I am putting my head over the parapet and posting this. In the past when I’ve posted about food related matters, there has been some negative, and even unpleasant, feedback (pardon the pun).
Anyway, I’m just putting this information out there. You can take it or leave it and if it helps just one person, then it’s worth it.
I can only add one photo to a post and there are a further three pages, citing research into workers at poultry farms and slaughterhouses who have higher rates of blood cancers.
If you’re interested, the book is How not to Die by Dr M Greger and there is also advice on how to boost your immune system
If you think it’s a load of rubbish - fine, just ignore it
Written by
Mandy56
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I think a lot of authors of these books are dangerous charlatans, promoting questionable theories to sell their books. From all I have read, that description doesn’t fit Greger. I think he donates his profits. And while a plant based diet is not for me, I think it is probably a very healthy diet.
That said, as Neil points out, a main criticism of Greger is that he cherry picks data. Here is an article challenging Greger. I take this article with a grain of salt because it appears to be from some chicken organization which could make it biased. But I still link to it because it links to many studies contradicting the study Greger relies on.
I prefer to look to the weight of the evidence as to stand alone studies. As to a vegan diet Greger prefers, I think there is a lot of data such a diet can be healthy. And I think there is evidence processed meats and fried meats can be bad for you. But I think overall meat is a healthy food.
As to chicken causing blood cancer, I think the great weight of the evidence is that no such link has been proven.
Greger appears to be well qualified and well intentioned. He’s not one of these guys who says he can cure cancer with prayer, green tea and pomegranate. So I don’t think his opinions are rubbish at all. But he does seem to start out with a view in mind and then present selected data to support his predetermined view.
I might add there can be so many confounding factors is studies like that.
Suppose we took 5000 people on plant based diets and compared them to 5000 people who eat a more regular diet with meats included. Which group would have on average the longer life span? My guess would be the plant based group. But would that prove meats make your life shorter? You would have look at the confounding factors to know.
It takes a great deal of discipline to eat plants only. My guess is that those ho eat only plants are more likely to be regular exercisers, less likely to drink alcohol, less likely to smoke and more likely to control portions. So are they living longer because they eliminated meats or are they living longer because as a group they lead a healthier life style?
To really know you would have to get a comparable group of meat eaters to compare, that is, meat eaters who exercise, don’t smoke and eat smaller portions. Those are all confounding variables. I think there are many confounding variables in the chicken causes cancer study which seems more to indicate a possible correlation as opposed to a proven causation.
I would say, it all depends on how the chicken was raised. Maybe if chickens was exposed to toxic chemicals or ate cancer causing chemicals that could maybe cause cancer in humans. That would also apply to other animals as well.
You could also make the case for water, fish, vegetables and all other fools you eat. Other than that, I think chicken is a very healthy food. Especially chicken soup.
Hi my wife's daughter was diagnosed with Hodgkin s lymphoma and never ate meat was brought up as a vegetarian from birth , like Neil said cherry picked with capital C
I agree the study was cherry picked, but not for the same reasons you state. There are people who get diagnosed with lung cancer who never smoked, but that doesn't mean smoking doesn't not cause lung cancer.
But to your point, the link between lung cancer and smoking is proven by dozens of studies looking at if from all angles. The chicken causes lymphoma study is a stand alone study where even the author admits its limitations and it is contradicted by many other studies that suggests chicken is good for us.
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