Prime cause of colon cancer in under 50s is 'an often overlooked food', warn top medics

World renowned cancer experts have urged doctors to warn patients against eating bacon and sausages, due to the swathe of research that shows processed meat can trigger colon cancer.

Over the last 30 years, young diagnoses of the disease have shot up by 80 percent across the globe, research suggests.

Scientists have suggested a host of factors are likely behind the phenomenon — from increased pollution to rising obesity and even invisible particles of plastic in drinking water.

However, now cancer specialists from NYU Langone Health in New York have said the consumption of processed meat by the younger generation is being 'overlooked' by medics.

'While I routinely counsel my patients about lifestyle and dietary risk factors, including processed meat, I'm not sure how often this is specifically mentioned by physicians in practice,' Dr Peter S. Liang, a cancer doctor and researcher at NYU told Medscape Medical News.

He added that recommendations from doctors are 'one of the strongest motivators in preventative health'.

Doctors should 'continue delivering the message' that the public should aim to reduce consumption of processed meat like ham, bacon and deli meat, Dr Liang said.

'Pay attention to what you eat, proportions, and variation of meal menus. Those are good starter points.'

Meanwhile, Dr David Johnson, professor of medicine and chief of gastroenterology at Eastern Virginia Medical School, added that, in his experience, awareness of the risks of processed meat is 'not widespread' among doctors.

The link between bowel cancer and diets high in processed meat have long been identified.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) categorises it as a class one carcinogenic, alongside smoking and alcohol.

Processed meat is defined medically as 'meat that has been altered through methods such as salting, curing, fermentation, or smoking to enhance flavor or preservation.'

This is often done by adding chemical preservatives such as nitrates.

Research has so far linked three meat-related chemicals to increased bowel cancer risk, Professor Ulrike Peters, associate director at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center in Seattle, explained.

These include heme iron, which can cause damage to the intestine, nitrates and amines, which are produced when meat is cooked at high temperatures.

While nitrates themselves are not carcinogenic, the compounds transform into different chemicals in the gut, which then cause tumours to develop.

A UK study involving half a million people found that those who eat processed meat like bacon, sausages and deli ham regularly are 40 percent more likely to develop bowel cancer.

More recently, a 2025 study looking at over 542,500 women found that, aside from alcohol, consumption of red and processed meat were the only other dietary factors linked with colorectal cancer.

The NHS recommends limiting processed meat consumption to no more than 70g a day — equivalent to two rashers of bacon.

However, the World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) and the American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) recommend consuming very little, if any.

In the UK, bowel cancer is the fourth most common cancer, killing almost 17,000 Brits each year, with the number of young-onset cases continuing to rise.

Analysis suggests deaths from bowel cancer overall in the UK are set to rise by 2,500 a year between now and 2040.

Meanwhile, the number of people in the UK diagnosed with the disease will rise by around a tenth in the same period.

A 2024 Cancer Research UK analysis of 50 countries revealed that England saw the fourth fastest (3.6 per cent) annual rise in the rate of early-onset bowel cancer of 50 in the decade to 2017, faster than any other country in Europe.