In 2015, the World Health Organization (WHO) released a statement warning about the relationship between the consumption of red meat and processed meat and colorectal cancer. The WHO claimed that there was sufficient evidence to affirm that consuming processed meat causes colorectal cancer and limited evidence that red meat causes the same effect . The study found that each 50-gram serving of processed meat consumed daily increased the risk of developing this type of cancer by 18%.
What is considered red meat? According to the WHO, it is the muscular meat of mammals: cow, veal, pork, lamb, horse and goat. Processed meat is that which has undergone a transformation process such as salting, curing, smoking or fermentation. Processed meats often contain pork or beef, but also other red meat, poultry, offal, or meat by-products such as blood. Examples of processed meats would be frankfurters, ham, corned beef, canned meat, jerky, and sauces made with meat.
“The association between meat and pathologies is very different depending on the product we are talking about, a turkey breast is not as harmful as a sausage . In any case, meat products are linked at an epidemiological level with a higher BMI (body mass index), higher rates of cancer and cardiovascular diseases, such as type 2 diabetes and hypercholesterolemia ”, says Aitor Sánchez, dietitian-nutritionist and technologist of the foods in his book Your diet can save the planet (Paidós).
Does this mean that meat alone is responsible for these diseases? “We cannot make such a categorical statement, nor can we affirm that meat is the only cause, since we would be being lax, but we could say that their excessive consumption brings us closer to them,” Sánchez writes.
Everything indicates that, based on scientific arguments, the shots are more to reduce meat consumption than to eliminate it completely . The recommendation of the Spanish Agency for Consumption, Food Safety and Nutrition (AECOSAN) is to eat meat in a moderate way, which for the organization is about 2 or 3 times a week , since its continued and / or excessive consumption can be related to problems of health. Of course, he then states that “meat is an important source of proteins of high biological value, also providing a large amount of micronutrients which include the B-complex vitamins, iron, potassium, phosphorus and zinc. The FAO (United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization), for its part, reduces personal consumption of meat to 300 grams a week .
AECOSAN emphasizes the scientifically proven benefits that the Mediterranean diet has for our health. A diet that is rich in fruits, vegetables and legumes, that uses olive oil for cooking and seasoning, that includes fish and meat, the latter having a moderate consumption.
