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How Big Is the Cancer Risk from Processed Meat?

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I quantify the risks of colon and rectal cancers from eating bacon, ham, hot dogs, sausage, and lunch meat. In 2018, arguably the most prestigious cancer research institution in the world, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), part of the World Health Organization, published its report on processed meat, concluding that foods like bacon, ham, hot dogs, lunch meat, and sausage are cancer-causing, classifying processed meat as a Group 1 carcinogen. “These findings,” concluded the director of the agency, “further support current public health recommendations to limit intake of meat.” Critics questioned putting processed meat in the same carcinogenic classification as asbestos and tobacco. Or, as a pesticide company roughly put it, how can eating processed meat be in the same category as mustard gas? As I discuss in my video How Much Cancer Does Processed Meat Cause? , the classifications only relate to the strength of evidence that the agent causes cancer or not, ...
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The Backlash to IARC’s Report that Meat Probably Causes Cancer

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How did the meat industry, government, and cancer organizations respond to the confirmation that processed meat, like bacon, ham, hot dogs, and lunch meat, causes cancer? “It is rare, in the history of nations, that one finds good reasons to render homage to the generosity and altruism of governments and those in power: the birth of the International Agency for Research on Cancer [IARC] presents one of those rare occasions.” It all started with a single letter from a grieving husband, relating his wife’s suffering after being diagnosed with cancer, cascading into an open letter calling for governments to devote half of 1% of their military budgets to fight for life by attacking one of the greatest plagues that weighs on humanity. And 18 months later, the IARC was born in the World Health Organization. What was its overarching motive? Cancer prevention. As I discuss in my video, IARC: Processed Meat Like Bacon Causes Cancer , the IARC is best known for its monographs, book-sized...
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Is Personalized Genetic Testing Worth It?

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Overrated “precision medicine” may just be serving vested interests, and consumer DNA testing can be useless—or even worse. Today, you can get your DNA sequenced—the letters of your entire genetic code spelled out—for about a thousand dollars, a bargain compared to the $100 million or so it cost 20 years ago. And for around a hundred dollars, you can get partial DNA sequencing. Direct-to-consumer genetic testing is “only a click away,” like 23andMe, for “ancestry, health, love…and more.” Unfortunately, many tests that are available today haven’t been validated properly. And, as a result, the buyer may be buying something “that is ultimately useless.” Or, results may just be just flat-out wrong. There is growing public demand for direct-to-consumer genetic tests, but when put to the test, researchers found an “alarmingly high false-positive rate.” Test results indicated that people carried a high-risk gene, but it simply wasn’t true. And this happened 40% of the time, especially wi...
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Are Nuts and Peanut Butter Linked to a Longer Life?

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Why are nuts associated with decreased mortality, but not peanut butter? According to the largest study of risk factors for death in human history, a poor diet causes more deaths than anything. Cigarettes only kill about 8 million people a year, whereas humanity’s diet kills millions more, as you can see below and at 0:20 in my video Do the Health Benefits of Peanut Butter Include Longevity? . What are the worst aspects of our diet? Processed meat? Twinkies? Soda? No, the five deadliest things about our diet are : not enough fruit, not enough whole grains, not enough vegetables, too much salt, and not enough nuts and seeds, as shown here and at 0:42 in my video . Nuts should come as no surprise since interventional trials have shown that eating nuts improves artery function, and arterial diseases like heart disease are among our leading killers. But that’s not all nuts can do. They may also improve blood sugar control, lower cholesterol, suppress inflammation, reduce oxidative st...
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Does Less Protein Increase FGF21 for Longevity?

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Fasting and exercise can boost the longevity hormone FGF21, but what can we eat—or avoid eating—to get similar effects? Over a century ago, fasting was hailed not only as a means of combating “cerebral lassitude,” but also for the “prolongation of healthy longevity.” If that turns out to be true, FGF21 might be a missing link. FGF21 is characterized as a “systemic enhancer of longevity.” It can be boosted through prolonged fasting, but thankfully, there are other, less drastic measures, such as more carbs or less protein. Give people lots of starchy foods, and their FGF21 levels shoot up. The healthiest sources would likely be whole grains and beans, since butyrate appears to boost FGF21, too, and we get that from fiber. That’s one of the things our good gut bugs make from fiber-rich foods. Circulating FGF21 levels also increase dramatically after eating a lower-protein diet—more than a 150% increase within four weeks. By the way, “lower protein” simply means reducing intake...
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How to Boost Your Longevity Hormone

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What can we do to boost the longevity hormone FGF21? In the year 2000, a new human hormone was discovered . It was the 21st documented fibroblast growth factor, so they called it FGF21. Since its discovery, FGF21 has become recognized as a key agent for the promotion of metabolic and arterial health, leanness, and longevity. Inject it into fat monkeys, and they lose body weight without reducing their food intake. And they don’t just lose a little weight—they have a 27% drop in body fat while eating the same amount. In mice, it increases their lifespan by 30 to 40%, which is comparable to lifelong caloric restriction, and, again, they achieve this without decreasing their food intake. The researchers conclude that FGF21 could possibly be used as a hormone therapy to extend mammals’ lifespans, which has gotten Big Pharma salivating, raising the question: “Can aging be ‘drugged’?” That’s not all FGF21 can do, either. “The idea that one drug can treat obesity, diabetes, dyslipidemia...
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How Prebiotic Foods Keep Your Microbiome Healthy

We co-evolved a symbiosis with our good gut bacteria, but we aren’t holding up our end of the bargain. If you look at the classics—the most frequently cited articles in the scientific nutrition literature—the original glycemic index paper ranks tenth, cited more than a thousand times. Learning about fruits, vegetables, and cancer prevention comes in seventh. But hitting the top four, cited more than 2,000 times: “Dietary Modulation of the Human Colonic Microbiota: Introducing the Concept of Prebiotics.” As I discuss in my video How to Keep Your Microbiome Healthy with Prebiotic Foods , prebiotics are the food components that nourish and feed the good bacteria in our gut, like fiber and resistant starch. Eating high-fiber plant foods is generally “a good foundation for a prebiotic-rich diet.” Once upon a time, fiber was thought of as just the undigested part of food, known only for bulking up stools and keeping bowels regular. Then researchers discovered an array of receptors in ...
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