A new study in America has found that pan-fried meat may increase risk of prostate cancer by as much as 40%, providing further evidence of a link between red meat and prostate cancer.
Conducted by the Keck School of Medicine of USC, the study included 2,000 men, and analysed the amount of meat consumed regularly, and how the meat was cooked.
Mariana Stern, associate professor of preventative medicine, who led the study, said they found that men who ate more than 1.5 servings of pan-fried red meat per week increased their risk of advanced prostate cancer by 30%.
However, they found that risk was increased even when poultry products were pan-fried, indicating that it was the pan-frying process, not necessarily the specific meat product that was being consumed, that led to an increased risk of advanced prostate cancer.
The researchers suspected the formation of DNA-damaging carcinogens during pan-frying could be to blame.
“HCAs are formed when sugars and amino acids are cooked at higher temperatures for longer periods of time. Other carcinogens, such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are formed during the grilling or smoking of meat. When fat from the meat drips on an open flame, the rising smoke leaves deposits of PAHs on the meat. There is strong experimental evidence that HCAs and PAHs contribute to certain cancers, including prostate cancer.”
Stern said that the study wasn’t enough to provide health recommendations to the public, but it did highlight the need for investigation into cooking methods and their link to the occurrence of prostate cancer.
You can read the entire article direct from USC website here.
