Healthy Aging News and Research ⇒ Eating Red Meat Increases Telomere Length

[guest1576]

Eating red meat results in increased telomere length. This study found that those who consumed more red meat have longer telomere length.

"Unexpected correlation of telomere length with the frequency of consumption of red meat indicates the need for further in-depth research and may undermine some accepted concepts of adverse effects of this diet on the health status and life longevity.”

https://nutritionj.biomedcentral.com/ar ... WM7fFPJFiw

[Fred]

Thank you for posting. Note that increased telomere length is just a marker. It´s not a health benefit in and of itself.

Red meat increases the risk of death from colon cancer and meat consumption is not positively associated with longevity in epidemiological studies. Death is a very real outcome compared to a biomarker like telomere length.

[canadahealthy]

Eating red meat results in increased telomere length. This study found that those who consumed more red meat have longer telomere length.

"Unexpected correlation of telomere length with the frequency of consumption of red meat indicates the need for further in-depth research and may undermine some accepted concepts of adverse effects of this diet on the health status and life longevity.”

https://nutritionj.biomedcentral.com/ar ... WM7fFPJFiw

i was just reading a question the other day - is there something that increases telomere length.

Red meat! Who'd have thunk? I would love to read research on how this happens. Are we taking a snippet off of the meat we are consuming?
Is there a vitamin B component here?

I actually might disagree with you Fred, it is my understanding the the mere existence of longer telomeres give added protection to our chromosomes, in that the longer the telomere (tail) the greater the protection and the greater the longevity.

Fascinating study.

[Fred]

But since meat isn't positively associated with longevity and even increases cancer mortality its effects on a marker of longevity is irrelevant. We want real life outcomes. Not pretty lab-numbers.

[canadahealthy]

But since meat isn't positively associated with longevity and even increases cancer mortality its effects on a marker of longevity is irrelevant. We want real life outcomes. Not pretty lab-numbers.

Agreed. But I am hoping they can soon single out what is at work here, it could be something huge if it could be isolated to a simple molecule, not a bad diet choice.

[Deleted User 15772]

Yeah, you might get longer telomeres, but what about all that methionine? Not something you want.

[NewLifeScience]

Yeah, you might get longer telomeres, but what about all that methionine? Not something you want.

Imagine if we could get one without the other?

[FitandHealthyinAZ]

This topic is very timely as I have been traveling playing in competitive softball tournaments the past 2 weeks and my consumption of red meat went thru the roof as my body craved protein. Fred, with you as a trained dietician I defer to you with all due respect, however according to a recent article in the New York Times, the evidence is simply too weak to justify telling individuals to eat less red meat. It's a scientific fact that red meat supplies vitamin B12, which helps make DNA and keeps nerve and red blood cells healthy, as well as zinc, which keeps the immune system working properly. For folks who push their bodies via athletic endeavors, red meat provides the protein required to facilitate an effective recovery. Common sense and listening to your body is always the very best way forward. Here's the link to the article, enjoy! https://nyti.ms/34bkUSq

[Fred]

No. The evidence isn't weak. With all due respect for the very fine journalists at NY Times...they are not very good at handling complex health issues in their reporting and I don´t recommend following any nutritional advice that NY Times gives you.

Red meat brings nothing to the table to enhance your health. B12, zinc and complete proteins are found in many foods not determined to be a "probable carcinogen" by the worlds leading nutritional researchers at WHO who gathers and do risk assessments for global health recommendations.

[Taytaytay195]

Interesting topic for sure. What I have gathered is that most studies done on red meat have been observational studies....