Long-term consumption of sausages, ham, bacon
European studies have shown that processed meats such as sausages, ham, and bacon are high in salt and some carcinogens. Excessive consumption can increase the risk of diseases such as heart disease and cancer, which can lead to premature death.
Researchers at the University of Zurich in Switzerland report that they conducted a follow-up survey of about 500,000 people across 10 European countries, with participants ranging in age from 35 to 69. Over a 13-year period, respondents who consumed excessive amounts of processed meat had a 44% higher mortality rate than others, and their premature mortality was directly proportional to the consumption of processed meat. The survey showed that eating too much processed meat increased the risk of death from heart disease by 72% and the risk of death from cancer by 11%.
Processed meats include sausages, ham and fillings made from pork, beef, lamb and chicken, among others. The study defined consumption of 160 grams or more of processed meat per day as "excessive consumption".
The researchers said that processed meat is higher in saturated fatty acids, cholesterol, and is often cured and smoked to extend its shelf life, a process that increases harmful substances such as carcinogens. If people ate less than 20 grams of processed meat a day, 3% of premature deaths could be avoided each year.
Processed meats such as jerky, meat floss, and sausages are often an indispensable sight on the family table. However, processed products are far less nutritious than fresh foods and can have side effects on human health.
The health side effects of processed meat
1. Increase the burden on the liver and damage kidney function
Processed meat foods can overburden the human liver due to the addition of preservatives, color enhancers and color retainers. In addition, processed meat foods such as ham are mostly high-sodium foods, and eating in large quantities will consume too much salt, causing blood pressure fluctuations and kidney damage.
2. Loss of a large amount of nutrients
The market is flooded with soft drinks, artificial juices, gelatinous snacks and many other synthetic foods that are just sweetened chemicals and contain few nutrients. Processed meat is no exception, and refined and processed meat has lost much of its nutritional value.
3. Contains carcinogens - nitrite
Processed meats such as ham sausage contain a certain amount of nitrite, which can lead to cancer.
4. Additives have certain toxicity
Most foods contain a variety of food additives. It doesn't matter if these food additives are used within the specified range and dosage, but when mixed together and not used within the specified range and dosage, they may be highly toxic and even carcinogenic.
5. Patients with hepatitis should eat processed meat with caution
Reducing the intake of processed meat in hepatitis patients can reduce the burden on the liver. Because hepatitis patients have different degrees of damage to liver cells, the digestion, metabolism and detoxification of the liver will be significantly reduced, and processed meat foods have more chemicals and are not suitable for consumption.
In order to maintain color or extend shelf life, some food manufacturers usually add colorants, preservatives and other chemicals to some processed foods. When patients ingest these chemicals, due to the reduction of liver metabolism and detoxification function, it will prolong the recovery of liver function, resulting in increased burden on the liver and sometimes even aggravated liver cell damage.
At the same time, processed meat foods generally contain nitrite, which has the potential risk of causing cancer, especially for patients with poor liver detoxification function, the risk is even greater. In addition, higher calories and excess high-quality protein and fat will also cause excess protein and fat intake, affecting the intake of green vegetables, fruits and main course foods rich in vitamins and minerals, which indirectly leads to unreasonable dietary structure of patients, which is not conducive to the recovery of hepatitis patients. Therefore, hepatitis patients are advised to eat processed meat with caution.
Scientists have shown that eating processed meat increases the risk of breast cancer in women. Researchers found that regularly eating processed meat such as bacon, sausages, and ham was 64% more likely to develop breast cancer than those who did not eat processed meat. Therefore, women should eat less red meat and processed meat, and eat more vegetables and fruits to maintain the acid-base balance in the body.
It is important to note that processed meat is also included in the "junk food" list, so parents should be discreet when purchasing.
