Red meat consumption and all-cause and cardiovascular mortality: results from the UK Biobank study
Mengying Wang1,2, Hao Ma2, Qiying Song2,3
1Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Peking University Health Science Center, Beijing, China.
Insights
High red meat intake increases cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality risk, including coronary heart disease (CHD) and stroke. Replacing red meat with poultry or cereal may lower CVD and CHD mortality.
Area of Science:
- Nutritional Epidemiology
- Cardiovascular Disease Research
- Public Health Nutrition
Background:
- Dietary patterns significantly influence chronic disease risk.
- Red meat consumption is a common dietary habit with debated health implications.
- Understanding the association between red meat and mortality is crucial for public health guidelines.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine the prospective link between red meat consumption and mortality from all causes and cardiovascular diseases (CVD).
- To evaluate how lifestyle factors and genetic predisposition modify this association.
- To explore the impact of substituting red meat with other food groups.
Main Methods:
- A large cohort study (UK Biobank, n=180,642) with long-term follow-up (median 8.6 years).
- Dietary intake assessed via food-frequency questionnaires; genetic risk score for TMAO calculated.
- Cox proportional hazard models used to analyze associations between red meat intake and mortality outcomes.
Main Results:
- Higher red meat intake (≥3.0 times/week) correlated with increased CVD, coronary heart disease (CHD), and stroke mortality.
- No significant association was found with all-cause mortality.
- Associations were independent of lifestyle factors and genetic risk score (GRS) for TMAO.
- Substituting red meat with poultry or cereal was linked to reduced CVD and CHD mortality risk (9%-16%).
Conclusions:
- Red meat consumption is associated with elevated risks of CVD, CHD, and stroke mortality.
- These risks are not significantly modified by lifestyle or genetic factors.
- Dietary shifts, such as replacing red meat with poultry or cereals, can mitigate CVD and CHD mortality risks.
Purpose:
To investigate the prospective associations between red meat consumption and all-cause and cardiovascular diseases (CVD) mortality, and to assess the modification effects of lifestyle and genetic risk factors.
Methods:
180,642 individuals free of CVD or cancer were enrolled from 2006 to 2010 and followed up to 2018 in the UK Biobank. Information on demographics, lifestyles, and medical history was collected through a baseline touchscreen questionnaire. The information on diet was collected through a single touchscreen food-frequency questionnaire. A total of ten single-nucleotide polymorphisms were used to calculate the genetic risk score (GRS) of trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO), a gut microbiota metabolite from red meat. Adjusted Cox proportional hazard regression models were used to assess the association of red meat consumption with mortality.
Results:
We documented 3596 deaths [655 CVD deaths, 285 coronary heart disease (CHD) deaths, and 149 stroke deaths] during median 8.6 years of follow-up. Compared with the lowest red meat intake (< 1.5 times/week), the highest red meat intake (≥ 3.0 times/week) was associated with a 20%, 53%, and 101% elevated risk for CVD, CHD, and stroke mortality (P for trend = 0.04, 0.007, and 0.02, respectively), but not all-cause mortality. We found that the associations between red meat intake and mortality were not modified by dietary and lifestyle factors, as well as TMAO GRS. In addition, substitution analyses showed that a decrease in red meat consumption and an increase in the consumption of poultry or cereal was significantly associated with 9%-16% lower CVD or CHD mortality risk.
Conclusion:
Our results indicated that red meat consumption was associated with higher risks of CVD, CHD, and stroke mortality, and the associations were not modified by lifestyle and genetic risk factors. Replacing red meat by poultry or cereal was related to lower risks of CVD and CHD mortality.
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