If you enjoy bacon regularly, you will be thoroughly disappointed at the results of research conducted by the World Health Organization. According to WHO, processed meats such as bacon, hot dogs, and sausage are linked to cancer. Red meat, while carrying a slightly lower risk than processed meats, likely does as well.

Processed meats are defined as meats that have been transformed by salting, curing, or other taste-enhancing methods. According to the organization, daily consumptions of 50-gram portions increases the likelihood of cancer by 18 percent.

In the research, processed meats were found to be carcinogenic to humans, the same way cigarettes and alcohol effect the human body.

“For an individual, the risk of developing colorectal cancer because of their consumption of processed meat remains small, but this risk increases with the amount of meat consumed,” Dr. Kurt Straif, head of the WHO’s cancer research agency, said in a press release. “In view of the large number of people who consume processed meat, the global impact on cancer incidence is of public health importance.”

The study cites findings from Global Burden Disease Project, an academic research organization that attributes 34,000 cancer deaths per year worldwide to a diet with a high concentration of processed meats. While that number is pale in comparison to the number of deaths attributed to smoking or population, the number is alarming.

The results of this study should not come as a surprise. Doctors and government agencies have always warned of the risk implications of a diet with red meat.

The WHO’s report is the result of a study conducted by 22 scientists from 10 countries who examined more than 800 previous studies from around the world.

Bacon lovers around the world are so upset right now.

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