From telegraph.co.uk
Food safety expert says chemicals in bacon and ham giving them their pink colour are ‘one of the main suspects’
Eating processed meat may be to blame for a boom in bowel cancer, according to a scientist.
Prof Chris Elliott, founder of the Institute for Global Food Security at Queen’s University Belfast, said that chemicals found in bacon and ham are “one of the main suspects” for increased cases of the disease.
Early-onset bowel cancer has increased substantially in adults under 50 across the world since 1990.
Studies suggest the UK has one of the fastest-rising rates, with estimates putting the increase at around 60 per cent.
Speaking to the Today programme on BBC Radio 4, Prof Elliott said the increase was “down to our environment, what we eat, what we drink”.
“One of the main suspects that I’ve been pursuing for about 10 years is the use of a particular class of chemicals in the processing of meats, particularly in bacon and ham, called nitrates or nitrites,” he said.
“There is a growing body of evidence that the presence of these in the meats that we will consume are a contributory factor to the onset of colon cancer.”
Consuming large amounts of red meat has previously been associated with an increased risk of cancer.
However, Prof Elliott said he believed that eating red meat is “actually good for us [if] consumed in the right amount”.
Instead, he warned that chemicals added to ham and bacon to give them their pink colour and increase shelf life were to blame and called on the food safety watchdog to take action by placing warning labels on certain food packaging, following similar legislation in France.
“We have to point the finger at the regulator here, the Food Standards Agency (FSA), for basically sitting on their hands,” he said.
“Other parts of the world, particularly Europe, are taking this much more seriously.”
Figures from Cancer Research UK record around 48,200 new bowel cancer cases in the UK every year, including around 2,900 in people aged 25-49.
Experts at King’s College London and health science company Zoe plan to recruit 250,000 adults to complete online surveys on their diet, lifestyle, environment, and health in an attempt to discover why rates have been rising among the young.
The trial, known as Prospect-UK, will ask a smaller group to complete more detailed diet diaries, and to provide blood and stool samples.
Prof Sarah Berry, chief investigator of the trial and professor of nutritional sciences at King’s College London, said “large-scale, long-term data” was urgently needed.
“Over just a few generations our lifestyles, diets and environments have changed dramatically,” she added.
“But we don’t know which of these changes are increasing people’s risk of bowel cancer or which ones could help reduce it.”
Obesity is thought to be one factor in rising levels of bowel cancer among young adults, but Prof Elliott said that nitrate and nitrites were responsible for more than 50,000 cases in the past decade.
Other researchers said the risk can be reduced by opening windows to reduce household dust and eating more fibre, which can help harmful chemicals to pass through the gut quicker.
Ian Young, the chief scientific adviser for the FSA, said: “Nitrite and nitrate additives used in processed meat are tightly regulated and subject to strict maximum legal safety limits. We are clear that industry must use no more than necessary for food safety.
“We understand people may have concerns about the safety of nitrites and nitrates, but health risks apply to red and processed meat overall, not specifically to the nitrates or nitrites used in processing.
“Our position is based on the totality of the scientific evidence, and our advice remains that the safest way to reduce any risk from red and processed meat is to eat less of it, in line with NHS guidance.”
Tips to prevent bowel cancer
More than half of bowel cancer cases are preventable, says Haji. “Diet and lifestyle, as well as screening and surveillance, all influence your risk of getting bowel cancer.”
Following these basic rules will reduce your risk:
- Maintaining a healthy weight
- Exercising – half an hour or more a day, and avoid sitting for long periods of time
- Limit red meat (less than 500g a week) and processed meat
- Eat more fibre (aim for 90g)
- Reduce alcohol consumption (fewer than two drinks a day, and don’t binge-drink)
- Avoid smoking
- Include dairy in your diet (or consider supplementing with calcium if you are vegan)
- Talk to your GP about aspirin – some recommend taking it daily if you have a family history of bowel cancer
- Get screened regularly – consider paying if you are below the age to receive it on the NHS
- See your GP if you have any “red flag” symptoms, such as bleeding from your bottom, significant changes in bowel habit (e.g. diarrhoea or constipation) or unintentional weight loss
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