Red Meat ups Breast Cancer Risk

Replacing red meat with chicken and fish in diet could reduce breast cancer risk, a new study suggests.

According to researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health, women who eat red meat are at higher risk of developing breast cancer while those eating nuts, fish and chicken are at a lower risk.

The team found that cutting red meat from diet and replacing it with legumes and fish could reduce breast cancer risk by a fifth, The Telegraph reported.

For the study, researchers looked at dietary habits of 88,803 pre-menopausal women (aged 26 to 45) enrolled in the Nurses' Health Study II. Researchers wanted to know about the link between type of protein and breast cancer risk.

In the study, red meat referred to, both, unprocessed meat such as pork and beef and processed meat like hot dogs and sausages. Other sources of protein were legumes such as beans, peas and lentils, nuts and poultry.

Researchers found that during a 20-year follow-up period, around 2,830 women were diagnosed with breast cancer, according to a news release.

Data analysis showed that higher intake of meat was associated with a 22 percent increased risk of breast cancer. Each additional serving of red meat every day showed a 13 percent increased breast cancer risk.

"Higher red meat intake in early adulthood may be a risk factor for breast cancer, and replacing red meat with a combination of legumes, poultry, nuts and fish may reduce the risk," said Dr Maryam Farvid, author of the study, according to the Telegraph.

Replacing a serving of red meat with poultry reduced breast cancer risk by 17 percent.

The study is published in the British Medical Journal.

Breast cancer is one of the most common types of cancer in the U.S. According to estimates by the National Cancer Institute, around 232,670 women will be diagnosed with the cancer in 2014. The risk of breast cancer is high in people with certain genetic factors. Previous research has shown that high levels of red meat in diet ups cancer and early death risk.