Hot Dogs - As Bad As Cigarettes?

by Martha Edwards (Subscribe to Martha Edwards's posts)
Jul 24th 2009 4:00PM

Photo: TheBusyBrain, Flickr

Hot dogs kill. Or at least that's what Cancer Project president Neil Barnard wants you to know before you dig into a juicy dog at your family barbecue this summer. He's filed a lawsuit against several big processed meat producers, including Oscar Mayer and Hebrew National, demanding their products come with warning labels stating that hot dogs increase the risk of cancer, in the same way cigarettes carry warning labels about lung cancer, emphysema and so on. Perfectly reasonable or a little extreme?

Consider this: An American Institute for Cancer Research report claims that a 50g serving of processed meat a day (about what you'd get from a hot dog) can increase your risk of colorectal cancer by 21 percent.

This is thought to be because of nitrites -- preservatives used in processed and cured meats that, when broken down in the digestion process, might be carcinogenic. But that hasn't been confirmed yet. Colorectal cancer kills approximately 50,000 people every year in the U.S.

But here's the question we're all dying to ask: Who eats hot dogs every day? For the majority of us, hot dogs are, at best, an occasional indulgence, and most nutrition experts would agree that any singe food in moderation does not pose a substantial risk. Plus, placing warning labels on every item in the supermarket that's ever been linked to cancer leads to the potential for this food hysteria to get out of control.

Your thoughts? Should bad foods come with warning labels, or should we be trusted to make our own choices?

Comments (10)

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Vishaal 7-24-2009 @ 4:12PM

My dad has two 711s and yes people eat hot dogs almost everyday. It's scary. And no I don't think food should have warning labels. It's called personal responsibily

loucksk 7-25-2009 @ 2:34AM

With all due respect Vishaal, a person can't practice "personal responsibility" unless he is informed about the possible threats he is confronting. To take personal responsibility, he needs to be warned about prospective dangers, so that he can make an informed decision.

Ironically, the author of this article is not in favor personal responsibility at all. Apparently, she thinks that a consumer who has information about the risks associated with different food choices could cause "food hysteria," which would "get out of control."

So much for the informed customer... or the free market for that matter.... Much less "personal responsibility...."

ric 7-26-2009 @ 1:43PM

So, costco dogs, we sell at the counter a little more than a quarter mil a year at just the one i work at. Thats alot of mud butt.

Kim 7-26-2009 @ 6:29AM

For Gods sake our air, water and Bio-Engineered Vegtables and cause cancer and abnormalities. Noones saying anything about the Growth Hormones in our Meat supply wonder why most teens look Older than they are if they age our animals early it should only be understandable that we to would have age progression. Our Biological clocks are being set forward and could lead to all kinds of age realted dieseases early so why single out Hot Dogs some one just wants free money, the law suit for cigarettes didn't Stop people from smoking!

Zach Hunt 7-26-2009 @ 5:10PM

I agree with loucksk. Very well stated. Kim, I agree as well. Who knows what long term affect we will see out of the science of yesterday and today.

victoria_g 7-30-2009 @ 9:31PM

Well, if you think about it, a lot of our foods, from vegetables and meats, are loaded with additives and preservatives and Lord knows what else. They not only cause disease, but cause whacky hormone levels and therefore, premature aging. I mean, some shampoos are pretty much a placenta in a bottle! But as for the article, I don't think that a warning label would be too bad of an idea, but people will still consume them.

myblogful (http:www.blogfullife.com) 7-27-2009 @ 3:29AM

i'm still buying hotdogs

that's not yet proven anyways, lol

maybe it all depends on the manufacturers

if the process is clean

things like that

but thank really for the info!

cheers!

Drug-device combination market 7-27-2009 @ 6:16AM

we should take proper care and eat it.

Flaxchick 7-27-2009 @ 10:44PM

I am all about eating healthy and eating less processed foods, but I hardly think that hot dogs are in the same category as cigarettes. I mostly eat extremely healthy, but sometimes especially in the summer at a barbeque, there is nothing as good as hot dogs, hamburgers and watermelon!

I am not a fan of going on and off diets, and eat healthy 98% of the time. Nobody is perfect! What I find works best is being more aware on a day to day basis of my calories and eating a high fiber diet with less processed foods (like hot dogs and white bread)

I am a also huge fan of fitflax http://www.fitflax.com that I started
eating only for weight loss, and found it also made my skin glow an
my hair thicker and glossier. I recently lost 30 pounds by being
more aware every day of how many calories I consume and making them
worthwhile calories. I have a low fat yogurt with golden roasted
fitflax (nutty/low carb/low cal). It is a flax and chia blend and
was written about in O mag. It tastes nutty and does not need to be
ground. They also listed a code to get 10% off. The code for 10% of
is fit10.

Thomas 7-29-2009 @ 9:44AM

The "Cancer Project" is run and funded by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, a vegan, animal rights group with ties to PETA.

Just as consumers need to eat a healthy, balanced diet, they need balanced information. When it comes to cancer, check with credible health sources like your doctor, dietician or the U.S. Dietary Guidelines. You can be assured that they will tell you that a balanced diet can include moderate amounts of processed meat, like hot dogs.

In addtion, the author of the AICR report cited above as evidence has said the findings were flawed: http://bit.ly/aWcR1.

To put it best, as quoted recently in the LA Times, "Vegans complaining about hot dogs is like the Amish complaining about gas prices."

Thomas Super
American Meat Institute
tsuper@meatami.com