Chicken leg: swapping beef for poultry did not change LDL

In a meta-analysis of 8 randomized trials in 406 healthy adults, eating poultry or fish instead of beef made no significant difference to LDL cholesterol. It fell by 8.9 mg/dL on poultry or fish and by 8.2 mg/dL on beef (P = 0.905), with poultry pooled together with fish and leg never separated from breast. A crossover trial in 113 adults, 4 weeks per diet, found the same pattern. White meat, mostly chicken and turkey, raised LDL cholesterol as much as red meat did, compared with plant protein. So for cholesterol, a switch from red meat to chicken leg is not a clear gain, and in that trial plant protein did better than either. USDA lists raw leg meat without skin at 19 g protein, 21 micrograms selenium and 5.6 mg niacin per 3.5 oz (100 g), from a reference record with no spread across samples. A medium baked leg, drumstick and thigh together, is 4.9 oz (140 g) of edible meat without bone in the US dietary survey database.

The numbers, per 3.5 oz (100 g)

As people eat it, per 3.5 oz (100 g)

How much is actually in it

• Raw chicken leg meat without skin has about 19 g protein, 21 micrograms selenium and 5.6 mg niacin per 3.5 oz (100 g) in the USDA reference data. — Chicken, broilers or fryers, leg, meat only, raw (USDA SR Legacy FDC 173619) Evidence E source
  Protein 19.16 g, selenium 21 mcg, niacin 5.578 mg per 3.5 oz (100 g); across 9 USDA leg records protein 16.4-28.4 g
• UK composition tables list a roasted chicken leg quarter with skin at 236 calories, 16.9 g fat and 20.9 g protein per 3.5 oz (100 g). — Chicken, leg quarter, roasted, meat and skin (CoFID 18-337) Evidence E source
  236 calories, fat 16.9 g, saturated fat 4.6 g, protein 20.9 g, cholesterol 115 mg per 3.5 oz (100 g)

What a real portion looks like

• In the US dietary survey database a medium baked chicken leg (drumstick and thigh) is 4.9 oz (140 g) of edible meat, a small one 120 g and a large one 185 g. — Chicken leg, drumstick and thigh, baked or broiled, skin eaten (FNDDS 24132230) Evidence E source
  Small leg 120 g, medium 140 g, large 185 g, 1 cup diced 135 g, 1 oz 28 g

What your body absorbs

• In 11 men, about a quarter to a third of the zinc in a chicken meat sandwich was absorbed, and whole wheat bread did not significantly lower it compared with white bread. — Fasted adult men, single chicken sandwich meals, stable-isotope zinc labels (n = 11) Evidence B source
  True zinc absorption 33.6% (white bread) vs 25.4% (whole wheat), not significant
• A scoping review of 77 studies found that adding meat, poultry or fish to a plant-based meal consistently raised iron and zinc absorption, with no clear difference between them. — 52 human and 24 animal studies (plus 1 both) up to September 2021 (n = 77 studies) Evidence C source
  Increased iron and zinc absorption from single plant meals; effect across whole diet less clear

What cooking and storage change

• By the USDA retention table for roasted chicken, zinc stays at 100 percent and iron at 90 percent, while vitamin B12 drops to 65 percent and thiamin to 70 percent. — Poultry Products group (USDA code 5), CHICKEN,ROASTED; factors set on the group, not on leg by name Evidence E source
  Retained: zinc 100%, iron 90%, niacin 80%, B6 80%, thiamin 70%, B12 65%, folate 60%

What it does to your health

• Across 8 randomized trials in 406 healthy adults, eating poultry or fish instead of beef made no significant difference to LDL cholesterol, which fell by about 8 to 9 mg/dL with either. — Adults free of chronic disease in 8 RCTs published 1950-2010 (n = 406) Evidence A source
  LDL change -8.2 mg/dL (beef) vs -8.9 mg/dL (poultry/fish), P = .905
• An umbrella review of 41 meta-analyses found higher white meat intake linked to lower all-cause mortality in high versus low comparisons, while red and processed meat were linked to higher mortality. — 41 meta-analyses of cohort studies involving over a million participants (n = 41 meta-analyses) Evidence C source
  Favorable association for white meat, high vs low; size not given in abstract

