Bacon why is it bad for you

As far as calories, one typical strip of bacon has about 40, which isn't bad, but the calories can add up quickly when you eat multiple pieces. Fried bacon also has more heterocyclic amines than any other meat. Heterocyclic amines are associated with an increased risk of some forms of cancer. However, these finding are not conclusive and more research is needed. It's processed meat so bacon has added flavorings and preservatives, such as sodium nitrite, which may also be linked to a greater risk of some types of cancer.

Fortunately, adding vitamin C ascorbic acid to bacon during processing prevents the conversion of sodium nitrite to nitrosamines which is also associated with cancer, although findings are inconclusive.

Several observational studies point to a correlation between heavy consumption of processed meats and ill health. The best way to keep bacon in your diet is to use it as a condiment rather than the main part of your meal. You can also buy turkey bacon that's lower in fat than regular bacon, but the flavor and texture just aren't the same as regular pork bacon.

Since bacon has a strong flavor, you don't need to add much to your dishes. You can sprinkle some crisp crumbled bacon on a green salad or use it as a flavor-adding ingredient in cooking. In addition, be sure to choose dishes that call for healthy ingredients. Looking to lose weight? But soon the meat lobby came up with a cleverer form of diversion. The scientific director of the AMI argued that a single cup of botulism would be enough to wipe out every human on the planet.

So, far from harming lives, bacon was actually saving them. In , the FDA and the US Department of Agriculture gave the meat industry three months to prove that nitrate and nitrite in bacon caused no harm.

Instead, the argument was made that nitrates and nitrites were utterly essential for the making of bacon, because without them bacon would cause thousands of deaths from botulism. The first move is: attack the science.

These meat researchers published a stream of articles casting doubt on the harmfulness of nitrates and exaggerating the risk from botulism of non-nitrated hams. Does making ham without nitrite lead to botulism? If so, it is a little strange that in the 25 years that Parma ham has been made without nitrites, there has not been a single case of botulism associated with it.

Almost all the cases of botulism from preserved food — which are extremely rare — have been the result of imperfectly preserved vegetables, such as bottled green beans, peas and mushrooms.

The botulism argument was a smokescreen. The more that consumers could be made to feel that the harmfulness of nitrate and nitrite in bacon and ham was still a matter of debate, the more they could be encouraged to calm down and keep buying bacon.

The botulism pretext was very effective. The AMI managed to get the FDA to keep delaying its three-month ultimatum on nitrites until a new FDA commissioner was appointed in — one more sympathetic to hotdogs.

The nitrite ban was shelved. The only concession the industry had made was to limit the percentage of nitrites added to processed meat and to agree to add vitamin C, which would supposedly mitigate the formation of nitrosamines, although it does nothing to prevent the formation of another known carcinogen, nitrosyl-haem.

Over the years, the messages challenging the dangers of bacon have become ever more outlandish. A French meat industry website, info-nitrites.

The bacon lobby has also found surprising allies among the natural foods brigade. The writers often mention that vegetables are the primary source of nitrates, and that human saliva is high in nitrite. One widely shared article claims that giving up bacon would be as absurd as attempting to stop swallowing. Either way, this misinformation has the potential to make thousands of people unwell. The mystifying part is why the rest of us have been so willing to accept the cover-up.

O ur deepening knowledge of its harm has done very little to damage the comforting cultural associations of bacon. While I was researching this article, I felt a rising disgust at the repeated dishonesty of the processed meat industry.

I thought about hospital wards and the horrible pain and indignity of bowel cancer. But then I remembered being in the kitchen with my father as a child on a Sunday morning, watching him fry bacon. When all the bacon was cooked, he would take a few squares of bread and fry them in the meaty fat until they had soaked up all its goodness. In theory, our habit of eating salted and cured meats should have died out as soon as home refrigerators became widespread in the midth century.

But tastes in food are seldom rational, and millions of us are still hooked on the salty, smoky, umami savour of sizzling bacon. We are sentimental about bacon in a way we never were with cigarettes, and this stops us from thinking straight.

The widespread willingness to forgive pink, nitrated bacon for causing cancer illustrates how torn we feel when something beloved in our culture is proven to be detrimental to health. The reaction of many consumers to the WHO report of was: hands off my bacon!

