Red Meat and Prostate Cancer: What the Research Shows

Short answer: The evidence linking red meat to prostate cancer is weak and mixed. The World Cancer Research Fund's review of the research rated red meat and processed meat as "limited – no conclusion" for prostate cancer [1]. The World Health Organization says there is "some evidence" of a link with prostate cancer, but the strongest evidence for red and processed meat is for colorectal cancer [2].

That's not the same as "red meat is fine" or "red meat causes prostate cancer." It means researchers have looked hard and haven't found a clear answer. Below is what the main reviews and studies actually found.

ProstateFoods shares general information about food and research. It isn't medical advice, and nothing here is meant to diagnose, treat or prevent any disease. Talk with your doctor about your own risk and diet.

Does red meat cause prostate cancer?

No major review has concluded that it does. Here's where the big expert bodies land.

The IARC classification is often misread. The WHO says the groups describe how strong the evidence is that something can cause cancer, not how much it raises risk [2].

What did the large studies find?

A meta-analysis of 19 cohort studies (2015). Researchers pooled prospective studies of meat and prostate cancer [4]. The summary relative risks were:

Source: Bylsma and Alexander, Nutrition Journal, 2015 [4].

A relative risk of 1.0 means no difference. The authors concluded the results "do not support an association" between red meat and prostate cancer, with a weak positive estimate for processed meat. They also found no significant results for advanced or fatal prostate cancer, cooking methods, or heme iron [4]. Worth knowing: the paper says the work was supported in part by the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, a contractor to the Beef Checkoff [4].

UK Biobank (2020). In a study of about 475,000 people, a positive association between red meat and prostate cancer didn't hold up after the researchers corrected for testing many cancers at once. They found little evidence of links with cancers other than colorectal [5].

Diet patterns in UK Biobank (2022). Compared with regular meat eaters, vegetarians had a hazard ratio of 0.69 for prostate cancer and fish eaters 0.80 [6]. The authors said it's unclear whether that reflects diet itself, other differences between the groups, or differences in how often men were screened and diagnosed [6].

What about men who already have prostate cancer?

There's less research here. In the Health Professionals Follow-up Study, which followed 27,607 men from 1994 to 2008, eating processed red meat after diagnosis had a hazard ratio of 1.45 for lethal prostate cancer, but the confidence interval (0.73 to 2.87) included no effect [7]. The same study found eating 2.5 or more eggs a week was associated with lethal prostate cancer (hazard ratio 1.81) [7]. These are associations from one cohort, not proof of cause.

If you've been diagnosed, questions about diet belong with your care team.

Why is the research so mixed?

A few reasons come up again and again in these papers:

• Diet is hard to measure. Most studies rely on food questionnaires, and people's eating changes over time.
• Meat eaters differ in other ways. Weight, smoking, exercise and screening habits can all differ between groups [6].
• Prostate cancer detection varies. Men who get PSA tests more often are diagnosed more often, which can blur diet links [6].
• Cooking may matter, but it's unproven. The 2015 meta-analysis found no significant results for cooking methods or heterocyclic amines [4].

For what the evidence says about body weight and other factors, the WCRF report is the most thorough place to look [1]. Our guide to foods to eat for prostate health covers foods with more research behind them.

How much red meat do cancer groups suggest?

The guidance here is about cancer in general, not prostate cancer specifically:

• AICR: if you eat red meat, no more than about 3 portions a week, or about 12 to 18 ounces cooked, and little if any processed meat [8].
• American Cancer Society: a healthy eating pattern that "avoids or limits red and processed meats" [3].

If you're looking at other protein options, our pages on omega-3 foods, baked salmon with lemon and dill and the Mediterranean diet for men are good next reads.

FAQ

Is red meat bad for your prostate? The evidence isn't clear. The WCRF/AICR review rated red meat as "limited – no conclusion" for prostate cancer [1], and a 2015 meta-analysis of 19 cohorts didn't find a significant link [4].

Is processed meat linked to prostate cancer? The WCRF/AICR rated processed meat "limited – no conclusion" for prostate cancer [1]. The 2015 meta-analysis found a weak positive estimate (relative risk 1.05) [4]. The WHO's strongest evidence for processed meat is for colorectal cancer [2].

Does grilling or charring meat matter for prostate cancer? It hasn't been shown. The 2015 meta-analysis found no significant results for cooking methods or heterocyclic amines, which form when meat is cooked at high heat [4].

Do vegetarians get less prostate cancer? In UK Biobank, vegetarians had a lower rate of prostate cancer than regular meat eaters (hazard ratio 0.69), but the authors said it's unclear whether that's caused by diet or by other differences, including screening [6].

Does dairy matter more than meat? The WCRF/AICR rated dairy as "limited – suggestive" for increased risk [1], and the American Cancer Society says men who eat a lot of dairy may have a slightly higher chance of prostate cancer [3]. That's still limited evidence.

Sources

1. World Cancer Research Fund / American Institute for Cancer Research, Continuous Update Project Report: Diet, Nutrition, Physical Activity and Prostate Cancer (2014, revised 2018): https://www.wcrf.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/prostate-cancer-report.pdf
2. World Health Organization, Cancer: Carcinogenicity of the consumption of red meat and processed meat (Q&A): https://www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/cancer-carcinogenicity-of-the-consumption-of-red-meat-and-processed-meat
3. American Cancer Society, Prostate Cancer Risk Factors: https://www.cancer.org/cancer/types/prostate-cancer/causes-risks-prevention/risk-factors.html
4. Bylsma LC, Alexander DD. A review and meta-analysis of prospective studies of red and processed meat, meat cooking methods, heme iron, heterocyclic amines and prostate cancer. Nutr J. 2015;14:125: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4687294/
5. Knuppel A, et al. Meat intake and cancer risk: prospective analyses in UK Biobank. Int J Epidemiol. 2020;49(5):1540-1552: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32814947/
6. Watling CZ, et al. Risk of cancer in regular and low meat-eaters, fish-eaters, and vegetarians: a prospective analysis of UK Biobank participants. BMC Med. 2022;20:73: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35197066/
7. Richman EL, et al. Egg, red meat, and poultry intake and risk of lethal prostate cancer in the prostate-specific antigen-era: incidence and survival. Cancer Prev Res. 2011;4(12):2110-2121: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21930800/
8. American Institute for Cancer Research, Limit consumption of red and processed meat: https://www.aicr.org/cancer-prevention/recommendations/limit-consumption-of-red-and-processed-meat/

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