Safety, limits and interactions

• Pooling 131 surveys, about half of poultry products tested carried Campylobacter, the highest share of any food group examined. — Cross-sectional food surveys worldwide, 131 articles (n = 131 studies) Evidence C source
  Campylobacter prevalence 51.9% (95% CI 47.0 to 56.7) in poultry products
• In France in 2015-2016, 44 of 48 retail chicken legs carried E. coli resistant to extended-spectrum cephalosporins, despite cuts in farm antibiotic use. — 48 unrelated retail chicken legs from four brands, France, Oct 2015 to Jan 2016 (n = 48) Evidence C source
  44 of 48 (91.7%) positive for ESC-resistant E. coli
• In a Korean retail survey, Arcobacter was found on 5 percent of frozen chicken legs against 79.5 percent of refrigerated chicken wings. — 323 chicken, pork and leafy vegetable samples, South Korea (n = 323) Evidence C source
  Frozen chicken legs 5.0% vs refrigerated wings 79.5%, gizzards 100%
• USDA FSIS advises cooking poultry, including chicken legs, to a safe minimum internal temperature of 165 °F (74 °C), measured with a food thermometer. — consumers cooking poultry, USA Evidence E source
  165 °F for whole and ground poultry
• USDA FSIS advises against washing raw chicken legs before cooking, because bacteria in raw poultry juices can spread to other foods, utensils and surfaces. — US consumers handling raw poultry at home Evidence E source
  Washing raw poultry before cooking is not recommended; it spreads bacteria from poultry juices to other foods, utensils and surfaces

Who this works differently for

• In a week-long crossover diet study in 15 healthy adults, chicken gave a lower calcium oxalate stone-forming index than beef (1.67 vs 2.48). — Healthy adults, 1-week metabolic diet phases with beef, chicken or fish (n = 15) Evidence B source
  Calcium oxalate saturation index 1.67 (chicken) vs 2.48 (beef), p = 0.02; urinary uric acid 641 vs 638 mg/day

What is still unknown

• In a randomized crossover trial of 113 adults eating each diet for 4 weeks, white meat raised LDL cholesterol as much as red meat did, compared with plant protein. — Generally healthy men and women aged 21-65, BMI 20-35, 61 on high and 52 on low saturated fat (n = 113) Evidence B source
  LDL and apoB higher with red and white meat than nonmeat (P < 0.0001); red vs white not different

The bottom line

The skin changes the numbers. UK tables list a roasted leg quarter with skin at 236 calories, 16.9 g fat and 4.6 g saturated fat per 3.5 oz (100 g). By the USDA retention factors for roasted chicken, set in 1975 for poultry as a group, zinc stays at 100 percent and iron at 90, while B12 falls to 65 percent and thiamin to 70. In 11 men eating a chicken sandwich, 33.6 percent of the zinc was absorbed with white bread and 25.4 percent with whole wheat, a gap that was not significant, and the cut of chicken was not stated. An umbrella review of 41 meta-analyses of cohort studies linked higher white meat intake with lower all-cause mortality. That is an association from observational data, and the abstract gives no size. In a one-week crossover in 15 healthy adults, a chicken diet gave a lower calcium oxalate stone-forming index than beef, 1.67 against 2.48. Urine uric acid was about the same on both, 641 and 638 mg a day, and none of the 15 were stone formers. The cautions here are about what is on the raw meat. Pooling 131 surveys, 51.9 percent of raw poultry products carried Campylobacter (95% CI 47.0 to 56.7), the highest share of any food group. In France in 2015 and 2016, 44 of 48 retail chicken legs from four brands carried E. coli resistant to extended-spectrum cephalosporins, in one country over one season. In South Korea, 5 percent of frozen legs carried Arcobacter against 79.5 percent of chilled wings, a gap in which freezing and cut cannot be told apart. USDA FSIS advises cooking poultry, chicken legs included, to a safe minimum internal temperature of 165 °F (74 °C), measured with a food thermometer, and advises against washing raw legs before cooking, because bacteria in raw poultry juices can spread to other foods, utensils and surfaces. We found no data on chicken leg in pregnancy, in children or with medicines.

