In recent days, you may have come across alarming videos or graphics on social media that say: «Cooked ham is now classified as a type 1 carcinogen by the World Health Organization». Many of you have asked us to clarify. There is one important thing to say right away: it’s nothing new. The classification of processed and processed meat as “type 1 carcinogens” was confirmed by the WHO inOctober 2015. So no, it’s not a new breaking study, but news that’s more than 10 years old.
What the WHO says about cooked ham and all processed meats
First of all, let’s define the “culprit”. In the processed meat category there is not only the cooked ham. We also find other cured meats such as raw ham, salami, bresaola, speck, bacon and mortadella. But also frankfurters, sausages, corned beef and dried meat.
In general, we are talking about all non-fresh meat that has undergone treatment enhance its flavor or keep it longersuch as salting, curing, fermenting or smoking.
In 2015, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) analyzed all available scientific literature. The result? It has been found that consuming processed meats increases the likelihood of contracting the colon cancer. For this reason, they were included in the Group 1that of “certain carcinogens”.
And now some of you may be wondering: “So if I eat cooked ham will I get cancer?”. No, it doesn’t work like that. “Type 1 carcinogen” means that it increases your chance of getting a type of cancer, not that it is 100% certain that you will get it. Consequently, the more you eat, the more likely you are to contract cancer and vice versa: the less you consume, the less likely it is.
Why they are carcinogenic and how to behave
The reason is to be found above all in the high concentration of heme ironOf salt And preservatives (such as nitrites and nitrates). In addition to the fact that those who consume a lot of processed meat are likely not to follow a correct diet, low in fiber and vegetables, which further increases the risk factors. The fact is that, regardless of the primary cause, those who consume a lot of processed meat are more likely to contract colon cancer.
This is where it gets most confusing. Also the cigarette smoke and thealcohol I’m in Group 1. Does that mean ham is as dangerous as smoking or alcohol? Absolutely not.
Group 1 tells us how solid the scientific evidence isnot how potent the carcinogen is. Smoking and alcohol are much more “potent” and aggressive carcinogens than processed meats; they increase your chance of getting sick much more drastically than a slice of ham does.
What should we do? The guidelines of World Cancer Research Fund and those for healthy eating are clear: you don’t need to drastically eliminate everything, but you have to limit as much as possible the consumption of processed meats. Just like with alcohol and smoking, “less is better“.
