{"id":106452,"date":"2025-08-24T11:46:07","date_gmt":"2025-08-24T11:46:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/106452\/"},"modified":"2025-08-24T11:46:07","modified_gmt":"2025-08-24T11:46:07","slug":"surprising-study-finds-meat-may-protect-against-cancer-risk","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/106452\/","title":{"rendered":"Surprising Study Finds Meat May Protect Against Cancer Risk"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\"Red<\/a>New research challenges long-standing assumptions about protein, finding that eating animal-based sources is not tied to higher mortality. Credit: Stock<\/p>\n

A large study found that animal protein is not linked to higher mortality and may even help lower cancer-related deaths.<\/p>\n

Eating foods that contain animal protein is not connected to a higher chance of death and may even provide some protection against cancer-related mortality, according to new research.<\/p>\n

The findings, published in Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism, are based on an analysis of data from nearly 16,000 adults aged 19 and older who participated in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHAMES III).<\/p>\n

Researchers looked at how much animal and plant protein participants consumed and compared those patterns with their risk of dying from cancer, heart disease, or any cause. The results revealed no elevated risk of death linked to greater animal protein intake. Instead, the data pointed to a small but meaningful decrease in cancer-related deaths among people who consumed more animal protein.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a lot of confusion around protein \u2013 how much to eat, what kind and what it means for long-term health. This study adds clarity, which is important for anyone trying to make informed, evidence-based decisions about what they eat,\u201d explains Stuart Phillips, Professor and Chair of the Department of Kinesiology at McMaster University, who supervised the research.<\/p>\n

Ensuring Reliable Results<\/p>\n

To ensure reliable results, the team employed advanced statistical methods, including the National Cancer Institute (NCI) method and multivariate Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) modelling, to estimate long-term dietary intake and minimize measurement error.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was imperative that our analysis used the most rigorous, gold standard methods to assess usual intake and mortality risk. These methods allowed us to account for fluctuations in daily protein intake and provide a more accurate picture of long-term eating habits,\u201d says Phillips.<\/p>\n

The researchers found no associations between total protein, animal protein, or plant protein and risk of death from any cause, cardiovascular disease, or cancer. When both plant and animal protein were included in the analysis, the results remained consistent, suggesting that plant protein has a minimal impact on cancer mortality, while animal protein may offer a small protective effect.<\/p>\n

Broader Implications<\/p>\n

Observational studies like this one cannot prove cause and effect; however, they are valuable for identifying patterns and associations in large populations. Combined with decades of clinical trial evidence, the findings support the inclusion of animal proteins as part of a healthy dietary pattern.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen both observational data like this and clinical research are considered, it\u2019s clear both animal and plant protein foods promote health and longevity,\u201d says lead researcher Yanni Papanikolaou, MPH, president, Nutritional Strategies.<\/p>\n

Reference: \u201cAnimal and plant protein usual intakes are not adversely associated with all-cause, cardiovascular disease\u2013, or cancer-related mortality risk: an NHANES III analysis\u201d by Yanni Papanikolaou, Stuart M. Phillips and Victor L. Fulgoni III, 16 July 2025, Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism.
DOI: 10.1139\/apnm-2023-0594<\/a><\/p>\n

This research was funded by the National Cattlemen\u2019s Beef Association (NCBA), a contractor to the Beef Checkoff. NCBA was not involved in the study design, data collection and analysis or publication of the findings.<\/p>\n

Never miss a breakthrough: Join the SciTechDaily newsletter.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"New research challenges long-standing assumptions about protein, finding that eating animal-based sources is not tied to higher mortality.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":106453,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[8112,97,70487,269,5599],"class_list":["post-106452","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health","tag-diet","tag-health","tag-mcmaster-university","tag-nutrition","tag-public-health"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/106452","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=106452"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/106452\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/106453"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=106452"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=106452"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=106452"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}