World Health Organization Revises Health Guidelines Around Beef Consumption

Of course the conundrum... quandary... and ultimate dilemma of what is actually going on with our food continues. Being an educated consumer is not an easy thing to do in an age where conflicting studies and new information are continually being released. 

I found a PBS article on the recently revised health guidelines around the consumption of beef by the World Health Organization (WHO) was other alarming to me. The report from the WHO’s International Agency for Research on Cancer and published in The Lancet, Oncology, now labels processed meats as “carcinogenic to humans,” meaning their consumption can cause cancer. The report also classifies red meat as “probably carcinogenic to humans.”

The report from the WHO’s International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) now labels processed meats as “carcinogenic to humans,” meaning their consumption can cause cancer. The report also classifies red meat as “probably carcinogenic to humans.”

What counts as red meat? What counts as processed meat?

Red meat is any meat that comes from a mammal. That means meat from cows (beef and veal), pigs (pork), sheep (lamb and mutton), horses, goats and bison all count as red meat.

White meats come from fish and poultry. The color difference is dictated by the amount of blood in the tissue, which plays into why red meat is more likely to cause cancer.

Processed meats are any meats that aren’t fresh. People typically think of processed meat as only referring to pork and beef, but this category can also include poultry (chicken, turkey, duck) and fish. A processed meat, according to the WHO panel, has been modified from its natural state, either “through salting, curing, fermentation, smoking, or other processes to enhance flavor or improve preservation.”

This includes sausages, hot dogs, corned beef, beef jerky, canned meat, meat sauces, lunch meats and bacon.

The WHO group “classified consumption of processed meat as ‘carcinogenic to humans’ on the basis of sufficient evidence for colorectal cancer.” Colorectal cancer is the second most lethal form of cancer in the U.S., causing nearly 50,000 deaths per year according to the National Cancer Institute. Processed meat was also linked to a higher incidence of stomach cancer.

Red meat carries a slightly lower risk, the group says, but is still “probably carcinogenic to humans.” Aside from the “strong mechanistic evidence” related to colorectal cancer, the “consumption of red meat was also positively associated with pancreatic and with prostate cancer.

How does processed meat compare to smoking and other carcinogens?

The IARC deals in strength of evidence. For this agency, scientific evidence either points to a compound causing cancer in humans or it doesn’t. To classify carcinogenic status, it separates agents into five groups:

Group 1 – carcinogenic to humans

Group 2A – probably carcinogenic to humans

Group 2B – possibly carcinogenic to humans

Group 3- not classifiable

Group 4 – probably not carcinogenic

Of the millions of chemicals in the world, the WHO only 118 agents fall into group 1. This group includes tobacco smoke, asbestos, aflatoxins (a chemical sometimes found in organic peanut butter), coal emissions from indoor stoves and as of this morning, processed meat.

For more information the Who provides a helpful Q&A on the carcinogenicity of the consumption of red meat and processed meat on their web site.