Meat consumption raises mortality rates, new study shows

A link between meat consumption and an elevated risk of all-cause mortality has been highlighted by a large-scale review of existing evidence.

Led by the Mayo Clinic in Arizona, the research analysed six studies that evaluated the effects of meat and vegetarian diets on mortality, drawing upon data taken from more than 1.5 million people.

The findings shows that people who ate meat were at a greater risk of earlier death, particularly among those consuming a lot of processed meat or unprocessed red meat.

Processed meat was specifically linked to a greater likelihood of cardiovascular disease and ischaemic heart disease, with one study from 2003 showing a decreased all-cause mortality risk of 25 to nearly 50 percent for very low meat intake compared with higher meat intake.

Moreover, a 3.6-year increase in life expectancy was seen among those who maintained a vegetarian diet for more than 17 years, as compared to short-term vegetarians.

Brookshield Laurent, assistant professor of family medicine and clinical sciences at the New York Institute of Technology's College of Osteopathic Medicine, said: "This clinical-based evidence can assist physicians in counseling patients about the important role diet plays, leading to improved preventive care, a key consideration in the osteopathic philosophy of medicine."