Processed Meats Are As Bad As Smoking, Can Cause Cancer: WHO

Risk of bowel cancer from processed meat is small, but it increases with consumption, says WHO

Bacon, ham and sausages can cause cancer, the World Health Organisation has warned in a report released today on the dangers of eating processed meats.

The classification puts red meat in the “carcinogenic to humans” category, the highest of the five possile rankings, shared with alcohol, asbestos, arsenic and cigarettes.

The report says that 50 grams of processed meat a day - that’s one sausage, or two slices of bacon, increase the chances of developing bowel cancer by 18%.

Processed meat was classified as carcinogenic to humans, based on sufficient evidence in humans that the consumption of processed meat causes colorectal cancer.

International Agency for Research on Cancer, Cancer-arm, World Health Organisation