Tens of thousands of people get cancer every day, is it caused by eating meat for a long time? Advice: 3 kinds of meat do eat less

According to a statistical report jointly released by the American Cancer Society and the National Cancer Institute of the United States, the incidence of thyroid cancer, rectal cancer, prostate cancer and breast cancer in China continued to rise from 2000 to 2016.

A data report on cancer incidence and mortality in China in 2016 was published in Advances in Cancer Science in February this year. Research shows that in 2016 alone, there were about 4.064 million new cancer cases and 2.4135 million new cancer deaths in China, which is equivalent to more than 10,000 people being diagnosed with new cancers in one day, with an average of 7 new cancers per minute . people diagnosed. Within an hour, 464 people could become new patients, while 276 people died from cancer.

As we all know, the high incidence of cancer is closely related to living habits. And there is one ingredient that is very popular among Chinese people, and that is meat. There is a saying that the reason why there are so many cancers in China is that they eat meat.

1. China has a high incidence of cancer. Is it meat?

How much meat can the Chinese consume? According to OECD data, China consumes 28% of the world's meat each year, including half of the world's pork. In 2020, China's per capita meat consumption is 44.4 kilograms. According to the OECD forecast, China's per capita meat consumption will reach 49 kilograms in 2028.

In daily life, the red meat we often come into contact with includes pigs, cattle, sheep, etc., because it is rich in heme iron and the meat is red, so it is called red meat. The World Health Organization defines red meat as a 2A carcinogen , which means it is likely to pose a threat to human health.

In February 2022, a research team from Oxford University, published in the "BMC", analyzed the big data of British biological samples from 2006 to 2010 and found that eating meat 5 times a week or less can reduce the overall level of cancer risk. .

From this point of view, cancer risk and red meat seem to be positively correlated. Is meat eating really the culprit behind the high incidence of cancer in China?

First of all, we need to make it clear that the carcinogenicity of 2A carcinogens is still controversial. It is more of a substantive evidence in animal experiments, and human experiments still need more confirmation. Secondly, we must also clarify that red meat is rich in iron, which is an important source of nutrition for the human body . It is necessary to ensure a certain amount of red meat intake every day to maintain health.

Especially for the elderly, a moderate intake of red meat can meet nutritional needs while effectively avoiding osteoporosis, maintaining muscle activity, and delaying brain aging.

Therefore, you still have to eat meat, but you need to balance your diet according to the dietary guidelines and your own physical conditions . According to the recommended intake of dietary guidelines, animal food should be 120-200 grams per day, and aquatic products should be at least twice a week.

2. Chicken, pork, mutton, beef... Which kind of meat is good?

According to Yu Kang, chief physician of the Clinical Nutrition Department of Peking Union Medical College Hospital, the nutritional value of each meat will be different. From the perspective of protein, beef contains the highest protein at 20.8%, followed by pork and chicken accounting for 20.6%, and mutton (20.3%). %); in terms of fat content, the highest is pork (7.1%) , followed by mutton (6.8%), beef (4.6%) and chicken (4.3%). In addition to this, they all contain fat-soluble vitamins, B vitamins, and minerals, among others.

In principle, compared to red meat, white meat contains less saturated fatty acids, relatively lower calories, and nutrients are more conducive to being absorbed by the body . Therefore, white meat is the first choice for patients, the elderly, and those who lose weight.

The recommended order of meat intake is that those with no legs are better than those with two legs, and those with two legs are better than those with four legs.

Of course, healthy people can choose both red and white meat, but for those with obesity, high blood fat, and high blood pressure, it is not recommended to choose red meat. Even if you eat red meat, it is best to choose lean meat as much as possible to avoid excessive fat intake.

3. Reminder: It is better to eat less of these 3 kinds of meat

Eating meat not only pays attention to the intake, but these meats have health risks and should also be avoided as much as possible.

1. Marinated meat

During the curing process of meat, nitrosamines and nitrites will be formed. After eating these substances, they can form new nitrosamines with the intestines, and nitrosamines are highly carcinogenic. health threat.

2. Barbecue

Although barbecued meat will add flavor to the food, because the fat can generate carcinogenic substances such as heterocyclic amines and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons under the action of high temperature, frequent consumption will increase the risk of cancer.

3. Animal three glands

That is, the thyroid, adrenal glands, and diseased lymph glands on animals. These glands contain bacteria, viruses, hormones, etc., and generally require high temperatures above 600 °C to kill. If eaten by mistake, poisoning may occur, such as nausea and diarrhea. edible.

Fourth, these eating methods may "eat" cancer

In addition to food that may promote cancer cell mutations, these wrong eating habits can also damage the digestive tract and cause digestive system lesions.

1. No meal

Helicobacter pylori is one of the high-risk factors for gastric cancer, and Chinese people have a high infection rate. A large part of the reason is that there is no public chopsticks for family meals, and bacteria are easily cross-infected, giving Helicobacter pylori more opportunities to spread.

2. Eat too hot

The esophageal mucosa does not have the property of high temperature resistance. When eating food above 65°C, it is easy to burn the esophagus, and it is easy to stimulate cell mutation for a long time, which increases the risk of esophageal cancer.

3. Eat moldy food

One of the high-risk factors for liver cancer is aflatoxin, and aflatoxin is parasitic in moldy nuts and grains. Eating moldy food is easy to get sick from the mouth.

4. Alcoholism

Alcohol has been proven to be carcinogenic. During the process of digestion and decomposition of the human body, it can cause tissue fibrosis in the body, leading to inflammation in the body, thereby inducing various inflammations and even cancer.

The high incidence of cancer in China cannot be attributed to the single factor of eating meat, but it is clear that eating meat in unlimited quantities will indeed bring a burden to the body. Therefore, everyone must learn to mix vegetables and meat reasonably, avoid unhealthy meat intake, and control the possibility of disease from the food source.

References:

[1] Miller KD， Nogueira L， Devasia T， Mariotto AB， Yabroff KR， Jemal A， Kramer J， Siegel RL. Cancer treatment and survivorship statistics， 2022. CA Cancer J Clin. 2022 Jun 23. doi： 10.3322/caac.21731. Epub ahead of print. PMID： 35736631.

[2] "The logic of these people is really strange: Can Chinese people eat meat? ! 》.World Wide Web.2021-06-23

[3] "Half of the top ten high-risk cancers is related to "eating"! 5 ways to eat that hurt the digestive tract". Life Times. 2019-12-08

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