1. In 2012, the Harvard School of Public Health evaluated over 120,000 meat eaters. After 28 years, those who ate the most meat (2 servings a day) had a 30% increased risk of dying compared to those who did not eat red meat in this study.
2. In a 2010 study published in the Journal Circulation, 84,000 nurses were evaluated for 26 years. Those who ate 3 servings of meat per day had a 29% increased risk of chronic heart issues compared to those who ate only half a serving per day.
3. Red meat is high in an amino acid called carnitine. When the carnitine is digested by the microbes in the gut, they produce a toxic by-product called trimethylamine-N-oxide or TMAO. In a 2013 study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, 4000 otherwise healthy patients who had the highest levels of TMAO had a 50% increased risk of a cardiovascular event over the next three years.
4. In 2011, the American Institute for Cancer Research suggested that you should reduce consumption of cooked red meat to less than 18 ounces per week and avoid processed or packaged meats to reduce cancer risk.
5. In a 2012 study in the journal Stroke, 125,000 people were followed over a period of 22 years. For every one to two ounces of processed meat eaten per day, there was a 30% increased risk of a stroke.
6. In a 2011 study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Harvard researchers followed more than 200,000 men and women for 28 years. For every two ounces of processed meat eaten, there was a 32% increased risk of type II diabetes.
7. It takes 7-8 pounds of feed to produce just one pound of beef. It takes 1000 tons of water to make just one ton of grain and the vast majority of grain is produced to feed beef and pork. As our population grows, this way of eating is simply not sustainable.
Nutrition Action Health Letter. June 2013 Cover Story.