Have you ever watched the national geographic channel to see a group of lions take on an elephant and bring it down to the ground?  These animals are strong and healthy with high vitality and amazing social skills.  Likewise, the eagle with incredible vision and depth perception can swoop down from a cliff to snag a rodent.  These are high performance animals, yet you never see them eating fruits or vegetables.  They have the same organs as us, and need the same vitamins and minerals that we do.  So, how is it that they stay healthy and function so well without eating fruits and vegetables?

Their secret is that they eat the whole animal including the organ meats.  In fact, they go for the organs first.  We mostly eat the skeletal muscles of the animal and shun the organs.  This is a big mistake, because these organs are not only packed with vitamins and minerals, but they have already been converted into a form that can be utilized by the body.  For example:   The Vitamin A in fruits and vegetables are not actually vitamin A, but a precursor called carotenes that must be converted into true vitamin A (retinol)  in your upper intestine, but many people are unable to convert it.  The Vitamin A found in liver is nature’s is actual retinol and does not need to be converted to be used by the body.  

Here is a list of organ meats and the vitamins and minerals they contain.  They contain many more vitamins and minerals than are listed, but this is a list what they are abundant in:

Liver:  Zinc, Vitamin A, Riboflavin, Niacin, Vitamin B6, Folate, Vitamin B12, Pantothenic Acid, Phosphorus, Copper and Selenium.

Spleen:  Riboflavin, Niacin and Zinc, and a very good source of Protein, Vitamin C, Vitamin B12, Iron, Phosphorus, Copper and Selenium

Heart:  Riboflavin, Niacin, Vitamin B12, Iron and Selenium, Coenzyme Q10, L-Carnitine, Thiamin, Vitamin B6, Pantothenic Acid, Phosphorus and Copper.

Pancreas:  Vitamin B12, Riboflavin, Pantothenic Acid, Phosphorus and Selenium.

Kidney:  Vitamin C, Thiamin, Riboflavin, Niacin, Vitamin B6, Vitamin B12, Pantothenic Acid, Iron, Phosphorus, Copper and Selenium, Folate and Zinc.

Brain:  Vitamin B12, Phosphorus and Selenium, DHA, Vitamin C and Niacin.

Thymus:  Vitamin C, Vitamin B12, Pantothenic Acid, Phosphorus and Selenium

Lung:  Vitamin C, Niacin, Vitamin B12, Iron, Phosphorus and Selenium, Riboflavin, Pantothenic Acid, Potassium, Zinc and Copper

Intestines: Vitamin B12, Phosphorus, and Zinc.

In many countries organ meats are a part of the regular diet.  They eat sweet breads, which are the spleen, pancreas, and thymus.  In Jamaica, kidney meat is a staple of their breakfast menu.  However, in the U.S. we are not known for eating organ meats.   Honestly, there is no way that I am going to cook spleen or brain for dinner.  I also have no desire to eat these things.  Even if you or I wanted to, we would not be able to find most of them in our mainstream supermarkets.   That is why I carry supplements containing dried organ meat in tablet form.  It is a simple and easy way to consume adequate amounts of organ meat.

I am not recommending that you eat organ meat instead of fruits and vegetables.  They are equally important and you should consume both.