(CNN) Eating processed meats like bacon, sausages and ham could increase the risk of breast cancer, a study has said.

Regularly consuming the foods was linked with a 9% higher risk of breast cancer, according to an analysis of previous studies looking at over 1.2 million women.

The findings follow previous research from the World Health Organization, which categorized processed meat as a carcinogen after finding that its consumption can cause various types of cancer

Processed meats are those that have been preserved by smoking, curing or salting.

"This systematic review and meta-analysis study reports significant positive associations between processed meat consumption with risk of breast cancer," the authors wrote.

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