Eating Today and Yesterday
By celticeagle
@celticeagle (189792)
Boise, Idaho
July 7, 2016 7:42am CST
A recent press release from WHO (World Health Organization) and IARC (The International Agency for Research on Cancer)is saying:
As of a recent report there are five foods found to probably cause cancer. Those are: corned beef, hot dogs, beef jerky, ham, and sausage. These are all processed meats. And processed are those that are smoked, fermented, salted, cured or having other processes to enhance flavor.
My question is this: Aren't these meats what pioneers ate back in the 17th through the 19th centuries? Pioneers and cowboys lived on beef jerky. Europeans ate corned beef, ham and sausages of all kinds. Maybe not the hot dogs so much. But, what has changed? More chemicals?
12 people like this
12 responses
@marguicha (230334)
• Chile
7 Jul 16
Everything may cause cancer. And everything does not. We must not believe all it is said about what we must eat.
2 people like this
@fishtiger58 (29819)
• Momence, Illinois
7 Jul 16
They also say breathing air causes cancer, maybe they should just release the cure for cancer that I believe they already have.
1 person likes this
@celticeagle (189792)
• Boise, Idaho
8 Jul 16
Yes, acid rain. I remember when my mom would save rain water in a barrel to rinse our hair with. Not so any more.
1 person likes this
@celticeagle (189792)
• Boise, Idaho
12 Jul 16
@fishtiger58 ......Sad how things have changed.
1 person likes this
@fishtiger58 (29819)
• Momence, Illinois
12 Jul 16
@celticeagle No I wouldn't do that anymore either.
1 person likes this
@Marcyaz (35316)
• United States
9 Jul 16
@celticeagle
Yeah bacon probably should have been on the list also.
1 person likes this
@Jessicalynnt (50523)
• Centralia, Missouri
8 Jul 16
we make our own jerky so prob healthier.
1 person likes this
@JamesHxstatic (29410)
• Eugene, Oregon
9 Jul 16
Many more chemicals and preservatives are added today and many are are proven to be cancer causing. I rarely eat sausage of any kind and look for uncured ham when I buy it.
1 person likes this
@just4him (323168)
• Green Bay, Wisconsin
8 Jul 16
No actually. I know pork has always been a source of health issues, which is why it's banned for Jews, and is on God's no eat diet plan. As for the others, it could be all in how it's processed. I know processed foods aren't good for you and never were. They cause all kinds of health issues, including weight gain.
1 person likes this
@celticeagle (189792)
• Boise, Idaho
8 Jul 16
That is so true. Wish they weren't so good. Some anyway.
1 person likes this
@koopharper (7599)
• Canada
7 Jul 16
They weren't prepared with the chemicals that are used today. Most of the foods listed contain nitrites which have been shown to be carcinogenic. Why did they choose to make a press release of this now. This has been known for quite some time.
1 person likes this
@OreoBrownie (3755)
• Commerce, Georgia
8 Jul 16
Things have changed so much. So much junk goes into livestock and all the foods we eat. It's no wonder we are not all healthy.
1 person likes this
@FourWalls (86575)
• United States
7 Jul 16
Definitely the chemicals. I took a tour of a 19th-century farm in the Smoky Mountains near Cherokee last month, and one of the buildings was the "smokehouse." The meat was prepared, smoked, and salted to preserve it. The animals were not being injected with growth hormones, there were not pesticides and other chemicals on the grass or hay they were eating, and the meat was not loaded with artificial colors, flavors, and preservatives.
A friend of mine once joked that if there were truth in labeling laws (or if they were enforced) "meat" would be the last item listed as an ingredient in hot dogs! 
1 person likes this
@AbbyGreenhill (45490)
• United States
7 Jul 16
I have not eaten a hot dog since I was kid. I don't eat corned beef or jerky or sausage I do eat ham - Boars Head only. They come out with a new 'cause of cancer' daily.
1 person likes this
@garymarsh6 (23979)
• United Kingdom
7 Jul 16
Yes you are right there. Some things are smoked by using chemical processes rather than the real thing. There are all kinds of rubbish put in food these days. Going back to the Pioneers and cowboys their life expectancy was probably half of what it is today that is why more people are diagnosed with cancer. Our diets are not quite as healthy as they were before.
1 person likes this
