A team of international scientists have at last delivered their long-awaited verdict on red meat, after a definitive study of eating habits.
The recommendation comes after the study of the eating habits of half a million people came to the conclusion that beef, lamb, pork, veal and their processed varieties such as ham and bacon, increase the risk of bowel cancer.
According to the study those who eat two portions a day, the equivalent to a bacon sandwich and a fillet steak, increase their risk of bowel cancer by 35% over those who eat just one portion a week.
The European study into cancer and nutrition (<<>>), was funded by the <<>>, <<>> and <<>>.
The study monitored the diets of men and women in 10 countries for five years, and found that eating fibre, in the form of vegetables, fruit and wholegrain cereals, lessened the risk of meat eating and that a diet which contained fish least every other day, was protective.
Sheila Bingham, one of the authors, from the <<>> in Cambridge, says it has long been suspected that high levels of red and processed meat increase the risk of bowel cancer. She says the study is one of the largest studies worldwide and the first from Europe to show the strong relationship.
According to the <<>> those in the high-risk group were eating more than 160g of meat a day. An average fillet steak weighs about 140g and an average burger about 100g. The smallest chipolata sausages weigh about 20g each, but premium sausages are around 40g.