#Repost @veg_md - The evidence continues to pour in…meat causes us harm. Published this week, this 16-year study of more than half a million people showed that those eating the most red meat – processed or unprocessed – had a 26% higher risk of earlier death. They also had a higher risk of dying specifically from cancer, heart disease, lung diseases, stroke, diabetes, infections, kidney disease, and liver disease. . We've known for a long time that processed meats (ie, any meat that has been smoked, cured, fermented, or has added preservatives- eg bacon, ham, deli slices, sausage, pepperoni, etc) are extraordinarily toxic to our health, raising the risk of heart disease, diabetes, cancer, and other ailments. In this study, UNPROCESSED red meat (eg unprocessed beef, pork, lamb, veal) was every bit as hazardous. . Two of the big health culprits in red meat are heme iron (ie, iron from animal sources) and nitrate/nitrite preservatives. Both cause oxidative stress and inflammation in our bodies, greatly increasing our risk for disease and early death. This helps explain why vegetarians have a 25% lower risk of ischemic heart disease and an 8% lower risk of cancer; vegans have a 15% lower risk of cancer. . What about 'white meat' like chicken? Well, this study proved the well-known point that if you compare something bad (chicken) to something really really bad (red meat), the bad food comes out looking less bad. But what if we compared chicken to beans, whole grains, vegetables, nuts, or fruits? Plant protein lowers mortality compared to all animal proteins. Chicken is by no means a health food. It still contains inflammatory elements like animal protein, saturated fat, & cholesterol, as well as natural hormones and in most cases, antibiotics. No chicken-containing diet has been shown to reverse heart disease, our #1 killer. Our best bet for long-term health is a diet based on PLANTS. . References Main paper: Etemadi et al, BMJ 2017 (see BMJ.com for full paper) Health outcomes of vegetarians: Dinu et al, Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr 2016 Animal vs plant: Song et al, JAMA Int Med 2016 . #plantbased #meatkills #vegan #vegansofig
