So as none of you probably know yet, about a month ago me and my girlfriend decided to go vegan since we moved in together. My girlfriend was already 3 years vegetarian and I had gone vegetarian for 1.5 years a couple years ago. I brought the idea up to her and we both decided it was a good idea and since have been loving every minute of it.as many of you most likely do know though, the World Health Organization also recently released information regarding red meat and processed meat and its correlation to elevated cancer risk. For those that don't know processed meat encompasses an extremely broad spectrum, that's not merely limited to hot dogs, ham, and beef jerky type things but any meats that go through a marinating process and other such things. Most peoples first thought is, well why should we trust one group, the issue with that is that the WHO used over 800 studies, 700 epidemiological studies as well as some 100 mechanistic studies, using 22 different experts from 10 different countries. As many know the common american diet is not the picture of health to begin with, but our meat consumption is vastly disproportional even taking in to account our poor diets.These studies showed that a consumption of 50g of red or processed meat heightened risk of colorectal cancer by 18%, 50g being roughly 2 slices of bacon alone, most people consuming 50g of red meat in less then a few bites while eating things like steak, ribs, or any other common barbecue dish. The WHO proceeded to deem processed meats a class 1 carcinogen, and red meats a class 2A, class 1 being on the same level as asbestos and cigarettes. While this does not mean the carcinogenic levels are equal it is merely a classification of knowledge of the carcinogenic effects.on top of the natural carcinogenic effects found in red and processed meats, the WHO neglects to mention the main Iron found in red meat, haem iron is also extremely carcinogenic and cooking the meat by means of grill or pan frying heightens the carcinogens released in meat. Siting Harvards latest cohort study, a one serving increase of red meat a day increased CVD ( cardiovascular disease) risk by 18%, and the increased cancer risk is 10% for red meat as well as 16% for processed meat. The Harvard study being spearheaded by Walter Willet who aslo concluded our bodies don't care where we get our vital amino acids but plant based foods having the best and healthiest amino acid profile. Furthering this point an America Diabetes association stated that semi vegetarians who claimed to eat meat only 2-3 times per month had double the risk of developing diabetes compared to strict vegans, bringing me to what I think is an important question. What is moderation and how does one eat meat in moderation? Now my last point that I really feel needs to be brought up is nitrosamines. Nitrosamines are another form of carcinogen found in red meat that are also found in cigarettes. Stephen Hecht states in his study of nitrosamines in red meat, that any of product found containing nitrosamines would be immediately taken out of the market due to extreme risks in human health. Ill end this post with this statement, vegan blood is found to be eight times less hospitable for cancer cells and vegans show the lowest risk of overall and female specific cancers.