Mar25
We Hate to Say 'We Told You So,' But ...
Posted at 12:35 PM | Permalink
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Comments (28)
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Specifically, meat increases your chances of dying prematurely.
That's right, we weren't just making it up. Research has, once again, linked the consumption of meat with heart disease and certain types of cancer—and this time, it's more conclusive than ever. As The Washington Post explains, a new case study has just been published—the first large examination of the relationship between eating meat and overall risk of early death—and guess what it found?
"The bottom line is we found an association between red meat and processed meat and an increased risk of mortality," concluded the leader of the study, Rashmi Sinha of the National Cancer Institute.
Women in the study who ate the most red meat were 36 percent more likely to prematurely die of any cause than those who ate less (or none), and they were 50 percent more likely to die of heart disease! Maybe it's just me, but those kinds of odds would definitely shock me into seriously reconsidering my meaty habits. Men who ate the most red meat didn't do much better—they were 31 percent more likely to die prematurely of any cause.
Amusingly, the only defense that the American Meat Institute could muster was that meat products "provide a sense of satisfaction and fullness that can help with weight control." So don't worry about the cancer and heart disease, say the meat guys, because filling your stomach with disease-linked animal flesh makes you full, and that keeps the weight off! Um, nice try, fellas.
Nope, I'm not buying the meat guys' argument—and something tells me a lot of other people won't be, either. This could end up as a real victory for our arteries—and for animals.
Posted by Amanda Schinke
TAGGED:
vegetarian cancer heart disease Washington Post
Comments
A "real victory"? I would like to think so, but a lot of people won't stop eating meat even when they know it's not good for them. Most people do already.
Just last night on my local news, the question was "Can meat be unhealty for you?" People wonder as I bang my head against a wall...
Posted by: Aneliese | March 25, 2009 01:22 PM
HA HA HAAAAA (sorry had to laugh at the meat industry for a second.)
Posted by: Lindsey | March 25, 2009 01:55 PM
The original and idyllic Biblical diet for man was vegan (Genesis 1:29). Every person that eats meat is exacerbating and perpetuating man's fall from grace and God.
Posted by: Brien Comerford | March 25, 2009 02:00 PM
Just wait, give it a year or two, and a study will come out showing that fish and poultry are bad for you as well... In the meantime, YEA!
Posted by: Lola | March 25, 2009 02:42 PM
It is not normal eating flesh, we are not designed to eat meat, if we could, we could eat it raw.
Posted by: jaquie | March 25, 2009 03:12 PM
I can count tons of reasons why eating animal flesh is so wrong!! We don't need too for one. I went vegan years ago for ethical reasons (couldn't imagine eating my friends) but at the same time I felt it was so un-necessary. Havn't changed much since then body wise, never lost, never gained, just feeling GREAT and lovn' it!! So lets put animals raised for food where they should be non-existent!!
Posted by: Carla | March 25, 2009 04:33 PM
"we told you so" indeed!
Posted by: Tiago | March 25, 2009 04:52 PM
jaquie, we can eat meat raw, steak tartare,sushi, carpaccio. Before the harnessing of fire human ancestors must also have eaten their meat raw. We just found it tastes better cooked.
All things in moderation. stay healthy by balancing between red and white meats, and keeping enough fibre in our diets.
I worry about the processed meats though, all sorts of preservatives are added to that.
Posted by: rojo | March 25, 2009 05:50 PM
I eat meat and was in no way suprised by the findings. Of course eating large amounts of anything is going to increase the risk of many types of cancer. The study said the people who were at risk ate the equivilent of a quarter pounder a day. No shit that is going to be bad for you. However the writer of the study also said something many of you might not want to hear. And I quote:
"I'm not saying everybody should turn into vegetarians," Politi said. "Meat should be a supporting actor on the plate, not the main character." Elisabetta Politi of the Duke Diet and Fitness Center in Durham, N.C.
I don't think anybody denies the fact that too much meat can be bad for you.
"The study relied on people's memory of what they ate, which can be faulty.
