Talk about health

I hadn't intended to talk about the subject of today's article when I was planning what to say. (You're probably suprised that planning came into it!) But as happens occasionally, the media created a bit of a splash in the UK yesterdayand changed my thoughts. And it's all about what causes cancer. The answer, according to a report out? - meat, specifially bacon and red meat.

So, there you have it. Don't eat bacon ever again and cancer will be banished across the land. At least, that is what the papers and TV stations would have us believe. It's a great headline - short and to the point and easy to remember. From a marketing point of view it's a winner. Sadly, from your health's point of view, maybe not so clear cut.

My advanced years and development of a sceptical muscle lead me to suggest all is not so simple or straightforward. Your body is a complex and wonderful thing where the causes of illness and disease are usually the coming together of a series of factors - not just one.

And what about the research that produced this wonderfully simple cause and effect revelation? What groundbreaking scientific expose revealed the answer so simply?

Apparently the authors looked over research done by other people during the past ten years or so. They did nothing new! And it wasn't every piece of relevant research either. They seem to have discounted quite a bit of the available research to narrow down the volume of work. Is it my twisted view that says they might have ignored work that didn't correspond to their feeling of what the outcome should be? Perhaps.

They chose the work to be reviewed and they did nothing new.

How about the results? No bacon and no red meat. Well, not quite. You're allowed 500g of red meat per week. Being a believer in moderation in all things, I feel that is reasonable as a general rule. The problem is that to take that to the conclusion that cancer and meat-eating is a direct link doen't ring true with me.

There are many other factors involved from smoking to overindulgence in both food and alcohol, pollution, stress, genetics and much more. To pick out one and give it the emphasis of this report seems a little extreme.

Then, to put all the blame on the consumer is wrong. The supermarkets are crammed with an array of processed meat including bacon, cooked meats, all kinds of smoked meat and the rest. Is the curing and smoking process at fault? If they are killing the population as this report states, should the government not be curbing manufacture and sale of these products. Instead, there is silence from that quarter. Not a word from the people who normally try to limit our enjoyment and freedom at every turn. Strange, isn't it?

My view, for what it's worth is to take on board the warning and perhaps cut down on our consumption of such products. Be more aware of what goes into producing them and initiate some new research into the links between meats processing and cancer - to resolve what they might be if there are any.

It's all too easy to be carried away by the headline. But, take a step back and have a closer look at the details of the story. It isn't that I want to dismiss it completely, more that it needs to be put into perspective. Perhaps there is truth in the conclusions. However, it's too soon to say one way or another.

What do the government experts say? So far, nothing at all. Perhaps it is just another report in a plethora of conflicting health stories. Wait and see. That's my opinion. And don't panic!

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