Poll: Meat causes cancer :O | What will you do? | Human Evolution vs. Contemporary Science?

[sky pies]

According this CNN's story [http://edition.cnn.com/2015/10/26/health/meat-causes-cancer-food-alternatives/index.html] that I've just viewed, the WHO has declared meat to be carcinogenic - it 'probably' causes cancer.

Apparently processed meat such as Bacon, Sausages and such is more likely to do it, but unprocessed meat is likely to do the same.

Personally I think that this may be the case, but I also think that pretty much everything we eat is probably going to influence us a bit - meat is the least of our problems on this front, coca-cola is clearly gonna turn out to be far worse if we don't already know this. Heck, even oxygen is so volatile that it kills us all eventually - if the meat doesn't get us first that is.

What are your thoughts on this revelation?

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[HEADING=3]PS. I feel it is necessary for my to provide a link to the WHO article on this research [http://www.who.int/features/qa/cancer-red-meat/en/], in the hopes of making many of you think twice before dismissing the work because I initially link'd a CNN article.[/HEADING]

 

[DefunctTheory]

Look down at your keyboard. Plastic can cause cancer. Look at your computer screen. There are multiple metals and chemicals in it that are known carcinogenic. Look at the wall - The paint probably had some of those as well. Inside the wall is treated lumber, which is mildly toxic, and there's likely some galvanized nails in there too, which certainly cause cancer.

Diet soda? Many sugar substitutes have been known to cause cancer in small animals. Ever had sassafras tea, or old school gumbo that uses sassafras as a thickening agent? Cancer in small animals. Breath the air in big cities? Cancer. Work in an industry that uses pretty much any chemicals? Cancer. Eat apples without washing them first? Cancer.

You know what the leading cause of cancer is? Being alive.

CNN doesn't provide a link to the actual research, so I can't comment on just how bad it affects you, but everyone, everywhere, has to, at some point, say 'this is my comfort zone when it comes to acceptable risk.' Cutting beef out of my diet entirely is way beyond that zone, though I do rarely eat it these days (Losing weight).

Also, while I'm sure this study is new, and may be the first one that conclusively proves meat is a carcinogen, I'm fairly certain scientist have considered this fairly possible/all but proven for a while.

 

[Laughing Man]

Would be quicker, and easier for them to list the things that don't kill you.

or

News report

Scientist discover that being alive kills you in the end.

 

[The Almighty Aardvark]

If I recall correctly there was a study testing the effects of oxygen as a carcinogenic. Not one person in the oxygen-free control group went on to be diagnosed with cancer.

If there ever was a conclusive study, that was it.

OT: It'd depend on the chance. I'm not really big on meat as it is, and considering I'm dating a vegetarian I may become even less so over time. If meat had a substantial chance of giving me cancer, I'd probably cut it out of my diet almost entirely (They said that small amounts aren't harmful)

 

[Queen Michael]

You know what? This makes me less worried. Now that there's no way for me to avoid getting cancer from everything, I don't have to bother trying anymore.

 

[Glongpre]

Processed meat? I could see that, with all the extra preservatives they put in them.

Regular meat? Doubt it. Humans have eaten it for along time, not to mention carnivores are a thing. (The amount could be an issue, but like all things, too much of anything will have bad effects)

Honestly, this seems just like the next thing. I remember there was a study that said eggs were terrible for you. Eggs!

I don't believe these kind of stories unless there are a multitude of studies with evidence that cannot be easily dismissed. Maybe someone has an agenda to lower meat consumption as they have seen the dramatic increase in vegentarian eaters, and the increased alarm at how we raise animals. They are just looking ahead of the curve.

Maybe, just maybe, the prevalence of cancer is because of all the chemicals that are laced in just about everything we eat, and everything we touch. Hmmm.

Maybe cancer is just always this prevalent? Maybe nothing can stop our cells from becoming unstable and rapidly replicating?

Meat is delicious.

 

[DefunctTheory]

I don't believe these kind of stories unless there are a multitude of studies with evidence that cannot be easily dismissed. Maybe someone has an agenda to lower meat consumption as they have seen the dramatic increase in vegentarian eaters, and the increased alarm at how we raise animals. They are just looking ahead of the curve.

Supposedly, this article was based not on a study per say, but a review of several other studies, which, when put together, show eating meat increases your risk of cancer.

Unfortunately, the article only sites an overview, so I don't know the methodology.

 

[DrownedAmmet]

Came here just to click the "I'm a vegetarian so HA!" button
*high-fives other person who chose that option*

 

[Evonisia]

At this rate I'm going to get cancer because I usually start walking by putting my left foot down first. I honestly cannot care at this point.

