Will eating Deli Meat really cause cancer?
sebanii
Posts: 7 Member
Id love to know how you guys tackle this issue.
Deli turkey is a reliable way for me to track calories and isnt rabbit food but i heard it can kill you via cancer. Please share input!!
Deli turkey is a reliable way for me to track calories and isnt rabbit food but i heard it can kill you via cancer. Please share input!!
14
Replies
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Id love to know how you guys tackle this issue.
Deli turkey is a reliable way for me to track calories and isnt rabbit food but i heard it can kill you via cancer. Please share input!!
Lots of things might cause cancer, in high enough dosages. I doubt you'll be eating even a fraction of the deli meat needed to be a cause for concern. I would probably try to limit it simply because it is very high in sodium, though. (I have high BP, so sodium is a legitimate concern for me.)10 -
Assuming said deli turkey isn't glowing...then no.8
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But you hear about all those stories about cured meat/smoked/preserved (nitrates blah blah) are cancer causing4
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Clickbait - pay no attention to these stories, their authors, or people spreading this BS.14
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@CSARdiver https://www.cancer.org/latest-news/world-health-organization-says-processed-meat-causes-cancer.html
not to keep arguing with you but just some reading material that i wouldnt say is total clickbaity16 -
Is the article or info you read about nitrates or meat in general? A few slices a day is not enough for toxicity. It also depends on what type of deli meat you are eating. I confess to like Mortadella😬
If it’s part of a well rounded diet- my 2cents is that you will be fine.
I know senior citizens who are quite spry and they have been eating deli meat their entire lives.
5 -
So, if you've already decided then why the question? We can disagree. You've already made up your mind, right? Maybe you could post in "debates" (?)
Disclaimer, I eat processed meats. I'm in my mid-sixties and a healthy weight and all my markers are fine right now. I'll continue to eat processed meats because something is going to take me out and I can't possibly predict what that will be. I can't worry too much about a couple ounces of deli meat a couple times per week.10 -
From the article posted:Overall, the lifetime risk of someone developing colon cancer is 5%. To put the numbers into perspective, the increased risk from eating the amount of processed meat in the study (note added: 50g/day, every day) would raise average lifetime risk to almost 6%
I don't have the studies at my fingertips, but that's a far cry from 'causes cancer' at any rate.14 -
@cmriverside im just posting a link no need to accuse me of making up my mind.
Personally i'd love to eat deli turkey all day everyday. I'm trying to gauge if it'll give me cancer though lol8 -
The air and the water cause cancer where I live. You may as well do what you want. If it ain't one thing it'll be another.11
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@CSARdiver https://www.cancer.org/latest-news/world-health-organization-says-processed-meat-causes-cancer.html
not to keep arguing with you but just some reading material that i wouldnt say is total clickbaity
Quoted from the link:
"Twenty-two experts from 10 countries reviewed more than 800 studies to reach their conclusions. They found that eating 50 grams of processed meat every day increased the risk of colorectal cancer by 18%. That’s the equivalent of about 4 strips of bacon or 1 hot dog. For red meat, there was evidence of increased risk of colorectal, pancreatic, and prostate cancer.
Overall, the lifetime risk of someone developing colon cancer is 5%. To put the numbers into perspective, the increased risk from eating the amount of processed meat in the study would raise average lifetime risk to almost 6%."
So if you eat 50g of processed meat every day for the rest of your life, your risk of colon cancer will increase from 5% to 6%. What you do with that info and how you personally rate the risk to benefit ratio is up to you.
I don't eat "processed meat" every day, and I have no extra risk for colon cancer from anything else, so I don't worry about it for me personally.13 -
If you are a rodent, then the answer is probably yes
There are probably protein sources more healthful than deli turkey but if deli turkey works for you, that's what works for you. Weighing long term risks/benefits and short term risks/benefits means being flexible and reasonable. Here's to a flexible and healthy 2019. 5 -
Someone recently posted a link on a myfitnesspal discussion which was published by ASCH.org and discussed prominent false health news of the past 50 years. The nitrates fright was among them. First was the fright. Subsequently following quietly was the careful and sound science which resulted in the world continuing to enjoy luncheon meats.
