Know2eat

Elk

Cervus canadensis

What elk has been studied for

2 associations assessed — 1 with at least some human evidence behind it. Strongest first.

  • 1 Limited
  • 1 Insufficient
4 things to know first — allergies, interactions and intake limits

About elk

A large deer of North America and eastern Asia, both hunted and farmed. The meat is dark, close-grained and very lean, with almost no marbling, and is handled in the kitchen like a lean beef cut.

Also known as Wapiti, Red deer (Europe), Elk steak

Women's HealthMuscle & Physical Performance

The evidence in depth

Best supported: Limited

What each association actually rests on, and the papers behind it. A rating describes the state of the research, not how impressive the food is. How we rate evidence.

Iron status

Women's Health
Limited evidence

Has been studied as a source of heme iron. Wild ruminant meat is iron-dense, but the evidence rests on heme iron as a nutrient rather than on game meat trials.

Limited evidence. Early human work, or mostly lab and animal research.

3 sources

Deep research mode adds each paper’s own conclusion and stated limitations.

Muscle protein synthesis

Muscle & Physical Performance
Insufficient evidence

May support muscle protein synthesis as a very lean complete protein. The supporting evidence concerns red meat and high-quality animal protein generally; no trial has used elk.

Insufficient evidence. Not enough human research to say anything useful yet.

No source is attached to this association yet, so it is rated insufficient by default. It is listed because people commonly ask about it — not because there is evidence for it.

Ask about Elk

Ask about Elk

Answers are written only from the entries on this page — the same nutrients, compounds, claims and citations you can read above. Nothing is added from outside the database, and every answer lists what it was built from.

AI explanations are not switched on for this site, so there is nothing to ask here. Everything above is read straight from the database and does not need them.

Key nutrients

Nutrient content per 100 grams
NutrientAmount% DV
Macronutrients
Calories111 kcal6%
Protein22.9 g46%
Total fat1.45 g2%
Carbohydrate0 g0%
Fibre0 g0%
Water74.4 g—
Fats
Saturated fat0.53 g3%
Monounsaturated fat0.36 g—
Polyunsaturated fat0.3 g—
Cholesterol55 mg18%
Linoleic acid (omega-6)0.17 g—
Vitamins
Vitamin A0 µg0%
Vitamin C0 mg0%
Minerals
Calcium4 mg0%
Iron2.76 mg15%
Magnesium23 mg5%
Phosphorus161 mg13%
Potassium312 mg7%
Sodium58 mg3%
Zinc2.4 mg22%
Copper0.12 mg13%
Manganese0.012 mg1%
Selenium9.8 µg18%
Other measured compounds
Ash1 g—

Nutrient values are per 100 g of the USDA reference entry named on this page and vary with variety, growing conditions, storage and preparation.

Source record: Game meat, elk, raw (USDA FoodData Central, FDC ID 175301).

% DV uses the FDA Daily Values for adults and children aged 4 and over. A dash means no Daily Value has been established for that nutrient.

Bioactive compounds

Compounds present in meaningful amounts. Presence is banded rather than quantified, because whole-food levels vary enormously with variety, growing conditions, storage and preparation.

How preparation changes things

Only effects with real support are listed. If a preparation method is missing, it is because nothing dependable is documented — not because it makes no difference.

Nothing dependable is recorded about how preparation changes this food’s nutritional properties. Rather than guess, this section stays empty.

Things to know

Allergies, interactions and intake concerns. Every food gets this section — a reference where everything is uniformly good is not a reference.

  • Worth knowing

    Chronic wasting disease

    Chronic wasting disease is a prion disease of deer, elk and moose that has spread across much of North America and into Scandinavia. No human case has been documented, but the CDC and equivalent agencies advise hunters not to eat meat from an animal that tests positive or looks ill, to have animals from affected areas tested before eating them, and to avoid handling brain and spinal cord. Normal cooking does not inactivate prions.

  • Worth knowing

    Lead fragments from ammunition

    Rifle bullets fragment on impact and scatter lead particles well beyond the wound channel. Radiographic studies of donated game meat have found lead fragments in a substantial share of packages, and health agencies advise pregnant women and children in particular to avoid meat taken with lead ammunition.

  • Too much

    Red meat classification

    Venison of any species is unprocessed red meat, which the IARC classifies as Group 2A, probably carcinogenic to humans, on limited evidence relating mainly to colorectal cancer. Game has not been studied separately from farmed red meat in that epidemiology.

  • Allergy

    Alpha-gal syndrome

    Mammalian meat, so it triggers delayed reactions in people with alpha-gal allergy. Venison is a common trigger in reported cases, partly because tick exposure and game eating overlap.