New study by the Harvard School of Public Health
Thu, 20/05/2010 - 2:59pm
Publication of a new study by the Harvard School of Public Health has found that eating processed meat, such as bacon, sausage or processed deli meats, was associated with a 42% higher risk of heart disease and a 19% higher risk of type 2 diabetes. In contrast, the researchers did not find any higher risk of heart disease or diabetes among individuals eating unprocessed red meat, such as from beef, pork, or lamb. It suggested that differences in salt and preservatives, rather than fats, might explain the higher risk of heart disease and diabetes seen with processed meats, but not with unprocessed red meats.
Maureen Strong, AHDB – Meat Services dietitian, said that processed meats, such as bacon, sausage and processed deli meats can all form part of a balanced diet. The report focuses on a potential link between salt and nitrate preservatives and the risk of developing heart disease and diabetes. It presents a speculative hypothesis and identifies that we need to understand a lot more about potential mechanisms linking salt and nitrate to higher risk of heart disease and diabetes. We believe further research is needed before any dietary recommendations can be made.
In addition, it seems misleading to focus on processed meat as a major contributor to this risk, as various studies indicate that high consumption of processed meat can be indicative of an overall poorly balanced diet: therefore it could be other aspects of the diet that are contributing to the increase in risk.