 

[Recusant]

Above and beyond all concerns of clickbaity "science" (and assuming it's correct), remember that that 15% increase is relative, not absolute; scarfing down two and a third ounces of bacon idea raises your lifetime risk of colo-rectal cancer from 5% to 5.75%. For a population, that's noteworthy; for an individual, that's a rounding error.

Even with that, though- give up meat? Do me a quick favor. Find yourself a friendly vegetarian and ask them what happens to them if they eat meat (allow a few minutes,or several hours if you found an evangelistic one by mistake). They'll tell you, in various degrees of graphicness, "bad things". The body becomes unused to processing meat and loses its ability to do so quickly and easily. It can regain it, but it's not a fast or pleasant transition. Now, find yourself a friendly Neanderthal and ask them how well a lack of adaptability worked out for them when they had to compete with omnivores (allow... um... just don't plan on finishing this one).

Heinlein put it best- specialization is for insects.

 

[Asita]

To be blunt? I'm pretty sure that prior studies have said the same thing about milk, eggs, food colorings, salt, pepper, flour, butter, bread, coffee, sugar, celery, parsley, mace, mushroom, oranges...Or to use the old joke "I heard that causes cancer...but then again, what doesn't these days?"

 

[CrystalShadow]

And nany vegetables are mildly poisonous.

Honestly, it barely matters.
Even the 'superscary' radioactive materials aren't that dangerous unless you are exposed to extreme doses.

Long story short, most things cause cancer or are otherwise bad for you.
Best just die now and save yourself the bother.

 

[davidmc1158_v1legacy]

I may end up becoming vegetarian, but it won't be because of the health risks of meat. It will be because the price of meat has gone up to the point where it is reasonably out of my economic reach.

 

[Sleepy Sol]

The next time I eat a bacon cheeseburger I'll be sure to consciously enjoy it that much more.

 

[Kolby Jack]

They specifically said it caused about an 18% increase of your chances of already getting cancer. That doesn't mean a red meat diet gives you an 18% chance of getting cancer, it means it takes 18% of what your chance of getting cancer already was and adds that to it. Since for most people the chance of getting cancer is fairly small, this doesn't mean red meat is deadly. It's just a tiny bit deadlier than not eating red meat.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to minimize or dismiss the findings. Any increase in cancer risk is very bad and should be addressed. But no, eating red meat is not akin to pumping cancerous tumors into your stomach on a daily basis. The odds are very much in your favor that even if you eat a lot of red meat, you'll never get cancer. But maybe don't eat so much, just to be safe. FEARMONGERING HELPS NOBODY.

 

[Politrukk]

Everything can get you cancer.

that's all there is too this news honestly.

Whoever buys into this buys into the media manipulation.


-mumble mumble- sheeple -mumble mumble-

 

[Remus]

They specifically said it caused about an 18% increase of your chances of already getting cancer. That doesn't mean a red meat diet gives you an 18% chance of getting cancer, it means it takes 18% of what your chance of getting cancer already was and adds that to it.

It's this right here that makes the clickbaitey news so....clickbaitey. Misunderstanding on how percentages work.

 

[rcs619]

Is processed meat more likely to be bad for you, to the point of increasing your risk for cancer? Probably, yeah. I could see that. Anyone who's ever eaten bologna or a slim jim knows that that shit is only barely food. But the important thing is to not go crazy and freak out. One study does not a confirmation make. There should absolutely be more science on this subject so that we can maybe get a clearer picture. When you get into these sorts of overview studies, where you're comparing other peoples' research, inherent biases of the people doing the review can be a factor.

Trying to say that 'sausage' or 'bacon' or whatever are carcinogens is a bit silly though. Cigarettes aren't carcinogenic, the various chemicals inside of them (naturally or through the process of burning and being inhaled) are carcinogenic to humans. So if we determine that processed meats do indeed lead to higher rates of cancer, the next obvious question is "What are the actual carcinogenic elements within the meat?" It's entirely possible that the manufacturing process could be altered in a way that would lessen potential cancer risk for the consumer.

The important thing to keep in mind is that we've had these terrible processed foods for 50 years now, and everyone isn't keeling over from colon cancer. Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the US, but colon/rectal cancer is only the third-highest killer among the cancers. Around 50,000 people die from colon cancer every year, and it's really difficult to know how many of those are due to diet and how many are due to other genetic/environmental factors.

I'd love to see more science done to see if there really *is* a concrete link, and what can be done to help potentially lessen it, but comparing processed meat to smoking... that's just not even in the same ballpark. Lung and Bronchial cancers are the #1 cancer killer in both men and women, with about 160,000 people a year, and chronic lower respiratory diseases (a lot of which are either caused, or severely aggravated by smoking) are the #3 killer nationally with another 150,000 people.

 

[crimson5pheonix]

WHO report: Watching CNN will give you brain cancer!

Like hell anything is getting between me and steak.