BACON CAUSES BREAST CANCER!
WOMEN who pig out on bacon have a higher risk of breast cancer, say Harvard University researchers.
Earlier reports from the World Health Organization have connected the consumption of processed meats — like bacon, hot dogs, ham and salami — to colorectal, pancreatic and prostate cancers. But this new study is the first to pinpoint an increase in breast cancer among gals who regularly eat meat preserved by smoking, curing or salting.
The scientists found high consumption of processed meat — about 25 to 30 grams a day, or three pieces of bacon — was associated with a nine percent increased risk of breast cancer, compared to women who ate the low amount of zero to two grams a day.
But the Harvard researchers note that unprocessed red meat does not appear to up the odds of illness.
The team of experts caution their findings, which were culled from the health records of 1.2 million women, were observational — and not defined by lab-tested causes and effects.
But lead author Dr. Maryam S. Farvid, a researcher at Harvard’s department of nutrition, believes preservatives could be the culprit.
“My recommendation is that it’s good for women to cut down on processed meat,” says Farvid.
Dr. Gunter Kuhnle — a professor at Britain’s University of Reading, who was not involved in the study — adds, “It is important to follow up on these findings and investigate whether the risk of cancer associated with processed meat consumption could be reduced — for example, by developing new food production methods.”