Sources

1. chlg-r1-10 · USDA FoodData Central SR Legacy, dataset
   Chicken, broilers or fryers, leg, meat only, raw (FDC 173619, SR Legacy): protein 19.16 g, selenium 21 µg, niacin 5.578 mg per 100 g
   USDA FoodData Central, SR Legacy, FDC 173619 · checked 2026-09-29
2. chlg-r1-11 · CoFID, dataset
   Chicken, leg quarter, roasted, meat and skin (CoFID 18-337): Energy 236 kcal; Fat 16.9 g; Satd FA 4.60 g; Protein 20.9 g; Cholesterol 115 mg per 100 g
   CoFID 2021, Public Health England, code 18-337 (OGL v3.0) · checked 2026-09-29
3. chlg-r1-13 · USDA FNDDS, dataset
   Chicken leg, drumstick and thigh, baked or broiled, skin eaten (FNDDS 24132230, fdc_id 2705984): 1 cup, cooked, diced 135 g; 1 small leg 120 g; 1 medium leg 140 g; 1 large leg 185 g; 1 leg, NS as to size 140 g; 1 oz, cooked 28 g
   USDA FNDDS, FDC 2705984 (food code 24132230) · checked 2026-09-29
4. chlg-r1-03 · RCT
   There was no significant difference in mean true Zn absorption from the white or wholemeal bread sandwich, 33.6 and 25.4% respectively.
   Br J Nutr, 1992 · checked 2026-09-29
5. chlg-r1-04 · scoping review
   The addition of muscle tissue and muscle tissue fractions to single plant-based meals steadily increased absorption of iron and zinc across studies. The efficacy of the meat factor in increasing iron and zinc absorption in the overall diet is less clear. No clear differences emerged between red meat, poultry, and fish in promoting the meat factor effect.
   Adv Nutr, 2022 · checked 2026-09-29
6. chlg-r1-12 · USDA Table of Nutrient Retention Factors, dataset
   USDA-RETN-R6:805 CHICKEN,ROASTED, group Poultry Products: folate_total_ug 60% retained, vitamin_b12_ug 65%, thiamin_mg 70%, choline_mg 70%, magnesium_mg 75%, niacin_mg 80%, vitamin_b6_mg 80%, iron_mg 90%, riboflavin_mg 90%, copper_mg 95%, zinc_mg 100%
   USDA Table of Nutrient Retention Factors, Release 6, 2007, Retn_Code 805 · checked 2026-09-29
7. chlg-r1-01 · meta-analysis of RCTs
   Relative to the baseline diet, mean ± standard error changes (in mg/dL) after beef versus poultry/fish consumption, respectively, were -8.1 ± 2.8 vs. -6.2 ± 3.1 for total cholesterol (P = .630), -8.2 ± 4.2 vs. -8.9 ± 4.4 for low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (P = .905)
   J Clin Lipidol, 2012 · checked 2026-09-29
8. chlg-r1-09 · umbrella review
   Similarly, we observed favorable outcomes for legumes and white meat in high compared with low comparisons.
   Adv Nutr, 2025 · checked 2026-09-29
9. chlg-r1-06 · meta-analysis of prevalence studies
   From the meta-analysis conducted at a 95% confidence interval, Campylobacter was highly prevalent in poultry products (51.9% [47.0-56.7]) and vegetable products (43.3% [17.9-68.7]), but least prevalent in ready-to-eat foods (5.50% [-0.31-11.3]).
   Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr, 2026 · checked 2026-09-29
10. chlg-r1-07 · prevalence survey
    From October 2015 to January 2016, of 48 unrelated pieces of meat (chicken legs) belonging to four different brands, 44 (91.7%) were positive for ESC-resistant E. coli.
    Int J Food Microbiol, 2017 · checked 2026-09-29
11. chlg-r1-08 · prevalence survey
    Refrigerated chicken gizzard samples showed the highest detection rate (100%), followed by refrigerated chicken wing (79.5%), intestine (77.3%), neck skin (63.3%), pork (55.6%), frozen chicken legs (5.0%), and leafy green vegetables (4.4%) (p < 0.05).
    Food Microbiol, 2019 · checked 2026-09-29
12. sf-fsis5-4 · agency advice
    FSIS recommends cooking whole poultry to a safe minimum internal temperature of 165 °F as measured using a food thermometer...Cook ground poultry to a safe minimum internal temperature of 165 °F as measured with a food thermometer.
    USDA FSIS, Doneness Versus Safety · checked 2026-10-08
13. sf-poultrywash-chleg-1 · agency advice
    Washing raw poultry before cooking is not recommended because bacteria in raw meat and poultry juices can be spread to other foods, utensils, and surfaces.
    Chicken from Farm to Table, USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service · checked 2026-10-08
14. chlg-r1-05 · RCT
    Mean saturation index for calcium oxalate was highest for beef (2.48), although the difference attained significance only compared to chicken (1.67, p = 0.02) but not to fish (1.79, p = 0.08).
    J Urol, 2014 · checked 2026-09-29
15. chlg-r1-02 · RCT
    LDL cholesterol and apoB were higher with red and white meat than with nonmeat, independent of SFA content (P < 0.0001 for all, except apoB: red meat compared with nonmeat [P = 0.0004]). This was due primarily to increases in large LDL particles, whereas small + medium LDL and total/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol were unaffected by protein source (P = 0.10 and P = 0.51, respectively). Primary outcomes did not differ significantly between red and white meat.
    Am J Clin Nutr, 2019 · checked 2026-09-29