Eating chicken just twice a week will 'increase your risk of deadly heart disease'

4 February 2020, 10:13

By Mared Parry

@maredparry

If you're a fan of processed meat then it looks like you're more likely to die young.

If you eat chicken as little as twice as week you could be at an increased risk of developing heart disease, say health professionals.

A new major study has revealed that the popular meat could mean your risk is increased by a pretty significant four per cent.

And that's not all, as it's also shown that those who eat any processed meat twice a week means you are unfortunately more likely to die young.

Processed meats could be anything from hot dogs to packet ham or even salami.

Scientists from Northwestern and Cornell Universities in the USA conducted the study and they analysed the diets of a whopping 30,000 adults.

They also found that anyone who tends to gorge on two or more bacon sarnies a week are rising their heart disease risk by seven per cent.

The shocking discovery found that fans of processed meat would be affected the worst with heart troubles over the upcoming 20 years.

And those who consume chicken or red meat twice a week are also at risk, but a slightly lower risk.

Red meat eaters are at three per cent more likely to die young, whilst surprisingly, those who enjoy fish have no increased risk.

The study suggests that swapping out meat for fish could help you protect your heart and its health.

Researcher Norrina Allen, associate professor of preventive medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, said: "It's a small difference, but it's worth trying to reduce red meat and processed meat like pepperoni, bologna and deli meats.

"Red meat consumption also is consistently linked to other health problems like cancer."