Rumors about the dangers of meat turned out to be greatly exaggerated

Vyacheslav Golovanov, Geektimes 

The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), which is part of the World Health Organization, has released a report on the results of a study on the impact of consumption of red and processed meat on the likelihood of cancer (IARC Monographs evaluate consumption of red meat and processed meat). If you believe the conclusions listed in the report, this probability does increase – but at the same time by insignificant amounts. 

22 specialists from 10 countries worked on the report. Having carefully studied the accumulated scientific papers (more than 800 papers conducted over the past 20 years have been studied) studying the relationship between meat and meat products consumption and the occurrence of cancer, the researchers decided that red meat (mammalian muscle tissue) should be classified as products that "may be carcinogenic to humans." The reason for this was some indirect evidence found in the studied materials. Scientists have not found any convincing data on the dangers of poultry meat, as well as fish and seafood.

Processed meat was classified as "carcinogenic to humans products" on the basis of sufficient, according to researchers, evidence of a link between the consumption of these products and the development of cancer. At the same time, the study focused primarily on rectal cancer, and to a lesser extent on kidney and prostate cancer.

Processed meat is finished products obtained as a result of salting, canning, smoking, or other processes aimed at increasing the shelf life or enhancing the taste. Researchers give examples of such products in their work: sausages, ham, corned beef, bacon, canned meat and sauces.

At the same time, researchers claim that daily consumption of 50 grams of processed meat increases the risk of rectal cancer by 18%, and 100 grams of red meat – by 17%. We are talking about increasing the probability that a person already has according to other indicators – heredity, habitat and some others. If, for example, a particular person has a 5% chance of developing such a cancer, then eating meat will increase it to about 6%.

Compared, for example, with smoking, which increases the risk of lung cancer by 2500%, these figures do not inspire serious concerns. "If the risk in your life is so insignificant, then you simply have nothing to worry about," says Alfred Neugut, an oncologist at Columbia University (see the article Sarah Zhang Bacon Causes Cancer? Sort of. Not Really. Ish., published on wired.com ).

The essence of the effect of meat on the body is the presence of hemes in it – complex compounds of porphyrins with iron. During digestion, they are broken down into nitrosamines – substances that were associated with the appearance of cancerous tumors back in the 1950s. Meat processing only adds substances to it (nitrates and nitrites that preserve the red color of the product – VM), which also turn into nitrosamines in the body. In addition, heat treatment can cause the appearance of other carcinogens (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons – BM) in food.

In different countries, the percentage of the population consuming meat on a regular basis is very different – from a few percent to 100%. "Our work is additional evidence of generally accepted recommendations for reducing the amount of meat consumption," says Dr. Christopher Wild, director of the IARC. "On the other hand, meat is a very nutritious product, so governments and relevant public services need to conduct a risk assessment to balance the advantages and disadvantages of eating meat and provide the best possible dietary recommendations."

Unfortunately, the hyping of this topic in the media can lead to the appearance of unjustified fear of meat products. Do not panic – and in any case, before radically changing the diet or hitting vegetarianism, you need to consult with a specialist.

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29.10.2015