Your brain may not luuuuv bacon as much as you do!

A recent study in the British Journal of Cancer links pancreatic cancer with the consumption of bacon, sausage and other processed meats.  The suspected culprit is nitrite in processed meats like bacon, ham and sausage. A daily breakfast with two strips of bacon increased the risk of pancreatic cancer by 19%. Four strips would increase the risk by 38%. Pancreatic cancer used to be rare and is one of the more aggressive cancers with a lower survival rate than other cancers. The risk is increased with smoking.

Red meat consumption is associated with a higher risk of pancreatic cancer in men, the risk increasing with larger servings. A review of 29 studies by the World Cancer Research Fund/American Insitute of Cancer Research, found that processed and red meats caused colon, rectal and colorectal cancers. 

Health-minded folks (why is that not everyone?) might replace bacon and sausage with non-meat alternatives, but they should check first for those same troubling nitrites. A good replacement might be fish or grilled chicken.