Jacobson: World Health Organization states that meat causes cancer

Bacon, ham and sausages now rank alongside cigarettes as a major cause of cancer.

In other words, while the cancer risk related to consuming processed meat in particular needs to be kept in mind, the report actually confirms what we meat-eaters have been claiming all along. But bacon and hot dogs aren’t the only meats singled out. This lead to the committee’s conclusion that there is limited evidence in human beings for the carcinogenicity of red meat.

In spite of this widespread consensus to eat in moderation and variety, there are plenty of detractors who are trying to limit the amount of protein, especially red meat from the everyday diet. Researchers believe that the early deaths could’ve been prevented if the study participants had consumed fewer than 0.5 servings of red meat a day. A World Preservation Foundation study found that 75 per cent of common chronic illnesses could be prevented if people ate vegan foods instead of meat, eggs and dairy products. Most of the studies focused on associations with colon cancer, in particular.

The World Cancer Research Fund, and a number of other worldwide health agencies, have been advising for years that meat consumption raises the risk of colon and other forms of cancer, but the WHO panel was actually able to determine a causal effect.

Jon Miles, a senior at UW-La Crosse, said that “I heard that processed meats can be bad for you in large doses, but I always figured red meat was more of a rumor”. Achieving and maintaining a healthy body weight, being physically active and abstaining from smoking are things that we should all be doing to decrease our risk of cancer. It could save the lives of more people, not to mention animals, if it treated the meat and dairy companies the same way it treats the tobacco industry – with zero tolerance. Cigarette smoking is far more carcinogenic than eating a serving of red or processed meats.

The IARC, considered a high authority in evaluating evidence on cancer causation has stated that there is evidence to support a link between eating too much meat and the beginning of colorectal cancer, the third-most common type of cancer on a global scale.