PUFA in animal foods

[Guest guest]

Just for grins, I calculated the percentage of *total calories*

analyzed as polyunsaturated fat based on the USDA nutrient database.

% of total calories analyzed as polyunsaturated fat

1.2 Cheese, cottage, creamed, large or small curd

1.4 Yogurt, plain, whole milk, 8 grams protein per 8 ounce

1.6 Beef, ground, 95% lean meat / 5% fat, patty, cooked, pan-broiled

1.7 Beef, ground, 90% lean meat / 10% fat, patty, cooked, pan-broiled

1.7 Beef, ground, 85% lean meat / 15% fat, patty, cooked, pan-broiled

1.8 Beef sausage, fresh, cooked

2.0 Beef, top sirloin, trimmed to 1/8 " fat, broiled

2.0 Cheese, provolone

2.1 Cheese, cheddar

2.1 Beef, chuck, arm pot roast, trimmed to 1/8 " fat, cooked, braised

2.1 Game meat, deer, ground, cooked, pan-broiled

2.2 Cheese, monterey

2.2 Cheese, colby

2.2 Cheese, mozzarella, whole milk, low moisture

2.2 Beef jerky, chopped and formed

2.2 Bologna, beef

2.3 Cheese, swiss

2.4 Cheese, parmesan, grated

2.5 Fish, cod, Atlantic, cooked, dry heat

2.6 Fish, tuna, light, canned in water, drained solids

2.6 Lamb, domestic, leg, trimmed to 1/4 " fat, choice, roasted

2.7 Mollusks, scallop, mixed species, raw

2.7 Game meat, bison, ground, cooked, pan-broiled

2.9 Milk, whole, 3.25% milkfat

3.0 Cream, fluid, half and half

3.0 Beef, cured, sausage, cooked, smoked

3.1 Beef, variety meats and by-products, liver, cooked, braised

3.1 Mutton, cooked, roasted (Navajo)

3.2 furter, beef

3.3 Cheese, cream

3.3 Cream, sour, cultured

3.3 Cream, fluid, light (coffee cream or table cream)

3.4 Mollusks, clam, mixed species, canned, drained solids

3.4 Mollusks, clam, mixed species, cooked, moist heat

3.6 Cream, fluid, heavy whipping

3.8 Butter oil, anhydrous

3.8 Butter, without salt

3.9 Mollusks, scallop, (bay and sea), cooked, steamed

4.0 Fat, beef tallow

4.0 Crustaceans, shrimp, mixed species, cooked, moist heat

4.5 Lamb, ground, cooked, broiled

4.7 Fish, pollock, Atlantic, cooked, dry heat

5.1 Mollusks, squid, mixed species, raw

5.4 Lamb, variety meats and by-products, liver, cooked, braised

5.5 Pork, fresh, loin, country-style ribs, cooked, roasted

6.0 Turkey, fryer-roasters, light meat, meat and skin, cooked, roasted

6.6 Turkey, liver, all classes, cooked, simmered

7.0 Chicken, liver, all classes, cooked, simmered

7.1 Pork, cured, ham, boneless, regular, roasted

7.2 Pork, liver sausage, liverwurst

7.5 furter, pork

7.5 Pork, cured, bacon, cooked, pan-fried

7.6 Salami, Italian, pork

7.7 Bologna, pork

7.8 Fat, mutton tallow

7.8 Fish, tuna, white, canned in water, drained solids

8.2 Egg, whole, cooked, hard-boiled

8.2 Fish, salmon, coho, wild, cooked, dry heat

8.6 Egg, whole, raw, fresh

8.8 Braunschweiger (a liver sausage), pork

9.3 Turkey, fryer-roasters, dark meat, meat and skin, cooked, roasted

9.4 Chicken, broilers or fryers, light meat, meat and skin, roasted

9.6 Mollusks, oyster, eastern, canned

9.9 Mollusks, oyster, Pacific, cooked, moist heat

9.9 Pork sausage, fresh, cooked

11.0 Mollusks, squid, mixed species, cooked, fried

11.2 Lard

11.6 Egg, whole, cooked, scrambled

11.8 Egg, yolk, raw, fresh

12.4 Chicken, broilers or fryers, dark meat, meat and skin, roasted

14.8 Fish, mackerel, Atlantic, cooked, dry heat

15.0 Fish, roe, mixed species, cooked, dry heat

16.7 Fish, roe, mixed species, raw

19.3 Fish, salmon, Atlantic, farmed, cooked, dry heat

22.3 Fish, sardine, Atlantic, canned in oil, drained solids with bone

26.4 Fish, caviar, black and red, granular

It would be interesting to know how much the PUFA content of pork,

chicken, and eggs is influenced by the diet of the animals. I suspect

that a more natural diet would lower the PUFA considerably. I'm

puzzled why raw eggs are 3% (absolute) lower than scrambled eggs. It

may indicate some variability depending on source. I'm not surprised

to see farmed salmon much higher than wild salmon, 19.3% vs 8.2%. If

we had wild pork and wild chicken for comparison, the differences

might be similar.

It looks like ruminant animal foods in general have the lowest PUFA

expressed as a percentage of total calories, but some seafoods are

also low. A target of 4% of total calories as PUFA looks doable.