Yes, cancer is increasing. Cancer is an affliction of old age. Were it not for Americans killing themselves with opioids, Americans would be enjoying increased lifespan just as are much of the rest of the world. Of course cancer is going to increase. Fortunately, we live in a marvelous time when many cancers are curable, and survival rates of 50% for many other forms of cancer are normal. Example: I have a cousin who is over 70 now and fighting cancer. Her cancers are shrinking. She's been posting on facebook recently about makeup. She's not fighting a losing fight so much as planning for a long future.2 -
Well and it's not just false/misleading/downright bad science (or more often than not, science reporting). There's also the ever present issue of a sheer lack of medical literacy. That isn't new, but it's made worse with an increase in false health news and the increasing ease of spreading said news/"science". It makes threads like these both sad and infuriating.JeromeBarry1 wrote: »Someone recently posted a link on a myfitnesspal discussion which was published by ASCH.org and discussed prominent false health news of the past 50 years. The nitrates fright was among them. First was the fright. Subsequently following quietly was the careful and sound science which resulted in the world continuing to enjoy luncheon meats.
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From the article posted:Overall, the lifetime risk of someone developing colon cancer is 5%. To put the numbers into perspective, the increased risk from eating the amount of processed meat in the study (note added: 50g/day, every day) would raise average lifetime risk to almost 6%
I don't have the studies at my fingertips, but that's a far cry from 'causes cancer' at any rate.
^^^This.@CSARdiver https://www.cancer.org/latest-news/world-health-organization-says-processed-meat-causes-cancer.html
not to keep arguing with you but just some reading material that i wouldnt say is total clickbaity
Quoted from the link:
"Twenty-two experts from 10 countries reviewed more than 800 studies to reach their conclusions. They found that eating 50 grams of processed meat every day increased the risk of colorectal cancer by 18%. That’s the equivalent of about 4 strips of bacon or 1 hot dog. For red meat, there was evidence of increased risk of colorectal, pancreatic, and prostate cancer.
Overall, the lifetime risk of someone developing colon cancer is 5%. To put the numbers into perspective, the increased risk from eating the amount of processed meat in the study would raise average lifetime risk to almost 6%."
So if you eat 50g of processed meat every day for the rest of your life, your risk of colon cancer will increase from 5% to 6%. What you do with that info and how you personally rate the risk to benefit ratio is up to you.
I don't eat "processed meat" every day, and I have no extra risk for colon cancer from anything else, so I don't worry about it for me personally.
And this ^^^.
It's important to evaluate the risks and decide if it's acceptable to you. I don't eat enough deli meats for it to be a concern, but I'm not intentionally shying away from them either. For people who have a family history of colon cancer, that extra 1% increase may be of more significance for someone who doesn't. For someone who doesn't have any of the other risk factors, that 1% increase may have less significance than for someone who has multiple risk factors. And for some people, any increased risk isn't acceptable. Unfortunately, the way media reports science is just appalling, and leaves people scared and confused more often than not.5 -
Cancer Research UK list obesity as the second biggest cause of cancer after smoking.
If eating deli turkey helps you fight obesity then the balance of risk seems pretty clear.26 -
I haven't eaten deli meat since 1974, and I got stage III (pretty advanced) cancer in 2000. Being inactive and obese probably had a good bit to do with it. And now I'm fine, active, and seemingly healthy (for sure, no sign of the cancer).@CSARdiver https://www.cancer.org/latest-news/world-health-organization-says-processed-meat-causes-cancer.html
not to keep arguing with you but just some reading material that i wouldnt say is total clickbaity
Quoted from the link:
"Twenty-two experts from 10 countries reviewed more than 800 studies to reach their conclusions. They found that eating 50 grams of processed meat every day increased the risk of colorectal cancer by 18%. That’s the equivalent of about 4 strips of bacon or 1 hot dog. For red meat, there was evidence of increased risk of colorectal, pancreatic, and prostate cancer.
Overall, the lifetime risk of someone developing colon cancer is 5%. To put the numbers into perspective, the increased risk from eating the amount of processed meat in the study would raise average lifetime risk to almost 6%."
