Is Bone Broth Worth The Hype?

Simmering Bone Broth

I’m coming to terms lately that I may have a bit of a hoarding problem in the kitchen. I found no less than 9 quarts of homemade organic bone broth in my freezer. I love squirreling away veggie bits (ends of carrots, leeks, asparagus and onions, squash peels) together with bones from organic chicken. All of these scraps, which are often discarded, make amazing flavored broth that adds extra nourishment in many recipes. In my opinion, broth is what separates the good chefs from the extraordinary chefs. I use this broth in all my soups and often use it as the liquid for cooking rice. 

In the world of functional medicine, we LOVE bone broth. It is often cited as a gut-healing food. I frequently recommend its use when I am helping people overcome GI symptoms. It is delicious and well-tolerated, and does seem to anecdotally help people feel better. But, the scientist in me has often wondered if this was just hype or if research has proven this true. Unfortunately, there is very little scientific data about bone broth. 

Why drink bone broth?

Bone broth is a popular wellness product. The purported health benefits include being a rich source of collagen, amino acids and minerals with anti-inflammatory properties. The nutrients are extracted from the bones through a long cooking process that sometimes includes adding acid (vinegar) to the simmering stock.

Unfortunately, there is little published research about nutrients in bone broth. Recipes for broth can vary widely adding to the challenges of creating an accurate representation of the liquid. Small studies suggest broth contains modest amounts of chromium, molybdenum, potassium, selenium and magnesium, all of which are essential for health and healing. Other studies, however, suggest that broth contains only a minimal amount of calcium, phosphorus, iron, zinc, and copper. Adding vegetables to the simmering broth does increase the minerals (and the taste) in the finished product. Of note, simmering bones for long periods of time can also extract undesired elements like lead and other heavy metals. Luckily, studies (linked below) suggest that the levels of toxic elements are low and unlikely to be of concern.

How to make your own bone broth

As evidenced by my freezer, I love to make bone broth. Regardless of the lack of scientific data, I continue to see it as a nourishing and delicious component of healthy, flavorful cooking. I feel accomplished when I turn bits of veggies and bone into food that nourishes my family and creates incredible flavor. This is the “recipe” I follow. It is very adaptable to whatever veggies scraps or bones you have on hand. Many people like to purchase beef bones or chicken feet for the sole purpose of making broth. I prefer to use what routinely comes into my kitchen. Since I use the broth in a variety of cooking dishes, I also prefer to not add vinegar to my recipe. I have success creating a rich, gelatinous broth with the recipe below.

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Homemade Chicken Bone Broth

Author: Erica Leazenby, MD 

Makes: 3 quarts stock

Time: 30 minutes hands-on time (15 minutes prep, 15 minutes packaging)

Ingredients:

• 1 onion*, halved

• 1 large carrot* (clean but it does not need to be peeled)

• 1 celery stalk* 

• 1-2 fennel stalks (optional)

• 5-10 mushroom stems (optional)

• Butternut squash peels (optional)

• 4-5 whole peppercorns

• 1 large bay leaf

• 5-10 parsley stems*

• 2 sprigs fresh thyme or ¼ tsp dried

• 1 1x4 inch piece dried kombu** (This seaweed supplies extra minerals like iodine.)

• Frame of 1-2 organic or pastured chicken or an equivalent amount of bones, preferably previously roasted

• 3 quarts filtered water

Directions:

1.     Place all ingredients in a slow cooker or pressure cooker. 

2.     Allow the ingredients to cook for 36 hours in the slow cooker on low heat or 4 hours in the pressure cooker at high pressure. 

3.     Strain the contents of the broth. Once appropriately cool, place the stock in the refrigerator overnight. The next morning skim off any undesired fat. 

4.     Pour the stock in 1-quart freezer containers. Store for future use. (I also like to freeze a portion of the broth in 1 cup increments** for convenience.)

* Or use an equivalent amount of scraps. I avoid using cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower or other similar brassica family veggies.

Never fear. If this process sounds overwhelming, studies comparing homemade verses commercially purchased bone broth did not show signifiant difference in nutritional contents.

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Culinary primer:

The term broth and stock are often used interchangeably. They are closely related. I have listed definitions below that have been provided by one of my favorite food authorities, Epicurious. What many people term bone broth should technically be called bone stock. I am not sure how bone broth became the popular term, perhaps because it has a better ring to it.

Broth is water simmered with veggies like carrots, celery and onions, aromatic herbs like parsley, bay leaf, thyme and peppercorns and may or may not include meat or bones. It is usually cooked for a short period of time before being strained and seasoned. 

Stock is water simmered with veggies and herbs and animal bones (often roasted). It may also include pieces of meat. The water is simmered for longer periods of time before being strained. The goal is to extract the collagen from the connective tissue of the bones so that the stock has a thicker, gelatinous quality. 

 References:

1. McCance RA, Sheldon W, Widdowson EM. Bone and vegetable broth. Arch Dis Child. 1934 Aug;9(52):251-8.

2. Rennard BO, Ertl RF, Gossman GL, Robbins RA, Rennard SI. Chicken soup inhibits neutrophil chemotaxis in vitro. Chest. 2000 Oct;118(4):1150-7.

3. TIME magazine. January 2016. Science Can’t Explain Why Everyone is Drinking Bone Broth. Accessed at: http://time.com/4159156/bone-broth-health-benefits/

4. Monro JA, Leon R, Puri BK. The risk of lead contamination in bone broth diets. Med Hypotheses. 2013 Apr;80(4):389-90.

5. Hsu DJ, Lee CW, Tsai WC, Chien YC. Essential and toxic metals in animal bone broths. Food Nutr Res. 2017 Jul 18;61(1):1347478.

6. Dr. Kara Fitzgerald Bone Broth White paper: https://gallery.mailchimp.com/36f67b141008ab16392748797/files/76dd7b45-a07a-4c41-bc8d-fd4a497e1710/2019_Bone_Broth_Report_2_.pdf?mc_cid=d7e7a163d7&mc_eid=f46483d568

7. Broth vs Stock https://www.epicurious.com/ingredients/difference-stock-broth-bone-broth-article

8. Alcock RD, Shaw GC, Burke LM. Bone Broth Unlikely to Provide Reliable Concentrations of Collagen Precursors Compared With Supplemental Sources of Collagen Used in Collagen Research. Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab. 2019 May 1;29(3):265-272. doi: 10.1123/ijsnem.2018-0139. Epub 2018 Sep 26.

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