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Yoliswa Dube Features Reporter
BACON and sausages have been on the Saturday breakfast menu in many households across Zimbabwe for ages. The Saturday morning meal has been made special with the inclusion of bacon, among other processed meats, fried eggs, baked beans, toast and grilled tomatoes. For years, scores of families have enjoyed the special meal after a long working week or at school without worrying about their health.

In fact, it has never been an issue as families across generations have had the same sort of breakfast without any recorded problem. Children have been raised on polony, salami and other processed meats which they have taken to school as packed lunch or break time meal. Again, generation upon generation has fed their children these meats including red meat on a daily basis without worrying about health implications.

But following a report by the World Health Organisation (WHO) classifying processed meats as one of the products likely to cause cancer which has prompted the government to consider banning processed meats altogether, many have been left puzzled with most accusing research centres of causing unnecessary alarm.

Others are contemplating changing their health lifestyles.

“Where is it coming from all of a sudden? We have been eating processed meats for years and have never had problems. I just don’t understand how overnight people start saying ban processed meats when we have been eating them for all these years without any problem,” said Thandiwe Ncube, a Bulawayo resident.

She said after religiously eating processed meats for years, it was unfair for research centres to disseminate “falsehoods” which unsettle people. “It feels as though someone is trying to remain relevant by coming up with such reports. I don’t see anything wrong with processed meats. We’ve been eating them for years with absolutely no problems,” said Ncube.

According to a WHO report, processed meats have been singled out as causing close to 34,000 cancer-related deaths per year worldwide. Processed meat is defined as meat that has been modified to either extend its shelf life or change the taste. The main methods are smoking, curing, or adding salt or preservatives.

Processed meats include bacon, sausages, hot dogs, salami, polony and ham, as well as canned meat and meat-based sauces. The WHO’s International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) says there is enough evidence to rank processed meats as group one carcinogens because of a causal link with bowel, prostate and pancreatic cancer.

“I look at it as a warning. It would be very foolish of us to ignore such research results. The least anyone can do is review their diet and try to minimise on processed meats. I think it would make a big difference if people ate healthy fresh foods. They would prevent developing illnesses that can be avoided,” said Cleo Marimo, another Bulawayo resident.

The Ministry of Health and Child Care is now making the necessary consultations before possibly implementing the ban on the sale and consumption of processed meats. The IARC’s experts concluded that each 50 gramme portion of processed meat eaten daily increased the risk of colorectal cancer by 18 percent.

Fifty grammes of processed meat are the equivalent of one sausage, or less than two slices of bacon a day. Dr Atli Arnarson, a nutritionist, said processed meat is generally considered unhealthy and has been linked with diseases such as cancer and heart disease. “There’s no doubt that processed meat contains many harmful chemicals that aren’t naturally present in fresh meat. Processed meat is meat that’s been preserved by curing, salting, smoking, drying or canning. It has consistently been linked with harmful effects on health. This is a fact that health-conscious people have been aware of for decades,” said Dr Arnarson.

He said eating high amounts of processed meat is more common among people with unhealthy lifestyle habits.

“In fact, smoking is more common among those who eat lots of processed meat. Their intake of fruit and vegetables is also much lower. Most observational studies on processed meat and health outcomes try to correct these factors. However, these methods are never perfect,” said Dr Arnarson. He said it is possible that the links found between processed meat and disease are partly due to the fact that people who eat processed meat tend to do other things that are not associated with good health.

“Nevertheless, studies consistently find strong links between processed meat consumption and various chronic diseases. Eating processed meat is associated with increased risk of many chronic diseases including hypertension, heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, bowel and stomach cancer,” said the nutritionist.

However, the studies on processed meat consumption in humans are all observational in nature.

Dr Arnarson said research does not explicitly prove the direct link between processed meats and the diseases they allegedly cause.

“Researchers can show that people who eat processed meat are more likely to get these diseases but they can’t prove that the processed meat caused them. Even so, the evidence is convincing because the links are strong and consistent,” he said.

Research shows that N-nitroso compounds are cancer-causing substances believed to be responsible for some of the adverse effects of processed meat consumption. They are formed from sodium nitrite that is added to processed meat products.

Sodium nitrite is used as an additive to preserve the red or pink colour of meat, to improve flavour by suppressing fat oxidation and to prevent the growth of bacteria, improving flavour and cutting the risk of food poisoning.

“Nitrite and related compounds, such as nitrate, are also found in other foods. For example, nitrate is found in relatively high levels in some vegetables and may even be beneficial for health. However, not all nitrite is the same. Nitrite in processed meat can turn into harmful N-nitroso compounds, the most widely studied of which are nitrosamines,” said Dr Arnarson.

He said processed meat is the main dietary source of nitrosamines with other sources including contaminated drinking water, tobacco smoke, salted and pickled foods.

“Nitrosamines are mainly formed when processed meat products are exposed to high heat (above 130°C), such as when frying bacon or grilling sausages. For this reason, eating a lot of processed meat products for a long period (years or decades) may increase the risk of chronic disease, especially cancer. However, eating them occasionally is fine. Just make sure not to let them dominate your diet and avoid eating them every day,” Dr Arnarson explained.

Minister of Health and Child Care, Dr David Parirenyatwa, said his ministry had received the report on the dangers of processed meats. He said they were carrying out the necessary consultations at a local level to weigh the possibilities of the ban.

“The report warns on the dangers of these processed meats, which is why we’ll have to go over it as government and come up with a possible way forward. What you’ve to note is these decisions aren’t just made prematurely, there are a lot of issues that have to be considered first but for now the least we can do is advise people to watch what they eat and not expose themselves to food that can have effects on their health,” said Dr Parirenyatwa.