Why I no longer eat cured meats - Article in Discovery News

I stopped eating cured meats about 5 years ago because I'd read that nitrites, used to give a pink color as a preservative, can be harmful.  Here's validation.

Nitrites in Meats Fingered in Rise of Diseases

(snip)  "July 15, 2009 -- The rising rate of diabetes, Parkinson's disease, and Alzheimer's may be linked to nitrites and related compounds -- found in hot dogs, bacon, potatoes and fertilizers, among other common products.

Nitrites are already known to cause cancer. A new study suggests that low doses of these chemicals can also have serious effects on the brain, that certain age-related diseases are caused by more than just aging, and that there might be simple things people can do to help prevent them.

The link is still in the hypothesis stage, experts say, and there's unlikely to be just one explanation for a host of complicated diseases. Still, lead author Suzanne de la Monte is already making efforts to avoid nitrates herself." (snip)

Do read the rest of the article.  It's an eye opener.  I might crave a hotdog now and then, but get the uncured, organic ones from Whole Foods Market.   They cost a lot more, but it's only about once a year.

I just read the article. I knew the stuff was not healthy, but not in such a striking and defined way. Have seen uncured meats at the HEB where I do a lot of shopping, and will get that from now on when the need for cured meats strikes.

Will also look at organic only root products. I buy a lot of organic produce already, but have not done so with potatoes yet.

Many thanks for this post.

Wow. Thank you for posting this article, it'll definately make me more careful when I eat out, and when I go shopping. I'm silently thanking my lucky stars I've never enjoyed cured meats too much.

Kind of reminds me of this: http://www.phdcomics.com/comics/archive/phd05 1809s.gif

Original Post by umneydurak:

Kind of reminds me of this: http://www.phdcomics.com/comics/archive/phd05 1809s.gif

 Thanks for the chuckle.  That's usually the case with news reporting of scientific studies.  This one seemed pretty well documented and referenced, so, rather than posting a link to the actual study, I decided to use this to inform people. 

I would rather read the study. Too many "maybe", "not for certain", etc in the article. Correlation is not causation.

UD

In that case, here ya go

http://www.j-alz.com/issues/17/vol17-3.html You can scan through #17 to fin d it.

Or, here's a link to Rhode Island Hospital where the study was done

That comic is awesome!  :)

Original Post by clairelaine:

In that case, here ya go

http://www.j-alz.com/issues/17/vol17-3.html You can scan through #17 to fin d it.

Or, here's a link to Rhode Island Hospital where the study was done

Researchers Find Possible Environmental Causes for Alzheimer’s, Diabetes

Well first one just has abstracts (have to pay fro full version), and second one is one of the stages in the picture link I posted. :)

UD

It's not always easy to find the original research paper that is peer reviewed.  Therefore, I rely on sources that at least try to be accurate and complete.

But I can see you are never going to be satisfied with any explanation I might offer, so I'll just stop trying to satisfy you.  Do your own research.  If you don't believe that nitrites are harmful, then have a hotdog and some bacon.

What I got from the article was that people's consumption of nitrates have increased during a period of time where certain diseases have become more prevalent, yet nobody has been able to document in increase in the concentration of the by-product of nitrates that is thought to be the cause of these diseases.

Sure people eat more nitrates now than they did in the 60's and these diseases have gone up in that time (the article didn't mention at what rate these diseases went up though), but there have been tons of other changes to people's diets over that same time period (more processed foods, more HFCS, more grain-fed meat, etc).

Clairelane this is not a direct hit at you personally (and you really aren't that guilty of it) but I HATE when people find new reasons to hate foods and then warn others against them.  I LOVE BLT sandwiches...it's my favorite thing to get at diners.  I'm pretty sure they're not using organic bacon.  I sometimes make my own.  Also not organic bacon.  I don't care about this "nitrates can cause alzheimers, cancer, etc, etc."  It's not like I eat bacon, hot dogs and potatoes for every meal.  I have them in a varied, balanced lifestyle.  And I think that that is safe.  I don't think having however many BLT's, hotdogs, sides of bacon I've had (and will have) in my life time will cause me to get any of the horrible conditions "science" says they can cause.  There are too many other factors involved to just blame cured meats.

I wish people would stop trying to scare others off of certain foods. >:/

Original Post by floggingsully:

What I got from the article was that people's consumption of nitrates have increased during a period of time where certain diseases have become more prevalent, yet nobody has been able to document in increase in the concentration of the by-product of nitrates that is thought to be the cause of these diseases.

