Some of the more zealous and vocal public health professionals claim without much reservation that red meat and the products derived thereof are intrinsically unhealthy foods. They argue that their intake should be drastically restricted to small amounts or even avoided. Reference is thereby given to some high-profile scientific studies, such as the EAT-Lancet report (proclaiming red meat as an “unhealthy food”, together with sugar) and Global Burden of Disease 2019 study (setting the minimal threshold for harm at a daily intake at zero gram). In addition, the IARC report on red meat and colon cancer by the World Health Organization (WHO) is often mentioned.
This is, however, insufficient to underpin strong statements about unhealthiness. As is argued elsewhere, there is no solid case to link the intake of red meat to diseases of modernity that characterize Westernized societies (cancer, heart attacks, diabetes, etc.), at least not unambiguously and causally so. We should bear in mind that meat is an ancestral food that has been part of our evolutionary diets, which makes it a highly unlikely cause of modern disease. Provided that meat has been prepared safely and consumed within wholesome dietary patterns, its consumption should not be seen as a health concern. At the same time, red and processed meats provide various benefits, among which vital nutrients that are already limiting, even in Western populations.
“For a modern disease to be related to an old-fashioned food is one of the most ludicrous things I have ever heard in my life” – Peter Cleave, Surgeon Captain (1906-1983)
Taken together, the reasonable consumption of meat and meat products is a net positive for health, especially in vulnerable populations such as the young and the elderly. That being said, there are, of course, unhealthy ways to process, prepare, and consume meat, which should be avoided. In addition, dietary responses vary a lot between groups and individuals. For instance, people with haemochromatosis will need to pay attention to their haem intake and may have to moderate their red meat intake.
