5) Lamb
Lamb can be one of the most luscious red meats available; yet it’s not as widely popular as other types. Lamb can be really good, however, like many other foods that taste good, it is unfortunately not good for you. Lamb is one of the most fatty red meats on this list and it comes with the same risks as eating beef. A European investigation into cancer and nutrition (EPIC) discovered that those who eat around 60-80g of red meat per day were a third more likely to develop cancer. The best way to prevent this is simply by limiting yourself to 8-10oz of red meat a week.
4) Beef
When it comes to mouthwatering flavor, it’s hard to beat a grilled rib-eye, but with this great flavor comes great risk. Beef is one of the red meat which has been linked to providing a greater risk of cancer. In fact, both grilled and charred beef as well as other meats have been shown to give higher rates of prostate cancer. According to research originally shown by Johns Hopkins, there seems to be a chemical compound that gets created by cooking beef or other meats at a high temperature and this is what leads to higher rates of prostate cancer. Even though this compound can be seen as responsible for increased cancer risk, you can help prevent this by eating it rare. If the meat isn’t cooked much or at all, you’ll be less likely to have this compound created or spawn from the beef.
3) Sausage (Pork)
There are plenty of us who are addicted to sausage and have trouble getting through the morning without sausage on a plate or breakfast sandwich. Unfortunately, we’ve got a bit of bad news for you. All sausage, especially pork sausage, is full of fat. It’s often processed a lot more than other meat and seasoned with spices and chemicals. It sucks but sausage is easily one of the worst meats for this. Some sausage has been found to have Red 2G in it which can cause cancer. It’s definitely better to avoid sausage if possible. If you need sausage though, do not buy the cheaper brands. The chemicals and dye that goes into cheaper brands can be really bad for you. This is one of those situations where spending more will benefit you in the long run.
2) Bacon
You didn’t expect to see Bacon bypass this list did you? Bacon is easily one of the least healthy meats for you. Very few people can resist the unbelievably mouthwatering smell of some sizzling bacon; however, if you can avoid it…you certaintly should. Bacon is one of the highest fat meats on earth. In addition to being super fatty, it also comes with chemicals which have been linked to cancer. Nitrosamines are to blame for cause in increased rates of cancer. Since bacon is almost always cooked in extremely high temperatures, more compounds are formed which are bad for you. Some of these are to avoid things like botulism which can be fatal. The best way to avoid risks from bacon is to simply limit yourself to bacon on special occasions. A few times a year would be recommended.
1) Salami
Salami is probably the worst when it comes to red meat. It’s consumed regularly due to foods like pizza and it should be avoided even more so than bacon. Salami is loaded with fat and comes with the same chemicals which make bacon bad for you. In fact, on average salami contains even higher doses of nitrosamines than bacon even though it’s in the spotlight less than some of the other fatty meats that suffer from this. It is strongly recommended that you avoid salami except a few times a year. If you’re ordering pizza, try to avoid pepperoni on it and replace it with a healthier meat or preferably veggie.