Sure people eat more nitrates now than they did in the 60's and these diseases have gone up in that time (the article didn't mention at what rate these diseases went up though), but there have been tons of other changes to people's diets over that same time period (more processed foods, more HFCS, more grain-fed meat, etc).

Exactly.

UD

"Nitrates are often found in fertilizers and end up on produce, particularly root vegetables such as potatoes and beets. In the acidic conditions of the stomach or when cooked over high heat, nitrates and nitrates can be converted to nitrosamines, which are potent cancer-causing chemicals."

So... are we supposed to stop eating potatoes and beets too? That would certainly be the implication of the article, if we are to believe that eating nitrates and nitrites can cause cancer.

Let us not forget that nitrates and nitrites are natural molecules the body produces itself (as well as absorbing from dietary sources). Both are simple compounds containing only oxygen and nitrogen, two of the most abundant elements on earth. A huge amount of nitrate cycling goes on all the time. Bacteria in the soil convert nitrites to nitrates. Plants absorb nitrates. Animals eat plants, and convert the nitrates back to nitrites in the digestive system. They then excrete the nitrites which eventually end up in the soil again, and the cycle begins again. Absorbing these compounds is not something to be particularly afraid of - we do it all the time regardless of what we eat.

I'm not recommending you start splurging on processed meat. Processed anything is probably not as nutritious as natural foods; and cured meat also contains a lot of sodium. But I don't think a BLT every now and then will raise your risk of cancer.

dratted "scientists" and their "science"! Who do they think they are! They're just a bunch of smart people who research and learn about stuff and analyze statistics and "facts", track trends, and sometimes find out things you don't want to know. Finding these trends are only the first step in a rigorous scientific process - but an important one.

In this case, the journalistic source is far more credible than many. They do not say absolutely positively, the scientists report a trend. It is a trend that makes sense, but the scientists are not out to scare you.

Boo.

Original Post by prinzessin_naseimbuch:

Clairelane this is not a direct hit at you personally (and you really aren't that guilty of it) but I HATE when people find new reasons to hate foods and then warn others against them.  I LOVE BLT sandwiches...it's my favorite thing to get at diners.  I'm pretty sure they're not using organic bacon.  I wish people would stop trying to scare others off of certain foods. >:/

 Absolutely no offense taken!  I love a BLT myself once in a while.  I just use organic, uncured bacon and make it at home.  There's a history of colon cancer in my family, and the family members who have suffered from it had diets with a lot of cured meats - bacon, sausages, lunch meats, salami, etc, eaten every single day of their lives.  I'm not taking any chances with this particular substance.  I had a complete GI series last year and my intestinal tract is clean as a whistle, thank goodness.

Since there is no family history of diabetes at all on either side of my family, I don't worry as much about my refined sugar intake.  I limit it because of the high calories rather than because of a safety concern.

I guess we all make these decisions for ourselves. 

Original Post by clairelaine:

Original Post by prinzessin_naseimbuch:

 I wish people would stop trying to scare others off of certain foods. >:/

I guess we all make these decisions for ourselves. 

I prefer to live my life the way I want...meaning eat what I like in moderation...instead of in fear of "what health problem this will cause."  I have Wilson's disease so I have to avoid eating a lot of foods that have high copper contents.  I can have some in moderation as long as I take my meds.  I also avoid acidic foods in combination and sodas because my medicine makes my stomach produce more acid and I have mild gastritis.  There's a history of diabetes on my mom's side of the family (type 2 I believe) but I try not to worry about getting that.  I use refined white flour in baking, eat white rice and pasta usually, but most sugar in my diet comes from fruits and veggies.  I do eat mostly lower GI foods...and in recent blood work, my natural glucose level was well within normal. :)  There's a history of breast cancer as well on my mom's side, but I don't feel there's much I can do to prevent that.  On my dad's side we have thyroid problems.  Again not much I can do about any repercussions there.  I try to live my life as healthily as I can and so far it's going pretty well (tho I am only 23).

I agree we all make our own decisions.  It just seems to me like some people in this world have a good handle on things and have the knowledge, common sense and logic to make those decisions on their own.  Some people however are more like sheep and are unable or unwilling to temper any internet research or forum postings with their own knowledge or common sense.  I'm just a little tired of people claiming things like they're laws of nature or seemingly trying to scare people off certain foods.  The reports and things are okay but the posts always come off to me as paranoia raising.

Anyway, glad your GI tract is peachy keen :) and