So if you eat 50g of processed meat every day for the rest of your life, your risk of colon cancer will increase from 5% to 6%. What you do with that info and how you personally rate the risk to benefit ratio is up to you.
I don't eat "processed meat" every day, and I have no extra risk for colon cancer from anything else, so I don't worry about it for me personally.
Part of the problem with this stuff is also innumeracy in the general public. When you add that to the clickbait culture, it's a bad brew.
Raising risk of incidence from 5% to almost 6% doesn''t sound all that scary. Increasing risk by 18%? Wow, scary! (But exactly the same thing.)
Guess which of those stats hits the headlines, IG memes, Twitter feeds? Even a lot of pop-press articles will omit the "5% to almost 6%" framing, let alone what will happen at the whack-a-doo alt-health sites with something to sell. SMH.20 -
There is no increase in cancer.
There is a perceived increase in rate due to two factors:
1. Increase of medical care and detection methodology
2. Increased longevity
You can either seek truth based upon objective evidence or you can want to be right. You cannot do both.13 -
I haven't eaten deli meat since 1974, and I got stage III (pretty advanced) cancer in 2000. Being inactive and obese probably had a good bit to do with it. And now I'm fine, active, and seemingly healthy (for sure, no sign of the cancer).@CSARdiver https://www.cancer.org/latest-news/world-health-organization-says-processed-meat-causes-cancer.html
not to keep arguing with you but just some reading material that i wouldnt say is total clickbaity
Quoted from the link:
"Twenty-two experts from 10 countries reviewed more than 800 studies to reach their conclusions. They found that eating 50 grams of processed meat every day increased the risk of colorectal cancer by 18%. That’s the equivalent of about 4 strips of bacon or 1 hot dog. For red meat, there was evidence of increased risk of colorectal, pancreatic, and prostate cancer.
Overall, the lifetime risk of someone developing colon cancer is 5%. To put the numbers into perspective, the increased risk from eating the amount of processed meat in the study would raise average lifetime risk to almost 6%."
So if you eat 50g of processed meat every day for the rest of your life, your risk of colon cancer will increase from 5% to 6%. What you do with that info and how you personally rate the risk to benefit ratio is up to you.
I don't eat "processed meat" every day, and I have no extra risk for colon cancer from anything else, so I don't worry about it for me personally.
Part of the problem with this stuff is also innumeracy in the general public. When you add that to the clickbait culture, it's a bad brew.
Raising risk of incidence from 5% to almost 6% doesn''t sound all that scary. Increasing risk by 18%? Wow, scary! (But exactly the same thing.)
Guess which of those stats hits the headlines, IG memes, Twitter feeds? Even a lot of pop-press articles will omit the "5% to almost 6%" framing, let alone what will happen at the whack-a-doo alt-health sites with something to sell. SMH.
Yep. I have tried multiple times to explain to people that when they say stuff like "It will increase your risk by 18%" that doesn't mean it increases your risk 18 percentage points. It means it increases your risk by 18% of your original risk. I've come to the conclusion that framing it that way is just flat out fear-mongering, ie no one will pay attention to our research unless we confuse them with a number they won't understand
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take my chances with deli meat before id drink water from the tap in Flint Michigan....
anyways, anything can kill you in enough quantities. I use deli meat from the deli (not the pre packaged stuff) all the time. and sometimes the prepackaged stuff too, if im in a pinch lol2 -
callsitlikeiseeit wrote: »take my chances with deli meat before id drink water from the tap in Flint Michigan....
anyways, anything can kill you in enough quantities. I use deli meat from the deli (not the pre packaged stuff) all the time. and sometimes the prepackaged stuff too, if im in a pinch lol
These days, I'd probably drink water from the tap in Flint, MI**, speaking of scare stories. (The initial story was all too true, but the details widely over-simplified and misrepresented, reframed to suit whatever cause the re-framer wanted to serve . . . and that cause was rarely the full well-being of the people of Flint, MI.)
