Although higher-income countries continue to eat two to three times more meat and dairy than lower-income countries, the consumption of meat and dairy products is on the rise in some developing countries, including China and India.

Now, a study from the National Institutes of Health shows that eating red and processed meat is linked to increased mortality, according to an article published in the March 23, 2009 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine

.

Researchers from the National Cancer Institute and their colleagues enrolled half a million aged 50 to 71 in the National Institutes of Health-AARP Diet and Health Study. Participants filled out a detailed 124-item food frequency questionnaire at the beginning of the study. During 10 years of follow-up, 47,976 men and 23.276 women died. Statistical analyses revealed that overall risk of death was increased among men and women who consumed the most red meat and processed meat. The risk of death from cancer or cardiovascular disease was also increased among those who ate the most red and processed meat.

In contrast, the men and women who had high white meat intake demonstrated a small decrease in cancer death and overall mortality. Although this was a prospective study based on self-reported food intake, the study findings do support the recommendations of the American Institute for Cancer Research and the World Cancer Research Fund to reduce the consumption of red meat and processed meat in order to reduce the risk of cancer.

Source:

Arch Intern Med. 2009;169:562-571.