A research report on 50,000 vegetarians has sent shockwaves through the field of cancer research. The report points out that the low cancer rate among this group is quite astonishing. Compared to people of the same age and gender, the incidence of all types of cancer in this group was significantly reduced. The research report shows that they can apparently live longer. A report on California Mormons indicates that the cancer rate in this group is 50% lower than that of the general population. Mormons are characterized by eating less meat.
Why are meat-eaters more prone to cancer? One reason may be that when animal meat is left for a few days, it becomes a sickly grayish-green. Butchers add nitrates, nitrites, and other preservatives to prevent it from discoloring. These substances give the meat a bright red color. However, in recent years, there have been numerous reports indicating that these substances contain carcinogens.
Dr. William Linskens, who specializes in cancer research at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee, said: "I wouldn't even feed nitrates to a cat."
Scientists in the UK and US have compared the 'intestinal microflora' of meat-eaters and vegetarians and found significant differences. The microorganisms in the intestines of meat-eaters, when reacting with digestive fluids, produce chemicals that are considered to cause cancer. This may explain why colorectal cancer is very common in meat-based regions such as North America and Western Europe, but rare in vegetable-based regions like India. For example, in the United States, colorectal cancer is the second most common cancer (after lung cancer); the Scottish, who eat 20% more beef than the English, have one of the highest rates of colorectal cancer in the world.