Mixed
Increasing red meat consumption by at least half a serving per day over an eight-year period is associated with a 10% higher risk of all-cause mortality in the subsequent eight years, with processed meat showing a stronger association (13% higher risk) than unprocessed meat (9% higher risk).
If you are currently eating red meat, try to avoid increasing your intake by more than half a serving per day over time. If you do increase it, be aware that your risk of death increases, especially if it is processed meat. Simply reducing red meat without replacing it with healthier options may not lower your mortality risk; instead, focus on replacing red meat with healthier protein sources like nuts, fish, or legumes, or whole grains and vegetables.
An increase in total red meat consumption of at least half a serving per day was associated with a 10% higher mortality risk (pooled hazard ratio 1.10, 95% confidence interval 1.04 to 1.17). For processed and unprocessed red meat consumption, an increase of at least half a serving per day was associated with a 13% higher mortality risk (1.13, 1.04 to 1.23) and a 9% higher mortality risk (1.09, 1.02 to 1.17), respectively.
Why this rating
Large prospective cohort studies (NHS and HPFS) with repeated measures and long follow-up, though observational design limits causal inference.
Source
Association of changes in red meat consumption with total and cause specific mortality among US women and men: two prospective cohort studies
Yan Zheng et al. · BMJ · 2019
DOI 10.1136/bmj.l2110
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