"Consumption of fresh red meat and processed meat seemed to be associated with an increased risk of rectal cancer. Consumption of chicken and fish did not increase risk."
(admittedly, that conclusion is a stronger statement than it should be. More precise: consumption of chicken and fish was not linked to increased risk, as they merely did not reject the null hypothesis.)
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15342453/
"Consumption of fresh red meat and processed meat seemed to be associated with an increased risk of rectal cancer. Consumption of chicken and fish did not increase risk."
(admittedly, that conclusion is a stronger statement than it should be. More precise: consumption of chicken and fish was not linked to increased risk, as they merely did not reject the null hypothesis.)
Some potential culprits are listed here: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4698595/
Loosely: curing, searing, heme iron (from blood; what gives red meat its color), fat content, and some other things that can't be summed up as nicely.
It's plausible that all of them contribute to some degree, leading to a more potent effect than any of them in isolation.
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