In the analysis, the researchers took into account other risk factors such as smoking, family history of cancer and high body mass index."
Though the evidence may seem overwhelming there always other factors.
The lead author also said this: "Calling the increased risk modest, lead author Rashmi Sinha of the National Cancer Institute said the findings support the advice of several health groups to limit red and processed meat intake to decrease cancer risk."
In other words this guy is telling people to eat leaner meat and not the processed stuff. No duh!
Posted by: Kurt K | March 25, 2009 08:23 PM
Meat is repulsive. Thanks for the bible reference above......I'll have to check into that. I've always wondered how so many "God-fearing" christians could justify eating tortured and murdered animals. I wonder if that is what Jesus would do......hmmmmm.
Posted by: Tamra | March 25, 2009 09:15 PM
UGH!!!! THE BIBLE (AND OTHER RELIGIOUS DOCTRINE) IS NOT A VALID ARGUEMENT!
Maybe the fact that PROCESSED meat is PROCESSED is what causes cancer? And red meat is full of fat... of course it would cause heart disease.
Posted by: Karen | March 26, 2009 12:08 AM
I saw this several times on the FOX News Channel yesterday.
More evidence...
Eat Meat and Die.
Posted by: Curtis | March 26, 2009 04:51 AM
SHOUTER: I never said that the bible was a valid argument or that I would be using it as a valid argument. I don't think the original poster was saying that either.
It is good to learn as much as you can.... learn about different viewpoints and see where people are coming from AS WELL AS researching scientific data.
I thought it was interesting that there may be a reference to meat eating, or non-meat eating for that matter, in the bible. I haven't looked into it yet, so I don't know.....
Don't you know, people don't care that meat is processed and full of fat and that it's bad for them. THEY ALREADY KNOW THAT! They overlook that, look at the rest of the processed crap that everyone is eating. Most people are overweight largely due to a poor diet, but they keep going. Nothing is changing, they are turning blind eyes......
Devil's advocate (pun intended): One might argue that since 85% or so or the population considers themselves to be christians, then why not use that against them (so-to-speak), or use something from the bible to (hopefully) make them rethink their dietary habits. why not?
Posted by: Tamra | March 26, 2009 12:13 PM
Jesus probably did not eat meat every day, but on holidays such as Passover (which is coming soon) he did. Central to the traditional passover feast is the meat of an unblemished lamb. He or one of his followers would have gone to the temple the night before, purchased the lamb, stood in line along with hundreds of other male heads of families, and slaughtered the lamb at the signal of the High Priest, catching the blood in a bowl. The blood would then be poured on the alter and some of the meat given to the sacrifice. The rest of the meat was taken home to the family for the Seder. Now in most places the family simply buys a lamb shank for the Seder, but lamb is a central part of the Passover feast, and as a Jew Jesus would have eaten it. He would not have eaten pork, however, as religious jews consider pork to be a ceremonially unclean animal.
Posted by: Rev. Meg Schramm | March 26, 2009 12:20 PM
I completely stopped eating meat or fish almost 2 years ago for ethical reasons...I was looking at my 3 beautiful and so loved dogs while eating some steak and I wasn't able to stop thinking of the fact that animals are animals...we think dogs are "pets" and we love them so much but..have you ever watched one of those video from China?they litterally skin dogs alive and they absolutely don't care!
So what's the difference between a dog and a cow or a pig?Why shouldn't I give the same respect I give to my dogs,to a chicken?
Anyway..I just stopped eating meat and fish..a lot of soy milk and some vegan cheese and sometimes egg sobstitute..and then vegetables and fruit in any possible way.
I loooooove my new diet and I still can't believe how much better I feel..my skin is so much better as well and my mood also.
My dogs are now vegetarians too and they never looked so beautiful and healty!
Posted by: Giorgio | March 26, 2009 04:29 PM
would it be different in another country where they dont pump their animal full with antibiotoics/growth hormones/
Posted by: james | March 27, 2009 01:55 AM
What I'm wondering is whether meat is also detrimental to the health of our dogs.
