss. Hit subscribe and get ready to change your life. HLS is hosted by Robert Lufkin MD, a physician/medical school professor and New York Times Bestselling auhtor focusing on the applied science of health and longevity through lifestyle and other tools in order to cultivate consciousness, and live life to the fullest .
'Envision a world of love, abundance, and generosity'.
Health Longevity Secrets
Is Beef Healthy?
What if your healthy snack could support both your body and the planet? Tune in as Yuda Holzberg and Jon Engelson, two pioneers in the world of grass-fed, pasture-raised kosher beef snacks, join us to unravel the mysteries behind your favorite meaty treats. With a promise of uncovering the nutritional treasures of beef as a low-carb, high-protein powerhouse, we tackle the realities of modern meat production and the pressing need for transparency and sustainability. Whether you're a committed carnivore or a plant-based eater curious about sustainable practices, this episode promises insights that will change the way you think about your food.
Discover the stark contrasts between pasture-raised, grass-fed beef and its conventional grain-fed counterpart. Learn how giving cattle a natural environment not only enhances the omega-3 fatty acid content of their meat but also improves overall human health. We'll share our personal journey to cleaner eating, including a commitment to providing snacks free from harmful additives. By exploring the principles of regenerative farming, we paint a holistic picture of how these methods contribute to producing nutrient-dense, safer food options for everyone.
Finally, get a taste of South African culture with Joburg Meats as we savor their spicy biltong, crafted from South American beef and seasoned with health in mind. Our conversation is enriched by reflections on the collaboration with John and Yuda, whose dedication and vision help bring superior meat products to your table. With gratitude for the hard work involved, we look forward to continuing this journey, brainstorming future innovations for a healthier world, one bite at a time.
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Bluesky: ...
you to holsberg is one of the founders who had the idea to make a healthy, tasty, grass-fed pasture raised kosher high protein meat snack. John engelson is the former founder of you are what you eat incorporated, which was number 441 on the income 500 fastest growing companies in 1998. He pioneered the idea of bringing healthy, nutritional snacks to schools and the mass market. Brings years of experience in marketing health nutrition as the chief strategic officer of Joe Berg Meats. Hey John, hey Uta. Welcome to the show hey, dr lufkin hey, doctor, great to be with you.
Speaker 1:Oh, it's an honor please call me rob and I'm so excited today about talking about beef and the beef industry and all the things there.
Speaker 1:But let me, let me just say to our to our vegan, to the vegan portion of our audience, and just say to the vegan portion of our audience and there is a portion of our audience who are vegan, just like there's a portion who are strictly carnivore and don't eat plants. You may want to pay attention to this also, not only for your friends who happen to eat meat, but also a lot of the principles we're going to cover about, but also a lot of the principles we're going to cover about organic farming, essentially, and regenerative farming. The same caveats apply in a lot of ways to the way vegetables are grown today and fruits. So stick around if you want. But I'm really excited about what we're going to talk about. I think it's going to open in everybody's eyes. But before we do, maybe you guys could just take a moment and this is the first time you've been on the program Just tell our audience a little bit about your background and how you came to be so interested in this exciting area.
Speaker 2:All right, john, you or me.
Speaker 3:Go ahead, you start, I'll take the baton, my friend.
Speaker 2:All right, you got it.
Speaker 3:You're one of the founders of the company, so I got to give the kudos.
Speaker 2:This is a very beautiful journey, very beautiful opportunity to be here with you, Dr Rob. It's an incredible opportunity to say the story a little bit and to really share a little bit of what this is all about.
Speaker 3:Great, I'm just getting something with my charger.
Speaker 1:Oh, no worries. No worries, I mean well, john, we'll bring john back in, but, um, just to continue the thought, now we, we, we. We're going to talk about beef and um, meat is is very healthy. Uh, it it, you know. It contains all the micronutrients we need and in a lot of ways it's an ideal food. But you can be healthy eating a vegan diet if you just watch your micronutrients and make sure you get all the supplements. But with beef and meat it's not always that straightforward and because today meat is raised certain ways that can cause it to be less healthy, and I just want to go into that a little bit and explore some of those things. And, john, do you want to? Before we do that, john, do you want to say a little bit about your background?
