International Journal of Cancer (2018)

A meta-analysis of fifteen studies found that women who ate more processed meat (like sausages, bacon, and salami) had a 9 percent increased risk of breast cancer. The analysis also found that higher red meat consumption was associated with a 6 percent increased risk of breast cancer, although this was not statistically significant. This study comes a few years after the 2015 announcement from the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) that processed meat is carcinogenic to humans, while red meat is classified as probably carcinogenic. There is limited human evidence for the second point, and we don’t know for sure why processed or red meat would be associated with cancer. The suspected culprits are chemicals that form during meat processing (such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) and the chemicals that can be produced from cooking meat (such as heterocyclic aromatic amines). The small increases in cancer risk that are associated with meat consumption aren’t necessarily a reason to quit eating meat (talk to your doctor if you are considering it; there are pros to eating some meat). But with global meat consumption on the rise, a lot of us could cut down on daily intake and see benefits for our health and the planet.

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