Intended for healthcare professionals

Editor's Choice

Red meat: another inconvenient truth

BMJ 2017; 357 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.j2278 (Published 11 May 2017) Cite this as: BMJ 2017;357:j2278
  1. Fiona Godlee, editor in chief
  1. The BMJ
  1. fgodlee{at}bmj.com

Evidence continues to emerge linking high meat consumption with increased mortality. This week Arash Etemadi and colleagues provide further support for the association (doi:10.1136/bmj.j1957). Their population based cohort study links high intake of red and processed meat with increased deaths from all causes and from nine specific ones.

Dietary epidemiology studies are of course fraught with pitfalls. At their worst they attract ridicule for supporting every conceivable association, fuelling public confusion and fake news. This week’s study is large, with more than 7.5 million American person years of …

View Full Text