Speaker 3:Sure, my pleasure. So hello everybody. It's great to be with you, rob, doc. I'm from Los Angeles.
Speaker 3:I grew up in Westwood, right near UCLA, and I come from a family of physicians. My father was a professor of medicine at USC, also part-time later in his life, and so my whole family were doctors. I was pre-med at UCSD and my first quarter I kind of just went AWOL and I ended up in economics. But in my mid-20s I had a misdiagnosis from some of the major I guess you know one of the best doctors in the world in Beverly Hills etc. And after that I kind of changed my life and my direction and it opened up a new way for me to learn about alternative medicines. And I just sort of been doing this ever since, on the side.
Speaker 3:I mean, I've been in business and I founded a company in 1990 called you Are what you Eat and we were dedicated to put healthy nutrition products into schools and we ended up doing that and putting it also in more of the mass market and we built into an Inc 500 fastest growing company in 1998. And I had about a 12 year run. But I've been in this space. I learned, I tried to learn homeopathy, herbal medicine, diet, nutrition, and I feel that by not going to medical school, one of the benefits was that I didn't get locked in a particular corner of education and I believe in my mantra of health and nutrition is two words and that are what works.
Speaker 3:Some things work better for some people, some things other. We take information. Things change all the time for some people, some things other. We take information. Things change all the time, sometimes people, because we're so different and we're made with certain proclivities that some things work for people, some things don't. But we definitely have general information that we can give people that is correct and good and we try to do that and see what works. And then I went into consulting and helping other companies with this message and with this mission and I've been with Joe Burke for about a year now and helping them get into this space of particularly the keto, carnivore, paleo protein, low-carb audience and take advantage of the beautiful people that we've met so they can take advantage of our beautiful, excellent products. So that's a little background and a little history as fast as I could.
Speaker 1:Thanks, john. So beef is as you say. It's a great low-carb choice because there's really very few carbohydrates in beef. So it contains protein and fat, which are the required macronutrients. We'll die without those, and it omits in a lot of ways the harmful ones, carbohydrates. So it's a great choice that way for eating. Now, what with modern options for eating meat, and beef in particular, what are the pitfalls that people have to watch out for? Can you just order anything off the shelf, or are there certain? You know we mentioned some of the words like organic or regenerative, or pasture raised, or you know what do those things mean?
Speaker 3:So, Huda, you want me to talk about that?
Speaker 2:This is you. You go, I'll fill in after yeah sure.
Speaker 3:So look, you know there is an issue with sort of the industrial complex, you know, of meat it's, it's um, you know again, the the the negative. I love the free market. I think it's an incredible thing. The, the challenge is that for companies to make more money, they have to cheapen their products. You know this is this is how life works and this is an unfortunate thing.
Speaker 3:And in america we, we have this concept. You know this concept. You know we got to make more money, we got to make more. So how do you make more money If you have a cow that's, you know, 2,000 pounds, or you have a cow that's 2,500 pounds, you're going to make more money on the 2,500 pound cow because you have more to sell.
Speaker 3:Now, how do you fatten up a cow? By giving it grains and other hormones, other things that can fatten up the cow, and that cow ends up growing bigger and has much more to give, so to speak, in volume. But what it does is that you are what you eat, so what the cow is eating, it becomes part of the cow. So the benefits of all the nutrition that's in beef, which there's so many, from B vitamins to the protein and other vitamins, et cetera. The benefits get kind of I don't want to say red light, because I don't want to.
Speaker 3:You know, people can't always get what we would call pasture raised, grass fed meat. So you're still getting benefit, for sure, but you're getting also some of the some of the negative aspects is because you again, you are what you're eating. So if the cow is eating the hormones or the grains that have possibly glyphosate and other pesticides and things in it, so you're again ingesting something that is not as pure as it could be pure as it could be. So what we're trying to do is bring out products that are pure, clean, pasture-raised meaning the cows are grazing in grass and that's how a cow is meant to be and in its natural state, and then feeding them what we call, again, grass fed, not grain fed, and without hormones, and we're getting the ultimate nutrition from the cow without some of the negative side effects. So that's really, in a nutshell, what we're talking about.