In , the EU considered banning the use of nitrates in organic meats. Perhaps surprisingly, the British organic bacon industry vigorously opposed the proposed nitrates ban. Organic bacon produced with nitrates sounds like a contradiction in terms, given that most consumers of organic food buy it out of concerns for food safety.

Having gone to the trouble of rearing pigs using free-range methods and giving them only organic feed, why would you then cure the meat in ways that make it carcinogenic?

In Denmark, all organic bacon is nitrate-free. Then again, the slowness of consumers to lose our faith in pink bacon may partly be a response to the confusing way that the health message has been communicated to us. When it comes to processed meat, we have been misled not just by wild exaggerations of the food industry but by the caution of science. On the WHO website , the harmfulness of nitrite-treated meats is explained so opaquely you could miss it altogether.

This caution has kept us as consumers unnecessarily in the dark. Consider sausages. Shop now. Your headline. Image caption appears here. Add your deal, information or promotional text. Is Bacon Healthy? Previous Next. What is bacon made of? Bacon isn't merely a fresh cut of meat. Producers take pork belly or less fatty back cuts and cure it with an injection or soak it in brine, known as 'wet cure;' or with dry salt, a 'dry cure.

Bacon producers leave the cured meat to dry for a few weeks or months or smoke the meat. They may also boil the bacon. We can cut bacon from several parts of the pig, producing side bacon, back bacon, collar bacon, cottage bacon, or jowl bacon. Bacon Nutrition Value: Pros and Cons While we hear a lot about the downsides of consuming bacon, both pros and cons come with eating this processed meat. Bacon Nutrition Facts First, let's take a look at the straight nutrition facts you'll find in the typical package of bacon on the shelf at the grocery store.

Per serving, 3 regular slices Calories: Fat: 12g Saturated Fat: 4. The calories aren't exceptionally high, and the protein in bacon is quite substantial, at 12g in only 3 slices. The cholesterol in bacon is a little on the high side, but you'd have to eat 22 pieces to go over the USDA's daily recommended allowance for cholesterol. Health Benefits of Bacon Here are a few of bacon's positive effects you can reap while eating it. High-Protein and Low-Carb Low-carb and Keto diets are the latest dietary craze that seems to be building some significant weight loss results.

Potassium and B-Vitamins Bacon contains some essential micronutrients, including potassium, which supports bone health, heart health, muscle strength and prevents high blood pressure. Drawbacks of Bacon Why is bacon bad for you? High-Sodium Content Bacon is cured with salt or brine, so it should come as no surprise that it's higher in salt than some other foods.

A diet that's chronically too high in salt can raise blood pressure and increase stomach cancer risk. Nitrates and Nitrites These bacon additives used in the curing process can form carcinogens, known cancer-causing agents when exposed to high heat. This article explores the health effects of processed meat. Your diet includes dozens of fats, each with a different function and effect.

Here is everything you need to know about how good and bad fats affect…. The importance of eating enough protein can not be overstated. Here are 20 high protein foods that can help you lose weight, feel great, and gain…. Salt has a bad reputation, but some evidence shows it may not have much impact on heart disease. This article takes a look at the research. People often see nitrates and nitrites as harmful, but this may not always be true.

Vegetables, for example, can be rich in nitrates. For many people, one of the best parts about traveling is getting to explore the local cuisines.

This article looks at 10 of the healthiest cuisines…. Health Conditions Discover Plan Connect. The Salty, Crunchy Truth. Many people have a love-hate relationship with bacon.

How Is Bacon Made? Share on Pinterest. Bacon Contains a Lot of Fat. Summary Bacon is high in saturated fat and cholesterol, which are not as harmful as previously believed. Bacon Is Fairly Nutritious. Summary Pork is rich in many nutrients, including protein and several vitamins.

Bacon Is High in Salt. Since salt is used in the curing process, bacon has a pretty high salt content. Summary Eating a lot of bacon and other salty foods raises blood pressure in salt-sensitive people. Nitrates, Nitrites and Nitrosamines. Summary Fried bacon may be high in nitrosamines, which are carcinogenic.