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THUMBS DOWN: THE CASE AGAINST MEAT AND FAT

Reduce your intake of meat. People who consume the most fat are more likely to get pancreatic cancer. However, the meat itself can be more to blame than the fat. Excessive consumption of grilled or fried meat, along with smoked and cured pig products, has been linked to an increased risk of pancreatic cancer, according to several studies. As previously mentioned, cured bacon, ham, sausage, cold cuts, and unprocessed raw pork significantly increased the risk of pancreatic cancer in the Louísiana research on Cajun communities.

Eating beef at least once a day increased the risk of pancreatic cancer by 50% in Japan. Eating fried and grilled meats increased the risk of pancreatic cancer, but not meats prepared in other ways, according to a Swedish research. Pancreatic cancer was twice as common in Los Angeles among people who consumed beef at least five times a week. Animals that are given a lot of fat frequently have damaged pancreatic cells.

What else may be causing pancreatic cancer if meat fat isn’t the only factor? Although the exact cause is unknown, cancer-causing nitrosamines that can develop from sodium nitrite used as a preservative in cured meats are probably to blame. The fact that vitamin-C-rich foods appear to be such a powerful preventative may be explained by the fact that vitamin C helps neutralize the nitrosamines.