Some Doubt Meat’s Ties to Cancer
Although scientific studies have linked the consumption of meat to cancer, in London, at least, people are skeptical about the findings.
By REUTERS on Publish Date October 26, 2015. Watch in Times Video »Eating processed meat, like hot dogs and corned beef, can raise the risk in humans of getting colon cancer, a report by the World Health Organization said on Monday.
There was also some evidence that eating red meat, including beef, pork and lamb, can cause cancer in the colon, prostate or pancreas, the W.H.O.’s International Agency for Research on Cancer said in the report.
The report was released after a team of 22 public health, cancer and other experts from 10 countries, reviewed 800 studies on the disease in humans, and sifted through epidemiological data on the consumption of processed and red meats.
The findings, which are meant to help governments make dietary recommendations, linked increased risks of developing certain cancers to the amount of meat consumed.
Consumed daily, each 50 grams of processed meat, equal to about two slices of ham or a sausage, increases the risk of colon cancer by 18 percent.
“For an individual, the risk of developing colorectal cancer because of their consumption of processed meat remains small, but this risk increases with the amount of meat consumed,” said Kurt Straif, an expert at the agency. “In view of the large number of people who consume processed meat, the global impact on cancer incidence is of public health importance.”
The report said that if the association between red meat and colon cancer were proved, the data suggests the risk could increase by 17 percent for every 100 grams of red meat eaten daily.
It placed processed meat in the Group 1 category, which means there is sufficient evidence that it can cause cancer, even though it is not as risky as other members of that group, such as tobacco smoking and asbestos exposure.
Red meat is classified as Group 2A, which is classified as probably carcinogenic to humans with limited evidence between eating it and developing cancer.
The risks arise from chemicals produced by processing the meats and from cooking. Cooking at high temperatures or with the meat in direct contact with a flame can produce certain types of carcinogens, but the report said there is not have enough data to support conclusions about whether the way meat was cooked affected cancer risks, or about whether it was better to eat it raw.
