Processed Meats
Any sort of meat that has been smoked, salted, cured, or canned is considered processed meat. Red meats are mostly processed meats. Red meat that has undergone processing includes:
- sausage
- ham
- corned beef
- hot dogs
- beef jerky
Processed meat production techniques may produce carcinogens. For instance, nitrite meat curing can produce N-nitroso compounds, which are known to cause cancer. Moreover, smoking meat can produce cancer-causing polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs).
A 2019 research [3] found that processed meat is a significant contributor to the risk of colorectal cancer. It is related to stomach cancer, according to another 2019 review. A 2018 review [4] also confirmed that eating a lot of processed meat was linked to an elevated risk of breast cancer [5]