Eat Lean to Stay Lean and Reduce Your Cancer Risk:
Do you eat breakfast in Bacon City, lunch in Burgerville, and supper at the Barbeque Barn? If you're frequently eating red meat, you may be raising your risk of developing cancer. Meats have plenty of protein, but no dietary fiber; good amounts of iron, but lots of fat; vitamins B and E, but also LDL (bad) cholesterol. Daily servings of red and processed meats can result in too many calories, extra weight, and various diseases. Making the switch to a variety of lean meats, fish, and vegetable entrees can cut your health risks as well as broaden your culinary horizons.
East Versus West Across the Table:
Asian, Indian, and Mediterranean diets use meat sparingly, sometimes almost as a condiment. Traditional diets such as these use far less animal fats than Western diets, and one result is that those countries have lower rates of breast cancer. The typical American diet is built around a large serving of meat, with vegetables and grains on the side. Women who move from non-meat-centric countries to America usually have an increased risk of breast cancer if they adopt the western diet. Researchers think that fatty foods increase the amount of circulating estrogens that can promote the development of breast cancer.
Fatty Foods, Estrogen and Breast Cancer:
Girls and premenopausal women who eat fatty meats, fried foods, and fattening dairy products have higher levels of estrogen. A Harvard study shows that if you regularly have animal fats from red meat (beef, lamb, pork) and from dairy (milk, cheese, cream, yogurt, ice cream), you have an increased risk for breast cancer. But if you eat small portions of meat and dairy, and include vegetables fats from fiber-rich vegetables, legumes, whole grains and fruits, you can lower your levels of estradiol, one kind of estrogen.
Get Away From That Grill:
Several studies indicate that having a lot of fat in your diet -- especially fat from meats and other sources of saturated fats -- increases your risk for cancer by 17 to 19 percent. Those fats, and the meat, may contain carcinogens such as HCA (heterocyclic amines). Grilled and fried meats and even fish can develop HCAs, as they cook at high temperatures. As meats are grilled over open flames or charcoal, fat drops onto the fire and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) are formed. These PAHs cling to the surfaces of grilled foods, and are thought to increase your risk of stomach and colon cancers.
Stuff Your Sandwich Wisely:
Processed meats such as bacon, hot dogs, sausage, ham, and lunchmeats are prepared with large amounts of salt (sodium) and nitrites. Some chicken and turkey cold cuts are made without nitrites, but you must read the package labels carefully. If you're having one ounce of processed meat five or six days a week, you're having too much. So if you're used to having a bologna sandwich or two pieces of pork bacon a day, it's time to cut back, or try something else. A tuna salad sandwich or even peanut butter and jelly is better for you than ham on rye with cheese.
Even The Cows and Chickens Need a Balanced Diet:
Farm animals used to eat grasses and forage rich in omega-3 fatty acids, but since the 1950s, they have been dining on corn, soy, and wheat, which have little omega-3 and lots of omega-6 fatty acids. Omega-6 fatty acids from meat and dairy foods can cause inflammation, blood clotting, and cell proliferation, if consumed in excess of omega3s. Omega-3s regulate inflammation, promote orderly cell growth, and help thin your blood. Grass-fed beef and dairy is healthier for you, as is free-range poultry and eggs.
Old-Fashioned Farming Results in Healthier Animals and Food:
Cows and chickens not only have a non-grass diet, but they also receive injections of growth hormones, to increase productivity. These hormones may be leaching into nonorganic dairy products, and we don't yet know how that affects our health. Our bodies need a balance between omega-3 and omega-6, for optimum health. We don't need extra growth hormones and an excess of omega-6 fatty acids, and neither do the domestic animals that we raise for food. Organic meats, dairy, and poultry are raised with a balanced diet, and are produced at a natural rate. When our food is healthier, so are we.
Go With a Lean Variety of Entrees:
You may be used to having two or three ounces of red meat at your main daily meal. That's a lot of animal fat, and it raises your risk for colon cancer. Choose lean cuts of red meats, and just have two or three small servings a week. Try having a variety of lean white meats (chicken or turkey), and sample some fish at least once a week. Experiment with some wonderful vegetarian entrees: gumbo, baked eggplant, portobello and asparagus pasta, to name a few. Try some Asian dishes that use meat just for taste, such as Torizosui (Japanese rice and chicken soup) or Jiaozi - Chinese Dumplings.
A Healthier Menu For Everyday:
A steady diet of hamburgers, steak, beef brisket, pot roast, pork chops, and fried crispy meats raises your risk for cancer, heart disease, and obesity. Try to have smaller portions of any kind of meats, or limit meats to just two or three meals each week. This type of diet cuts down on fat, calories, and cancer risk. Have breakfast at the Whole Grains and Fruit Café, lunch at Portobello Place, and supper at the Skimpy Steak! You'll be healthier, leaner, and live longer on a balanced diet.
Sources:
Cho E, Spiegelman D, Hunter DJ, et al. Premenopausal fat intake and risk of breast cancer. J Natl Cancer Inst 2003;95:1079-85.
Boyd NF, Stone J, Vogt KN, Connelly BS, Martin LJ, Minkin S. Dietary fat and breast cancer risk revisited: a meta-analysis of the published literature. Br J Cancer. 2003 Nov 3;89(9):1672-85.
De Stefani E, Ronco A, Mendilaharsu M, Guidobono M, Deneo-Pellegrini H. Meat intake, heterocyclic amines, and risk of breast cancer: a case-control study in Uruguay. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 1997;6(8):573-81.
USDA. Inside the Pyramid: Meat and Beans. Why is it important to make lean or low-fat choices from the Meat and Beans group? Last updated on October 08, 2008.
