As if red meats didn't have enough bad press, having been fingered as a cause of heart disease and some cancers... here's some more which names them as a risk factor of diabetes.
Red meats, particularly the processed varieties such as bacon and hot dogs might actually raise your risks of getting type 2 diabetes. Not surprisingly, the team who undertook the study saw that the more red meat you ate, the larger the risk for disease.
Type 2 diabetes affects over 25 million Americans and has long been associated with carrying too much weight, and is a disease where the body can't produce enough insulin, or the body cells don't use the insulin they get properly.
Insulin works to assist the body in using glucose (also known as blood sugar) to produce energy. If blood sugar stays high as it does with diabetes, problems like heart disease, blindness as well as kidney and nerve damage can be the result. This is why it is so important to identify diabetes and follow whatever treatment plan you and your doctor have created.
In the most recent study, subjects who ate a single serving (about the size of a deck of playing cards) of non-processed red meat (hamburger, steak) a day had a 20% higher chance of getting type 2 diabetes.
Participants who ate half the amount of meat, but of the processed variety (hot dog, 2 slices of bacon, bologna or salami) had a 51% higher chance of being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.
This current research included information on 37,063 men and just over 167,000 women. As part of the current study, the team also conducted a literature review analysis that included data from the most recent research and earlier projects.
Even though the amount of meat intake isn't very large, the risk associated with it is rather high. The findings of this research are important considering the increasing numbers diagnosed with diabetes and the ever-increasing amount of red meat consumed by most people.
Just how red meats might impact the risk of diabetes is unknown. It might be that the processed meats high nitrate content ups the risk of insulin resistance. This is a pre-diabetic condition that happens when the body cells become resistant to insulin. What's more, processed meats have high levels of iron, with high stores of iron in the body also being linked to a higher risk of diabetes.
The team suggests people keep their intake of processed and red meats as low as possible. Try not to make the meat the center of your plate and instead load up on healthier sources of protein like nuts, low fat dairy (yogurt), whole grains, chicken and fish.
It's clear that processed meats are much more dangerous than the unprocessed variety, though these are by no means harmless. It's important therefore that your diet changes from being reliant on red meat for protein to include more diverse ways of eating.
The meat industry disputes the research findings - stating they're suggestive of an association but not proof of cause and effect. They insist there is a large body of research that shows lean beef is an important element of a healthy diet, and that the most important advice for cutting the chance of type 2 diabetes is to keep your weight under control and be active.
Experts continue to recommend that the best eating plan for those with a risk factor of diabetes is a personalized one, with saturated fats making up no more than 7% of your total daily calories. And while no one can say for sure that cutting out the red or processed meats will be a benefit, it's something to consider along with the other changes you're making to keep your body healthy and your risk of disease at bay.
By Kirsten Whittaker
Red meats, particularly the processed varieties such as bacon and hot dogs might actually raise your risks of getting type 2 diabetes. Not surprisingly, the team who undertook the study saw that the more red meat you ate, the larger the risk for disease.
Type 2 diabetes affects over 25 million Americans and has long been associated with carrying too much weight, and is a disease where the body can't produce enough insulin, or the body cells don't use the insulin they get properly.
Insulin works to assist the body in using glucose (also known as blood sugar) to produce energy. If blood sugar stays high as it does with diabetes, problems like heart disease, blindness as well as kidney and nerve damage can be the result. This is why it is so important to identify diabetes and follow whatever treatment plan you and your doctor have created.
In the most recent study, subjects who ate a single serving (about the size of a deck of playing cards) of non-processed red meat (hamburger, steak) a day had a 20% higher chance of getting type 2 diabetes.
Participants who ate half the amount of meat, but of the processed variety (hot dog, 2 slices of bacon, bologna or salami) had a 51% higher chance of being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.
This current research included information on 37,063 men and just over 167,000 women. As part of the current study, the team also conducted a literature review analysis that included data from the most recent research and earlier projects.
Even though the amount of meat intake isn't very large, the risk associated with it is rather high. The findings of this research are important considering the increasing numbers diagnosed with diabetes and the ever-increasing amount of red meat consumed by most people.
Just how red meats might impact the risk of diabetes is unknown. It might be that the processed meats high nitrate content ups the risk of insulin resistance. This is a pre-diabetic condition that happens when the body cells become resistant to insulin. What's more, processed meats have high levels of iron, with high stores of iron in the body also being linked to a higher risk of diabetes.
The team suggests people keep their intake of processed and red meats as low as possible. Try not to make the meat the center of your plate and instead load up on healthier sources of protein like nuts, low fat dairy (yogurt), whole grains, chicken and fish.
It's clear that processed meats are much more dangerous than the unprocessed variety, though these are by no means harmless. It's important therefore that your diet changes from being reliant on red meat for protein to include more diverse ways of eating.
The meat industry disputes the research findings - stating they're suggestive of an association but not proof of cause and effect. They insist there is a large body of research that shows lean beef is an important element of a healthy diet, and that the most important advice for cutting the chance of type 2 diabetes is to keep your weight under control and be active.
Experts continue to recommend that the best eating plan for those with a risk factor of diabetes is a personalized one, with saturated fats making up no more than 7% of your total daily calories. And while no one can say for sure that cutting out the red or processed meats will be a benefit, it's something to consider along with the other changes you're making to keep your body healthy and your risk of disease at bay.
By Kirsten Whittaker
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