[Editor's note: We have had such interest in the health benefits of ground turkey versus ground beef, that we decided to bring this post "back to the top" as a resource to readers. If you conduct an online search, you will see a variety of opinions on the topic. It's important to note what Registered Dietitian, Julie DuBois states, however: check the fat content and nutritional profile on the package when comparing ground beef to ground turkey to really know what you are getting. Some suppliers can add skin, fat and parts of the meat that change the nutritional profile quite a bit. Yes, lean ground turkey has less fat and fewer calories. Both can make a healthy meal for athletes (serious or casual). As is so often the case, buyer beware.]
I have been asked by numerous clients if they should switch to ground turkey over ground beef and turkey alternatives to breakfast meats such as bacon and sausage. The answer is that it really depends…you also have to know what product you’re buying!
If you just go to the store and pick up a package of ground turkey, you could be getting something equal in calories and fat to the ground beef you normally buy or even worse if you buy lean ground beef. Just like in beef products, you can choose lean ground turkey over regular ground turkey. Below is a comparison of ground beef, ground turkey, lean ground beef, and lean ground turkey. (You can also see information on ground turkey and ground beef at livestrong.com’s calorie counter. A Google search also yields many information sources.)
Ground Beef (3 oz of 80/20)
230 calories, 15 grams fat
Ground Turkey (3 0z)
220 calories, 17 grams fat
Lean ground beef (3 oz of 93/7)
130 calories, 7 grams fat
Lean ground turkey (3 oz)
105 calories, 6 grams fat
You can see that the content of the lean ground turkey and lean ground beef are close to the same! A lot of people make the mistake of choosing ground turkey over ground beef and don’t think to buy the lean ground turkey. You also don’t get the omega 3 and omega 6 benefits in turkey over beef that I mentioned in a previous post.
Other substitutions that I get asked about often are turkey sausage over regular sausage and turkey bacon over regular bacon. Again, if you’re making your own sausage, make sure you choose lean ground turkey. Turkey sausage is much better for you than regular sausage! When it comes to bacon, if you choose the center cut bacon, you won’t get that much benefit from choosing turkey bacon over center cut bacon. However, if you choose regular bacon, turkey bacon will save you some fat and calories.
Turkey sausage (2 patties)
120 calories, 7 grams fat
Regular sausage (2 patties)
400 calories, 20 grams fat
Turkey Bacon (2 slices)
50 calories, 3 grams fat
Center cut bacon (2 slices)
50 calories, 3.5 grams fat
Regular Bacon (2 slices)
109 calories, 9 grams fat
Overall, when it comes to breakfast meats, the turkey alternatives win; however, when it comes to lean ground beef versus lean ground turkey, you aren’t getting that much benefit from choosing the turkey. Just make sure you read labels when you are grocery shopping and that you look at total calories, serving sizes, servings per package, total fat, saturated fat, and sodium to make an informed decision about a product!
Julie DuBois, RD 
