Animal Science Department

Many of you have already received information through the mail on the New York Feedlot and Carcass Value Discovery Program, Empire Heifer Development Program and the New York Bull Test. These programs are especially designed for owners of smaller cowherds to evaluate the genetic quality of their herds. Whether purebred or commercial, the profit minded producer should consider participating to determine if their genetics are competitive in today's market place. The deadline for consignments is September 15.

For more information go to: http://www.ansci.cornell.edu/beef/events.html.

Meat: It does a body good, scientists say

By Tom Johnston on 9/16/2008, Meatingplace.com

Scientists at Oxford University in England have discovered that a meat-free diet may be bad for your brain.

Researchers found that people who adopt a vegan or vegetarian diet are six times more likely to sustain brain shrinkage than meat eaters due to the former's lack of Vitamin B-12, which is found in meat, fish and dairy products including cheese.

"This study suggests that simply adjusting our diets to consume more Vitamin B-12 through eating meat, fish, fortified cereals or milk may...prevent brain shrinkage and so perhaps save our memory," said Anna Vogiatzoglou, a member of Oxford's Department of Physiology, Anatomy and Genetics at Oxford, in a prepared statement. "Research shows that Vitamin B-12 deficiency is a public health problem, especially among the elderly, so more Vitamin B-12 intake could help reverse this problem."

Oxford researchers linked diet and brain size by doing memory tests, physical exams and brain scans on 107 people aged 61 to 87. The volunteers were retested five years following the first exam, and researchers discovered that those with the lowest levels of Vitamin B-12 were more likely to have suffered brain shrinkage. In earlier research, scientists established a link between brain atrophy and low levels of Vitamin B-12.

To read a summary of the study, click here.