Speaker 1:So let me see if I can summarize then. So obviously hormones will increase the can cause the cow to grow. It will be cheaper to sell the meat, so uh, hormones can be used and the problem is that the hormones, um, you know, obviously we don't want to eat extra hormones in our food because they can have all sorts of uh problem effects with us. So we want to avoid the hormones. And then the grain feeding is something that again it saves money. Corn and soybeans are subsidized here in the United States so they're artificially cheaper. And then feeding cows, this grain again fattens them up. It lowers the cost of the meat.
Speaker 1:But then you're saying the problems with the grain things like glyphosate, wheat killer in the United States, and and also high omega six seed oils, that the cows themselves aren't eating the seed oils. But if they eat a high grain diet then the meat becomes a high omega six and it's as if you're eating the seed oils on top of it. So so what you're? If I understand you correctly, then what you're saying is the. What you guys do is, um, pasture raised instead of, instead of grain raised, so they eat normal like grass from the pasture, and I hear an expression too. Maybe you could just clarify this a little bit. Sometimes people talk about grass raised or grass finished. What's the difference there, and which one do you?
Speaker 2:do. Grass finish doesn't mean it was grass fed or pasture raised uh, grass finish. It means that they were actually grain fed and then finished it with grass, so you could try and artificially call it grass grass finished fed, uh, but no, these are complete pasture raised and grass fed. Uh, animals, uh, that are the purest and cleanest that you could possibly get into commerce.
Speaker 1:Yeah. So the ideal, the best, and it's what you have is pasture raised from the beginning the whole time, whereas when people say grass finished, like you say, it means they raise them on the unhealthy grains to begin with the grains are just as unhealthy for the cows as they are for us.
Speaker 1:But at the last minute, just before they're slaughtered, they're given a little bit of grain to try and purge the body of the harmful effects of the grains. But it's not as effective, or effective at all, compared to a whole lifetime of pasture-raised grass-fed Sure.
Speaker 3:And also just the pasture-raised is also an aspect of the grazing of the cow the space, the air, the environment. So again, the cow is going to have again a more healthy overall picture than if it's in a tight space. If it's in, you know, an enclosed space, you know you can get the picture of, you know, imagine, you know a long, long field where they're just grazing and they have space to move and they're growing in their natural environment. So this is so you, you get a much better, um, a much better product now into your, your, your concept or your, I mean the concept of omega-3.
Speaker 3:Beef is one of the highest, uh, has a lot of omega-3s, which is one of the and you can put an exclamation point on this, doctor One of the best things a person can have, obviously. So if you are counteracting that with omega-6s, which would come with some of the drawbacks of the hormones and the grain fed, you know you're kind of like canceling out some of the benefit, you know, so that you're kind of like like canceling out some of the some of the benefit, you know. So that's really what we're trying to avoid and we're just trying to give you the purest product, the best, cleanest product that we can possibly possibly can.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, and just to recap for audience, we've we've talked about this before on the show, but omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids are both required for life and typically omega-3 fatty acids are very healthy and they come from typically animal sources and a lot of times fish, but also meat as well. Omega-6s, on the other hand, are not so healthy, especially when we got high levels, and they come from plant sources like grains and seed oils. And the problem is that we're out of balance. And today the amount of omega-6, the bad kind compared to omega-3, the ratio should be just about equal, but instead it's orders of magnitude greater 10, 20 times more in our bodies, which drives oxidation, it drives inflammation, it has a lot of untoward effects. Well, we always hear the term organic regarding plants. Does that apply to farming at all? Animal farming of beef?
Speaker 2:Yes, the word organic, though, is a little more tougher to achieve that they are organic I like to go for, because, as it is, we're paying already 30 to 40% more for the meat as being grass-fed and pasture-raised, which, by definition, then they're going to be a lot more organic as it gets without claiming organic, more organic as it gets without claiming organic. So that is something that is, and it's close to my heart, as you know, like when was it? I think it was about 25 years ago when I was introduced the first time to the concept of healthier alternatives and I, you know, I had no idea, I had no understanding in it whatsoever, but I took it to the next level and I, you know, I had no idea, I had no understanding in it whatsoever, but I took it to the next level and I said, okay, let me study a little more. And then I took a break. And then I then, all of a sudden, I was introduced to energy healing, which I've been doing now for about 17 years, and realizing what, realizing what people are deficient in and what helps people, and understanding it.
