Impact of consumption of animal products on cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cancer in developed countries

© Salter. • Meat and milk represent an energy-dense, protein-rich food source that also contributes significantly to the required intake of a range of micronutrients. With increasing economic prosperity, populations tend to increase their consumption of such animal products. However, in the longer established "developed" countries, there has been a significant shift from red meat and full-fat milk toward poultry and fat-reduced dairy products. • While premature death from cardiovascular disease has decreased dramatically in many developed countries, the prevalence of the disease remains high. High intake of saturated fatty acids contributes to the development of cardiovascular disease by increasing plasma cholesterol. However, recent evidence suggests that replacing saturated fatty acids with unsaturated fatty acids is more beneficial than replacing them with carbohydrates. While very high intakes of meat, particularly processed meat, may be associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease, at more modest intakes where it is consumed as a part of a varied diet containing appropriate sources of unsaturated fatty acids, there is little evidence of any deleterious effect. • Eating energy-dense diets, combined with the sedentary lifestyle adopted by many individuals in developed countries, has resulted in incidences of obesity of almost epidemic proportions. In time, a significant number of obese individuals become insulin resistant and develop metabolic syndrome, a cluster of risk factors that predispose the individual to both cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. • Even at relatively high intakes, there is little evidence that milk has any significant adverse effects on health and may be protective against cardiovascular disease, metabolic syndrome, and colorectal cancer. While other dairy products certainly contribute to consumption of saturated fatty acids, evidence for negative, or positive, effects on health is limited.