Should hotdogs have a warning label?

CraftyGirl4

Put down the tongs and step away from the grill! Those hot dogs are a serious health risk. Yes, even during National Hot Dog Month, the summertime standbys are facing criticism. Hot dogs are just as bad as cigarettes — or so one group would have you think.

The Physician Committee for Responsible Medicine, a nonprofit group that supports an "all plant diet," according to the Washington Post, erected a billboard along the Indianapolis Motor Speedway warning against the dangers of hot dogs. The billboard shows hot dogs in a cigarette pack and reads, "Warning: Hot dogs can wreck your health." The group wants to warn people about the risks associated with eating processed meats, which are smoked, cured, or salted with chemicals. They believe that hot dogs, along with other processed meats, should have a warning label akin to cigarettes. The meat industry has retaliated by saying in a press release that the group is a "pseudo-medical animal rights group" who wants to "create a vegan society."

The group's claims are not unfounded. According to Time Magazine, a May 2011 report from the American Institute for Cancer Research and the World Cancer Research Fund said that people who 3.5 ounces of processed meats a day had a 36% greater risk of developing colon cancer than those who didn't eat processed meats. On the PCRM's website, they cite a study by National Institutes of Health and AARP Diet that found that those who ate 10 grams of processed red meat daily had a 10% increased risk of prostate cancer. The PCRM also cites a study in Taiwan that connected processed meat consumption with an increased risk of leukemia in children.

In a press release, the American Meat Institute's president, J. Patrick Boyle, asserted that, "Hot dogs are part of a healthy balanced diet...they are an excellent source of protein, vitamins and minerals."

No matter who is right, it's probably safe to say that if you're eating a pack of hot dogs a day, you've got a problem.

(Article here: http://www.delish.com/food/recalls-reviews/group-says-hot-dogs-as-unhealthy-as-cigarettes?GT1=47001)

bluefox9er

I will never , ever, EVER be able to thank my parents ENOUGH for raising me to be a vegetarian, even though they told me after I turned 12 I can eat whatever the heck I like...I decided to stay a veggie and have never ever looked back. Played varsity football in College, totally and utterly debunking the myth that vegetarians are weak and without strength,lacking in killer instincts. such total bull****.

I have nothing whatsoever against people who eat meat, and indeed, many vegetables are injected with all kinds of hormones, but I am comfortable in my skin as a veggie...one that ballooned to 235 lbs on a meat-free diet. god only knows my blood group would have been roast beef/pork +ve if I had a carnivorous diet.

CraftyGirl4

I will never be able to thank my parents enough for telling me that if I didn't like something I didn't have to eat it. A lot of kids like hotdogs, and I didn't so I would never eat them, but this is an interesting article that makes you look at it from a different perspective.

manorexicmarshmallow

I will never , ever, EVER be able to thank my parents ENOUGH for raising me to be a vegetarian, even though they told me after I turned 12 I can eat whatever the heck I like...I decided to stay a veggie and have never ever looked back. Played varsity football in College, totally and utterly debunking the myth that vegetarians are weak and without strength,lacking in killer instincts. such total bull****.

I have nothing whatsoever against people who eat meat, and indeed, many vegetables are injected with all kinds of hormones, but I am comfortable in my skin as a veggie...one that ballooned to 235 lbs on a meat-free diet. god only knows my blood group would have been roast beef/pork +ve if I had a carnivorous diet.

So you have never tasted meat? Wow. You have no idea the deliciousness you have missed out on.

I actually know a lot of chunky vegetarians, I think its easy to be chunky b/c you tend to eat more starches and cheeses which are fattening without being filling in the same way as eating meat would.

joejccva71

Mcrow we need your "Not this sh** again!" picture please. Or was it Taso that posted that lol.

jett0206

I have not eaten Hot dogs in a long time and thanks to you post, i do not think that I will start now

wonnder1

So many funny things in there.

Creating a VEGAN SOCIETY (insert ominous music here)....Hot dogs as part of a balanced nutritious diet...lolling right out to the grill.

Don't get me wrong, hot dogs are delicious, even the vegan hot dogs are delicious. For all we know, the pictures were OF vegan hotdogs.

It's all a conspiracy I tell you! They are trying to scare us into submission...the carrots are fighting back!

(going to get my tinfoil hat now...)

CraftyGirl4

So many funny things in there.

Creating a VEGAN SOCIETY (insert ominous music here)....Hot dogs as part of a balanced nutritious diet...lolling right out to the grill.

Don't get me wrong, hot dogs are delicious, even the vegan hot dogs are delicious. For all we know, the pictures were OF vegan hotdogs.

It's all a conspiracy I tell you! They are trying to scare us into submission...the carrots are fighting back!

(going to get my tinfoil hat now...)

Make a tinfoil hat for me too! I'm a vegetarian, but this is a funny debate.

Kristinapedia

Tinfoil hat? I just use a metal colander! I heard tinfoil breaks down faster...... :-P

I love hotdogs, as does my son. My sisters and I loved them. Granted *I* don't eat them anymore, since changing my diet, but one is 150 calories, so I can have one now and again.

my son on the other hand practically lives on them. Hot dogs and mac and cheese. He loves spinach and brocolli tho. Can't deny a kid that tho!

Oh and we are both healthy and don't ever get colds. I've never had the flu, and the the last time my son had a fever was 3-4 years ago.

I just wanted to lose weight, that's why I changed my diet. And I miss all that food, but I LOVE the way I'm starting to look, and I can't give that up.

bentobee

I can live without hotdogs. But it says all "processed meat". Does that include things like deli meat? I can't give up my turkey sandwiches!

poisongirl6485

Please. As long as you're not eating hot dogs for every meal or multiple times a week, it's not a bad thing. Pshaw.

Liquid741

i dont eat hotdogs very often maybe once or twice a year...and that was before i found MFP. if and when i do, i know one thing ill be eating a good hot dog, not some vegan type thing....nothing like a good Nathan's hot dog.