Most people seem to want a simple fable with someone to blame, not a nuanced understanding of how our complex social, political, and technocratic structures can break down in ways that create or allow serious threats to our health and well-being.)
Raising my eyebrows a bit at using a vast human tragedy rhetorically in this way, gotta admit.
** I live just a ways down the road. They have a long way to go, and people don't trust the water. WIth fairly well-known exceptions, it's probably as safe as any large municipality, safer than many where people are blithely unaware of potential issues with their water systems. Rural (non-municipal system) water is an emerging issue around MI and other states, too: PFAS, anyone?8 -
This speaks to me more than the percentages:
How many cancer cases every year can be attributed to consumption of processed meat and red meat?
According to the most recent estimates by the Global Burden of Disease Project, an independent academic research organization, about 34 000 cancer deaths per year worldwide are attributable to diets high in processed meat.
[...]
These numbers contrast with about 1 million cancer deaths per year globally due to tobacco smoking, 600 000 per year due to alcohol consumption, and more than 200 000 per year due to air pollution.
ETA: That's from WHO8 -
If the possibility of a heightened cancer risk bothers you, you could always buy a turkey breast, cook it, and slice it. Turkey freezes well and is extremely inexpensive at this time of year.10
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Another vote here for not a significant risk.
See e.g., Lieberman and Kwon, "FACTS VERSUS FEARS: A REVIEW OF THE GREATEST UNFOUNDED HEALTH SCARES OF RECENT TIMES", published by The AMERICAN COUNCIL ON SCIENCE AND HEALTH (September 2004), p. 17. (https://www.acsh.org/sites/default/files/Facts-Versus-Fears-Unfounded-Health-Scares 4th edition.pdf)
'The American Cancer Society states, “Nitrites in foods
are not a significant cause of cancer among
Americans.” The Council for Agricultural Science
and Technology agreed, in their recent review of the
issue, that “the scientific evidence does not support
restrictions in the consumption of salted, smoked, or
nitrite-preserved foods by the U.S. population."'3 -
@CSARdiver https://www.cancer.org/latest-news/world-health-organization-says-processed-meat-causes-cancer.html
not to keep arguing with you but just some reading material that i wouldnt say is total clickbaity
Quoted from the link:
"Twenty-two experts from 10 countries reviewed more than 800 studies to reach their conclusions. They found that eating 50 grams of processed meat every day increased the risk of colorectal cancer by 18%. That’s the equivalent of about 4 strips of bacon or 1 hot dog. For red meat, there was evidence of increased risk of colorectal, pancreatic, and prostate cancer.
Overall, the lifetime risk of someone developing colon cancer is 5%. To put the numbers into perspective, the increased risk from eating the amount of processed meat in the study would raise average lifetime risk to almost 6%."
So if you eat 50g of processed meat every day for the rest of your life, your risk of colon cancer will increase from 5% to 6%. What you do with that info and how you personally rate the risk to benefit ratio is up to you.
I don't eat "processed meat" every day, and I have no extra risk for colon cancer from anything else, so I don't worry about it for me personally.
That rise of colon cancer from 5 to 6% is for red processed meat too - pork and beef. It may not even apply to turkey deli meat.0 -
The joy I recieve from eating deli meat vastly outweighs any risk.9
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Well, there are things that help reduce the cancer risk like eating a high fiber diet. To me this means I will go ahead and eat my deli meat but I will put it on a high fiber bread and top with lots of veggies. Kind of balances things out.5
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Breathing causes cancer. Enjoy your deli meats..7
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As others have pointed out, processed meats can give a small increased risk of colonic cancers - this is not click bait, it is scientifically based.
Of course, dosage matters - so there is a difference between turkey slice in a sandwich a few times a week ( for example) and sausages and bacon every meal every day.
From the scientific data I would take the stance that not eating processed meats in excess ( I haven't looked up actual recommended levels as I dont eat a lot of it anyway) would be a good idea, particularly if you have other increased risk factors eg family history or history of rectal polyps.
I would not take the stance that one turkey sandwich will cause cancer or that processed meats in low levels is any issue.4 -
When I was a baby my mom vaccinated me against deli meat cancer.12
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