A survey of more than 2,200 people conducted by YouGov for the World Cancer Research Fund found that two thirds of people in mainland Britain are still unaware of the link between red and processed meats and bowel cancer.

Marilyn Gentry, chief executive of the WCRF, reminds us that experts’ advice is that the best amount of processed meat to eat is none at all. “But if people don’t know about the link between bowel cancer and processed meat they are not in a position to make informed choices. There’s still a lot of work to be done to spread the message about how people can reduce the risk.”

Cancer Research UK, the biggest charity in the UK, has an annual income of over £475 million. Why are they not putting more money in to educating people in order to prevent cancer developing in the first place, rather than spending millions on developing cures?

As a bid to cut their carbon footprint, the NHS has pledged to provide more meat-free meals.

Dr David Pencheon, director of the NHS sustainable development unit, told the Guardian “we should not expect to see meat on every menu. We’d like higher levels of fresh food, and probably higher levels of fresh fruit and veg, and more investment in a local economy.” This is terrific news not only for the environment but also for the nation’s health.

A Which? survey in 2007 found that one in three people were unhappy with hospital food. A quarter of the 1000 patients surveyed said the food was so bad they had to buy their own; one patient also reported their horror at being served pie and chips when they could hardly even manage to drink fluids due to tonsillitis and an abscess.

As if the food served in the hospital canteens are not bad enough (often serving pizzas, pies, chips and burgers) there are even some hospitals which have a Burger King within the grounds, such as Southampton general hospital, Addenbrookes hospital in Cambridge, Mayday University hospital in Croydon and Rotherham general hospital. Visiting these hospitals could actually increase your risk of life-threatening conditions such as heart disease and cancer!

Has your hospital visit increased your risk of disease?

Considering the release of the World Cancer Research Fund report in 2007 which gave the stern warning that there is no safe level of processed meat consumption with regards to cancer risk, it is shocking to discover that any hospital would allow a Burger King outlet anywhere near their patients. In particular, Addenbrooke Hospital has an Oncology Centre, linked with six other cancer units in the region.

So, let’s hope that this news from the NHS will result in lots of fresh, healthy fruit, vegetables and whole grains appearing on hospital plates from now on, and happier, faster healing patients as a consequence (not to mention a healthier planet as well of course).

Find out more about food choices that are sustainable, equitable and environmentally responsible.

Following the World Cancer Research Fund report released in 2007, one in ten people have tried to cut down on their meat intake.

The World Cancer Research Fund report revealed that eating two rashers of bacon and two sausages a day resulted in a 63% higher risk of bowel cancer.

As you would expect, of the 2,124 people who took part in the online survey, those over 55 were most likely to have tried to cut down on their processed meat intake. Of those over 55, 37%  said they had tried to reduce their intake compared to just 6% of younger people.

It is encouraging to see that people are taking notice of the advice in the report. However, as long as supermarkets continue to offer cheap meat, such as Asda’s 2p sausages, young and low income people are unlikely to change their dietary habits.

The subsidies and environmental destruction that allow cheap meat to remain on our shelves needs to be stopped. If we sold meat at it’s true cost, we would see a reduction in meat consumption simply because people would not be able to afford it any more. In the report ‘Eating More Veggies Can Help Save Energy’, Simone Spearman points out ‘If water used by the meat industry [in the United States] were not subsidized by taxpayers, common hamburger meat would cost $35 a pound’. This is just taking in to account water use, let alone pollution, energy use, climate change… McDonalds charges around $3.50 for a quarter pounder with cheese in the US.

A major report by the World Cancer Research Fund will yet again prove the link between red meat and cancer.

We’ve heard it over and over again, but here is more evidence to prove to the meat industry, that along with the tobacco industry, they are killers.

21 experts have spent 5 years researching this report which will warn the public of the dangers of pork, beef and lamb. As one in three cancers are diet related, it’s time for people to think carefully about what they eat or face the consequences. Going vegetarian is a small price to pay to avoid operations, months of debilitating chemotherapy and an uncertain future.

Other serious cancer risks are alcohol and obesity. As meat and dairy are the main sources of unhealthy saturated fats which can lead to obesity, a vegetarian or vegan diet is an easy way to protect yourself from cancer.

Read Observer article

Anyone catch the new ad for Iceland? They have an amazing new deal for all those lovers of summer barbecues - just 20p for a sausage, drumstick or burger!

Hard to believe isn’t it? The mere thought of it makes me want to vomit. Twenty-five pieces of meat for just £5. Or, even better, buy the 60 sausage pack for 8p per sausage!

How is it possible to produce such cheap meat? First of all, the animals will have been raised in the most horrendous conditions, crammed into a factory farm and forced to live the most miserable life imaginable. Secondly, those animals will have been fed cheap soy and grains, probably genetically engineered and probably from Latin America; thus contributing to the destruction of our last remaining forests. And thirdly, and you may want to skim this bit, the sausages for sure will contain huge amounts of saturated fat, mechanically recovered meat and if you’re lucky, pig jowls (including the pituitary glands where drugs and diseases are found). Sausages were, after all, invented to use the offcuts of animals.

And if you still don’t have a problem with inviting your friends and family around for a barbeque of this cheap disgusting ‘meat’, consider that that you are contributing to their early death.

Following an in depth study, the World Cancer Research Fund told us earlier this year that there really isn’t a safe level of consumption of processed meats. Professor Wiseman said: “We are more sure now than ever before that eating processed meat increases your risk of bowel cancer and this is why WCRF recommends that people avoid eating it. The evidence is that whether you are talking about bacon, ham or pastrami, the safest amount to eat is none at all. When you consider that eating 50g of processed meat a day can increase your risk of bowel cancer by about a fifth, it is clear that you can make a positive difference by cutting out as much as possible. We do recommend that people avoid it completely.”

So, if anyone invites you to a barbeque and you spot an Iceland bag, you seriously want to give some thought to whether you really are considered a friend, or whether perhaps there is an ulterior motive! Perhaps you weren’t forgiven for that little faux pas after all…

The World Cancer Research Fund advised today that the safest amount of processed meats, such as bacon and sausages, people should consume is none at all. Their research has shown a strong link between processed meats and bowel cancer.

Professor Martin Wiseman, Medical and Scientific Adviser for World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF), has warned people that if they eat 50g of processed meat a day then their bowel cancer risk is increased by 20 per cent.

WCRF advise that people avoid all processed meats.

There is also convincing evidence to show that red meat such as beef, lamb and pork cause bowel cancer which is the third most common type of cancer in the UK, with almost 100 new cases being diagnosed every day. Safest option - go veg!