Iron deficiency disproportionately affects young adult females and may impair cognitive performance. While supplementation has been studied, dietary interventions using iron-rich whole foods, particularly beef, remain underexplored. Beef provides highly bioavailable heme iron along with vitamin B12, zinc, choline, and creatine, nutrients implicated in neurotransmission, myelination, and cortical function. This review synthesizes evidence on beef consumption, iron status, and cognition that demonstrate improvements in attention, memory, and visuospatial processing in young adult females. We examine intervention doses, methodological differences, and limitations in current iron deficiency diagnostic thresholds. Despite mixed findings across studies, beef emerges as a feasible dietary strategy to support cognitive function in young adult females. Standardized cognitive assessments, longer interventions, and comparative analyses of alternative protein sources are needed to clarify the long-term cognitive benefits of beef. Considerations regarding red meat intake, sustainability, and evolving dietary patterns remain important. This review provides an evaluation of dietary iron from beef as a modifiable factor in cognitive performance. It also offers guidance for future research and raises concerns for balancing nutritional adequacy, health, and environmental considerations.
Riviere et al. (Wed,) studied this question.