Posted by: Joe | March 27, 2009 01:15 PM
As a veterinary assistant, I can tell you meat in small portions is not detrimental to the health of a domestic dog. Wild dogs such as wolves, dingoes, and dogs that are feral thrive on an all meat diet.
I would not feed my dog an exclusively meat diet; having been raised on commercial dog food he just does not have the stomach for it.
Posted by: Rev. Meg Schramm | March 27, 2009 02:49 PM
More proof that I can show my meat eating friends! Meat eater or not, how hilariously dumb was the American Meat Institute's argument? P.S.- Don't believe it? Several other smaller scale studies have shown that eating meat ups women's chances of breast cancer, as well as the chance of colon cancer in both genders.
Posted by: Justine | March 27, 2009 07:00 PM
this just in, smokeing kills you to, we knew this for years and people still do it
Posted by: me | March 27, 2009 07:59 PM
Pfft, of course increased consumption of processed red meat will lead to health problems; too much of anything is bad, not to mention that eating too much processed vegan food wouldn't be too good for your health either. What did the study have to say about lean meats and fish? From a purely physiological perspective, we're just stating the obvious.
Posted by: SQ | March 28, 2009 04:26 PM
Sorry guys, its no proof at all. Read the full study not just a newspaper article. Once again its wishful thinking.
Posted by: Sue | March 28, 2009 09:41 PM
Jesus Christ was most assuredly vegan; Genisis 1:29, and anyone can call themselves Reverend.
Meg Schramm, I had figured you for a sham. You have demonstrated your profound lack of knowledge of Scripture, the Power of God, and the Purity of Christ.
Posted by: Saucy | March 29, 2009 01:01 PM
James: It is more expensive to raise animals for food w/o drugs and in a safe, humane environment. Fast food corps cut costs at the expense of all else (and they already use cheap illegal labor here), so I can't imagine they'll pick a more enlightened country if looking for another place to raise their meat animals.
Joe: Dogs have a digestive system that was evolved to eat meat with some vegetation. Ours is the other way around. So it is not at all unhealthy for a dog to eat meat -- although the quality of the meat is still a problem.
Posted by: karen | March 29, 2009 02:59 PM
chemicals that the animals on the farm take in from their food while alive are the major cause of meat being being unhealthy, kind of like the pesticides that are heavily used on plants. the huge amount of chemicals being used on the earth today has led to the huge increase in cancer. many animals (carnivores) have meat as a primary source in their diet. there are thousands if not millions of sources that can lead to premature death.
Posted by: Bren Lundborg | March 29, 2009 10:24 PM
Thank you to above posters for the biblical refrences! I have been trying to spread the word about veggy/vegan (mostly the veggy its an uphill battle so one thing at a time for my family!) and my mother is very much a chistian woman and WWJD is something that she often contemplates before acting on much of what she does so this is BEAUTIFUL info to further my cause....as far as meat goes its ALWAYS been bad for us raw/cooked but we over indulge everything as a society so there really is no happy medium it must be cut out of our diets/environment. I am glad that this news is out now maybe those that wont do it for the animals will finally do it for themselves and their vanity...now surely I have heared a biblical refrence for that!!
Posted by: Kimberly B | March 30, 2009 10:38 AM
I'm not sure we're sending a consistant message by (on the one hand) talking about scientific studies, and then (on the other hand) talking about myths, religion, dogma and superstition. You can't have it both ways.
If you're going to cite science, then you shouldn't undermine your credibility by referencing ancient myth and legend.
That said, I do understand the impulse to get people to stop eating animals even if it means using their own superstitious beliefs.
Posted by: Saganista | April 10, 2009 12:12 PM
Wait a second Brien, if you had enough sense to read a bit further into the Bible you would discover that when the flood ends, God permits Noah and his family to feast upon the animals, if its permitted by god it must be right.
Posted by: Rachael | August 24, 2009 01:58 PM