Red Meat Doesn’t Cause Colorectal Cancer New Study Claims

Fans of red meat can now rest a little easier. A new study has recently been completed by Exponent, Inc. Health Services, Inc. The study looked at the possible relationship between heavy consumption of red meat and the outbreak of colorectal cancer.

Red Meat and Cancer–One Claim Proved False

The study compared the results of 35 other studies performed over the past 30 years. They meticulously synthesized the demographic, methodological and analytic data in order to account for variables and they have concluded from this that there is no “positive association” between red meat and colorectal.

Previous studies had implied that there may be a link between heavy red meat consumption and cancer. This lead some Americans to shun the food in favor of lighter options such as chicken or fish. This has been a cause of great concern for some restaurateurs that focus on foods like steaks and hamburgers.

One Caveat of the Study

It should be noted however that the study did restrict itself to the question of a particular form of cancer rather than studying incidence of cancer more broadly. In addition, the American Heart Association still recommends keeping red meat consumption down to a minimum since it can lead to increased incidence of heart attack.

Why This Study is Still Good News for Restaurants that Serve Beef

All that being said however, the new study is good news for restaurateurs running steak houses and burger joints. They can point to this study as proof that at least some of the claims made against meat have been exaggerated. Patrons need not be quite as concerned when they go out for an evening of steak dinners or a good old fashioned hamburger.

The new study will be published in the journal “Obesity Reviews.” This journal is an official publication of the International Association for the Study of Obesity. The study was funded in part by the Beef Checkoff and by the Danish Agricultural and Food Council. The researchers stressed that while their funding may have come in part from these organizations, the companies in no way contributed to the writing or analysis of the report.

Tags: beef, cancer, hamburgers, red meat, steaks