Please or to access all these features

AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To not have known that deli chicken is a level 1 carcinogen

208 replies

nevertearusapart · 25/08/2024 20:42

Am feeling fairly stupid about this but only just realised that deli chicken / turkey are considered level 1 carcinogenic processed meats so linked to negative health effects incl. cancer. The examples used are typically ham, sausages, bacon, salami etc so I just assumed red meat for some reason. The deli chicken that we eat was labelled 100% natural and only contained chicken, potato starch, salt and vinegar but it now looks like it’s almost bad as the rest.
Does everyone know things like this and what do people put in kids lunches? (And yes I know it’s all about daily / excessive consumption etc etc)

OP posts:
Thread gallery
10
nevertearusapart · 26/08/2024 22:00

@Danielle8p sorry that you were panicked. Hugs.

OP posts:
Danielle8p · 26/08/2024 21:51

@HighlandCow78 phew.thanks for clarifying. My little boy had cancer and now I tend to panic x

HighlandCow78 · 26/08/2024 21:16

Danielle8p · 26/08/2024 20:28

What about frozen veg? Just looked it up and didn't realise that's classed as processed too?

Not comparable to processed meats in the slightest. Practically every food that humans eat is processed in some way - that doesn’t necessarily make it bad.

HighlandCow78 · 26/08/2024 21:15

Nw22 · 26/08/2024 19:20

@HighlandCow78 if you know why do you give it to your poor dog

She genuinely prefers it to better quality chicken. I can assure you she is not a ‘poor’ dog, in fact she eats better than most humans. There is absolutely no rubbish quality dog food around here and she is very spoilt. The chance of it adversely effecting her health is negligible so as an occasional treat I am happy for her to have it.

LouLou198 · 26/08/2024 20:56

I didn't know this but I have recently significantly reduced UPF and reading a lot more labels. I noticed the chicken was buying contained sugar, so I know cook my own.

Grammarnut · 26/08/2024 20:34

Just don't eat.

Danielle8p · 26/08/2024 20:28

What about frozen veg? Just looked it up and didn't realise that's classed as processed too?

Drcake · 26/08/2024 20:23

I think this is a pick your poison type situation. You can make better choices in life, but ultimately your body is aging and being aged every day that you sleep, wake up, breathe, move about, your heart beats and gets general wear and tear. Simply being alive puts you at risk of cancers, heart disease etc etc

anon666 · 26/08/2024 20:16

I had no idea either. I generally avoid ham, bacon and sausages, along with all cured meats. I didn't know chicken was the same, but in retrospect it's obvious. 🙄

I thought it was somehow linked to red meat.

Icarus40 · 26/08/2024 19:35

Totally off topic but those of you who give chicken sandwiches for lunch, do you use an ice pack to keep them cool in DC's bag? Or are they ok at room temperature for a bit?

RollaCola84 · 26/08/2024 19:26

Agapornis · 25/08/2024 23:37

Dihydrogen monoxide (DHMO) kills, and it's in everything. It causes corrosion and suffocation in large quantities. Evidence has shown it's found in every human. And yet we keep consuming it. There is no hope.

Awful stuff 😆

Nw22 · 26/08/2024 19:20

@HighlandCow78 if you know why do you give it to your poor dog

RollaCola84 · 26/08/2024 19:16

This reply has been withdrawn

This message has been withdrawn at the poster's request

ObliviousCoalmine · 26/08/2024 18:55

Is anyone here actually a registered dietician nutritionist? Or is all this fantastically precise information about chicken being akin to 40 a day coming exclusively from documentaries on channel 4 and YouTube.

Areolaborealis · 26/08/2024 18:50

Mumoftwo1316 · 26/08/2024 18:31

Why would vaccinating an animal make its meat harmful to eat? Do you know what a vaccine is?

The point I'm trying to make is that most meat is not the wild, natural, pure product that people imagine. Many animals are kept in unhealthy conditions (hence the need for vaccines) and medicated for optimal growth to meet the huge demand for meat. I eat meat for the minerals but I don't enjoy it for the reasons above.

Mumoftwo1316 · 26/08/2024 18:31

Areolaborealis · 26/08/2024 18:05

The reality is that most affordable meat is not fresh or healthy for various reasons: the animal is given contaminated feed, vaccines, antibiotics, growth hormones and so on. Then, the flesh has to be preserved in some way (salt, chemicals) otherwise it would be putrid by the time it gets to shop, so it's not a surprise to think that consuming large quantities of this food over time might make us ill.

Why would vaccinating an animal make its meat harmful to eat? Do you know what a vaccine is?

nevertearusapart · 26/08/2024 18:28

GenAvocadoOnToast · 26/08/2024 17:45

This is an excellent book.

Just bought it - hopefully better than google 😀

OP posts:
kitsuneghost · 26/08/2024 18:28

Cook your own chicken and ham joints

LemonPlayer · 26/08/2024 18:18

Try a local butcher, their deli counters will have fresh cooked meats, no additives. Ours has chicken, turkey, beef, pork etc all cooked on the premises. It doesn’t keep as long as supermarkets stuff, but ours vacuum packs it if you ask them. But it wouldn’t worry me either way, so many “red flags” on everything these days it’s hard to stay sane, never mind keep up with it all!

Areolaborealis · 26/08/2024 18:05

The reality is that most affordable meat is not fresh or healthy for various reasons: the animal is given contaminated feed, vaccines, antibiotics, growth hormones and so on. Then, the flesh has to be preserved in some way (salt, chemicals) otherwise it would be putrid by the time it gets to shop, so it's not a surprise to think that consuming large quantities of this food over time might make us ill.

nevertearusapart · 26/08/2024 17:48

@JanglingJack this is the kind of product Im talking about www.greenfarmfinefoods.com/torn-chicken-breast

OP posts:
GenAvocadoOnToast · 26/08/2024 17:45

Rummly · 26/08/2024 17:29

That’s because cancer is perceived as ‘The Emperor of Maladies’, to borrow the title of a very good book.

Any old charlatan or chancer who wants to offer quack advice - particularly about food or pseudo-medicines like health foods and supplements, or other everyday things we can choose for ourselves - will reach for cancer as the most alarming thing they can supposedly help others avoid because it’s the most powerfully scary word.

This is an excellent book.

JanglingJack · 26/08/2024 17:41

We always called it donkey ham. It's clearly obvious that it hasn't been carved from a pig, same with chicken slices. Fuck knows what turkey bacon is.

BooseysMom · 26/08/2024 17:31

Snugglemonkey · 25/08/2024 20:57

My child only eats ham sandwiches. It is a problem, but I really need him to eat.

Snap!

Swipe left for the next trending thread