Speaker 2:So when this opportunity of Joburg came up to me, god sent me right into it and gave me this opportunity and said, hey, this is your mission, made me, gave me this opportunity and said, hey, this is your mission, go, go, do this. Create an opportunity for people to have a clean meat snack opportunity. Whatever the product is going to be, whether it's just a steak snack or whether it's a salami or a whole muscle product which is like brasiola or one of those type of whole muscle products make it clean. Label. How many people out there that are part of the audience here that feel just like me and you and you, big John, that are like I'd love to have it but I can't because those chemicals scare the living daylights out of me. The nitrates, the nitrites, all that stuff it's like I can't even think of it.
Speaker 2:The nitrites all that stuff it's like, I can't even think of it. So when you come in, you know and my vision has been I want to make the best products out there and, at the same time, keep it as clean to the core as possible, while giving you a better experience than you would have had with the standard day-to-day products that you're looking at. And this is what our team, our goal and this is what our mission is, and we look forward to delivering it above and beyond the call of duty, and being able to deliver on multiple lines of it, not just on the products that you see in front of you.
Speaker 1:Yes, doctor, you're looking at me glyphosate and all these other things and and nitrates and stuff with the uh, with with some of the products. Or you can have more a healthy version which is organic, no hormones, you know. No, no grains, it's grass-fed and everything and that's, and that's what you're going for. That's, that's really good. I have one, one other question. We always hear about regenerative farming versus regular farming. Is that the same as organic, or how does that fit in?
Speaker 2:Oh, that is such a beautiful topic but, big John, I think you would do better on answering that one on the regenerative. I love it because I know it's a discussion we're talking about these days, about regenerative versus the current market and the current farming that's out there, which is all about, you know, disposable farming.
Speaker 3:So it's a big word and it would, you know, require a lot more than this particular conversation, but I will sum it up like this. I will sum it up like this the same way, you want the healthy animals, you want animals. The cleanest possible Regenerative farming is, you want the soil to be as clean as possible and the soil has been, I'm going to say, blessed by God to bring out incredible nutrients and life. And the soil. You put a little seed of the soil and it becomes a tree, it becomes a plant, it becomes unbelievable things.
Speaker 3:But there's ways in which we abuse the soil. We don't allow it to breathe, to, to, to and and, and it doesn't. Regenerative means, basically, that the soil has nutrients in it in itself, and if you, if you use the soil in a proper way and you allow it to have the space to quote, regenerate its nutrients, then you're going to get more nutrient dense foods that are going to be better for people, because. But if you deplete the soil because you're abusing it, you get the same thing as, so to speak, the animals that are being abused. It's, it's all about abuse and the opposite, which is is is to give it the best possible outcome to keep its nutrients and the food nutrient dense. That's really it in a summary.
Speaker 2:So it seems like God's. You're changing God's structure. God gave DNA and you decided to change it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and so it sounds like farming with raising animals from, with pasture raised is is, in a sense, it's closer to that regenerative ideal, because they're they're eating grass that comes from the soil, rather than you know mass produced GMO grains and you know corn and soybeans basically, and it's a much healthier, much healthier thing. So I so, so excited about that. Well, maybe could you guys talk, let's talk specifically about your company, joeberg meats. Uh yeah, what? What's going on there? And we've talked about a little bit about your philosophy on it. Where are you located? How did you get the name Joburg?
Speaker 2:Yeah, cute, joburg originally is actually a brand that is based on Johannesburg and the theme of Johannesburg, so that's where Joburg came in from. So Joburg is originally, which right now it says on it, biltong, which actually, I think, believe in Dutch means steak snack or steak slices, dried steak snacks, biltong as much. But it's originally the Dutch, when they came over to South Africa, create, you know, kind of introduced the Biltong in South Africa. So when one of my partners is actually South African and he came here, he's like I miss it, because one thing with the South Africans, their culture is so strong and so embedded that when they come here it's like it's almost like you as an american going to south african, going where's my french toast? Well, or french fries even though they're both french.
Speaker 1:I, but it's a two french words that are really american and not french yeah, so so the um, the the meat is, is from the US, then, or is it from all over the world, or it's based in the US.
