| Do you enjoy a good steak, a hefty hamburger and a | | | | of a large, prospective study reported in the Archives |
| big hotdog? Your arteries, your heart, your eyes, and | | | | of Internal Medicine, March 23, 2009. |
| your immune system may wish you had made other | | | | This study, The National Institutes of Health-American |
| choices. It seems that high intake of red and | | | | Association for Retired People Diet and Health Study, |
| processed meat can be deadly. | | | | included about half a million men and women, aged |
| Red and Processed Meat Intake is linked to higher | | | | 50-72 years at the start. The study began with a food |
| mortality rates from cancer and cardiovascular | | | | frequency questionnaire to determine how much meat |
| disease as well increased risk of age related macular | | | | each person was eating as the study began. |
| degeneration, retinal damage in the eyes. Chicken | | | | The food was categorized as follows: |
| seems to be inversely related to macular degeneration, | | | | - Red meat: beef and pork, including bacon, coldcuts, |
| according to a recent Australian study, while eating fish | | | | hamburgers, hotdogs, steaks and meats in pizza, |
| was not associated with macular degeneration. | | | | lasagna and stew. |
| "High meat intake has been associated with higher | | | | - White meat: chicken, turkey, fish, poultry cold cuts, |
| levels of N-nitroso compounds, heme iron, and | | | | canned tuna, low-fat hotdogs |
| advanced glycation end products, which could result in | | | | - Processed meats: either red or white sandwich |
| oxidative damage and could be toxic to the retina." Dr. | | | | meats, cold cuts, bacon, sausages (red meat and |
| Elaine W. T. Chong at the University of Melbourne and | | | | poulty), regular hotdogs and low fat poultry hotdogs |
| others, American Journal of Epidemiology, April 1, 2009. | | | | During 10 years of follow-up, 47,976 men and 23,276 |
| High levels of meat consumption may be the cause or | | | | women had died. Overall death risks were increased |
| perhaps a marker for people who are at risk due to | | | | for those who ate the largest amount of red meat. |
| other lifestyle factors. | | | | Red and processed meat consumption was |
| "High intakes of red or processed meat may increase | | | | associated with modest increased in total mortality, |
| the risk of mortality," says Rashmi Sinha, PhD, from the | | | | cancer deaths, and cardiovascular disease deaths. On |
| National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, | | | | the other hand, high white meat consumption and |
| Department of Health and Human Services in | | | | low-risk meat consumption was associated with a |
| Rockville, Maryland, and colleagues. He is citing results | | | | small decrease in total deaths and cancer deaths. |