Are red and processed meats as bad for you as smoking cigarettes? That’s the argument officials at the World Health Organization (WHO) are apparently set to make, as reports indicate that the agency will add beef, bacon, and similar products to a list of cancer-causing agents.
According to BBC News and Daily Mail reports, sources indicate that the global wellness group plans to add processed meats such as ham, bacon, and hot dogs to a list of carcinogens that includes cigarettes, arsenic, and asbestos. Unprocessed red meats will be ranked as slightly less dangerous than their highly-preserved counterparts, they added.
The ruling, which is expected to be officially announced on Monday, follows a conference with scientists from the UK and nine other countries, who reviewed evidence and found that products such as these increase the risk of bowel and other forms of cancer. The move may cause changes in dietary guidelines and might force the inclusion of warning labels on some products.
Processed meats have previously been blamed for one out of every 30 deaths, and the Daily Mail said they’re viewed as harmful because the methods used to preserve them can cause increases in levels of cancer-causing chemicals. Meat in general is considered harmful due to its high amount of fat and the potential damage its coloring could cause to a person’s bowels.
Experts divided over the forthcoming recommendations
Dr. Louis Levy, the head of nutrition science at Public Health England, told BBC News that his agency would review the report after it was released, but advised that people should eat no more than 70 grams per day of processed or red meat. Other experts questioned the findings.
Dr. Ian Johnson of the Institute of Food Research told BBC News that while there is evidence of a link between processed meat consumption and bowel cancer, he said that “the size of the effect is relatively small” and that it was “inappropriate to suggest that any adverse effect of bacon and sausages on the risk of bowel cancer is comparable to the dangers of tobacco smoke.”
Robert Pickard, a professor at the University of Cardiff and a member of the Meat Advisory Panel (an organization backed by the meat industry) added that “no one food gives you cancer.” He added that the best ways to prevent cancer were to avoid smoking, refrain from excessive use of alcohol, and maintain a healthy body weight.
While advocates note that red meat is rich in vitamins, iron, zinc, and protein, the Daily Mail pointed out that previous research has shown that reducing consumption levels to just 20 grams per day would eliminate nearly 20,000 premature deaths in the UK annually. The World Cancer Research Fund recommends avoiding processed meat entirely, the newspaper added.
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