FOOD IN THE NEWS
FOOD IN THE NEWS
WORDS: JENNIFER BOZON. IMAGE: ISTOCKPHOTO.COM
PROCESSED MEAT POSES RISK TO ASTHMA PATIENTS
Love a bacon butty after a long run? The health implications might be worse for asthma sufferers. A study of nearly 1,000 French people has found that eating lots of processed meat a week is a risk to asthma sufferers due to the potential effects of a preservative called nitrite, found in foods such as sausages, ham and salami, which aggravates the airways. Published in the journal Thorax, the study comprised 42% asthma sufferers and 58% non-sufferers, with both parties having taken part in a survey about food and health from 2003 to 2013. Asthma patients who consumed more than four portions of processed meat a week saw their symptoms worsen by the end of the study. However, experts say the results do not prove diet is defi nitely to blame. Cured meats have long been associated with increased risk of chronic diseases, such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes and cancer, so we should aim to follow a balanced diet, containing no more than 70g of cured or red meat a day.