Speaker 2:Is that correct? The meat is actually sourced from South America, because South America can give us a much cleaner product. For what we're doing, america, the I don't want to say it this way being politically correct, or the corruption in the farming and everything else that's going on, it cannot be trusted. Yeah, meats that. Are they going for more for that steak that they put on a grill, rather than a product that they're looking for a good, healthy alternative and a natural, good food, which is what we're bringing to the table?
Speaker 1:yeah, yeah, well, actually, I've I've got some of it here.
Speaker 2:I would like to do a taste test right now and let's see how it goes you got you, you opened up the hot one.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's a spicy one this is a spicy one, but it's um, it's uh. Here it is the thing I noticed about it immediately. Maybe this is just me, but it's soft and tender. In other words, a lot of times if I eat you know, if I eat kind of like beef, jerky type products, you're tearing it off. Yeah, they're very hard and they, you know, the roof of my mouth gets scratched and everything. So this is soft and chewy. I love it. I love the flavor. I love the fact that there is zero sugar. 16 grams of protein per serving, actually there's 32 grams in a bag.
Speaker 1:In a bag. Okay, this is per serving, so it's great. Yeah, so it's great, and the ingredients are basically just beef and then some spices, really, and salt.
Speaker 2:And notice, if you're looking at it, notice the. Let's see the bag a second. If you look at the back and the ingredients, you'll see we're using the ingredients. We're using apple cider vinegar. Oh nice, yeah, apple cider vinegar was a choice one, for both the flavor and for the health benefits that the apple cider vinegar actually contributes to the product as well. Apple cider vinegar, I vinegar. I'm sure, doctor, you could talk about its health benefits oh, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1:no, it's clearly and and I love the fact that you know a lot of these you a lot, a lot of the. You know the the beef snacks type products. Uh, you look at them and there's a long ingredient list on them. Again, again, they're basically junk food and this really doesn't have it. So congratulations, guys, you've done a great job with this product. I want to have you back on the program and talk about this some more, and I'm going to sample the other flavors and get into it, but we're almost out of time today, so maybe we could just end up. Can you tell everybody how they can find out about your product? Is it for sale? Where can they buy it? Amazon or Whole Foods?
Speaker 3:Best is direct from us.
Speaker 1:Best direct Okay.
Speaker 3:No, not directly from our website. Uh, yes, yeah, joe berg meets j-o-b-u-r-g-m-e-a-t-scom. Uh, dr left, you know, I think you'll have a link. Um, yeah, we'll put it in there yeah, we'll put it in the show notes, for sure and um, and and then we have a special uh, you know, they can put in dr d-r-l-u-f-k-i-n and get 10 off their order. Um, you know, to try.
Speaker 3:So that's amazing you know we want to help your audience and we just want to be a part and be there for them. I know that um as much as we want to have three meals cooked in a kitchen a day, or two or less, but the reality is that people are working. We're traveling. They need good, healthy snacks to be on the road. They're traveling on a plane. They're here. This will get you through it. And again, it's joebergmeats J-O-B-U-R-G-M-E-A-T-Scom, and would love to have you join our family.
Speaker 2:So yeah, number one. Thank you, Dr Lufkin, for bringing us on as guests. Especially, we feel honored that we could be a product that you would enjoy to actually introduce to your audience and the trust that you have in us. It really means a lot to us and I would like to share with your audience that you've shown. The spicy peri peri slice is a spicy bag. Uh, there are two uh other flavors, which is the traditional flavor along with the black pepper. Do you have those bags with you?
Speaker 1:you know? Uh, they're not, I don't have them right in front of me now, but they're definitely gonna taste them.
Speaker 2:Yes so they, they, they can, uh, order those. You can see those on the website as well. And, just as a um, a teaser, we are coming up with three to four new flavors that are going to be on the website as well, hopefully in the next six weeks, six to eight weeks and that is going to be an absolute surprise and you're going to love it, I guarantee right, yeah, and and I I've actually got them on my website too, so if you forget the link, you can go there and uh and get the discount too as well.
Speaker 1:So again, well, thanks, thanks so much, john yuda. It's it's been uh wonderful and thank you for the great work you're doing. This is, this is great product.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and I'm looking forward to joining again and to going through some more ideas and some more of your thoughts and where we can go with this and how we can help your audience.
Speaker 3:Great A pleasure. Thank you again, Doc.