Children and adults eat a lot of hot dogs. Wieners in-or-out of a bun are fast, taste good and are convenient, especially for busy parents fixing lunch or dinner for kids, or for adults at sporting events. However, the astute American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) issued an Experts’ Report in 2007 that concluded regular consumption of wieners increases cancer risk.
The Experts’ Report and a Lawsuit
The AICR had 21 cancer experts evaluate 7000 research studies to determine ways to avoid cancer. The report was issued on November 1, 2007. Of their 10 suggestions, two dealt with eating meat. Their advice is to limit red meat to no more than six meals (3 oz size) out of 21 meals for an entire week. They advise not eating processed meat like hot dogs – except perhaps once per year at a baseball game – because there is convincing proof processed meat (also ham, bacon, salami and sausages) causes an increased risk of colorectal cancer.
On July 22, 2009, the Cancer Project, an affiliate of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, filed a class-action consumer-fraud lawsuit against various hot dog manufacturers. It is alleged that the hot dog makers failed to warn customers of the risk of colon cancer on their packages.
An Analysis of a Frankfurter
Wieners sell as beef, chicken or in various combinations, such as turkey, pork and chicken. One problem with wieners is that they are high in saturated fat and sodium. For example, a popular brand of beef frankfurters has six grams of sat fat and 620 mg of sodium – for one wiener.
Too much sodium (salt) contributes to high blood pressure and heart problems. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) recommends consuming not over 2300 mg per day, which is about 1 teaspoon. Older adults and African Americans, more prone to high blood pressure, should limit salt intake to 1500 mg.
Other problems with hot dogs include:
- The preservative sodium nitrite leads to formation of nitrosamines that increases the risk of colon cancer. The AICR states that habitual hot dog consumption increases color cancer risk by 21%.
- The contents of hot dogs include variety meats (byproducts) that include livers, hearts and kidneys. The USDA does demand that this information is on the label.
- Until 2004, beef hot dogs were processed with mechanically separated meat machines that forced bones, with meat attached, through a sieve. With concerns of mad cow disease, the government has banned this practice. However, machine-use is still permitted with pork and chicken.
- The bacterium Listeria monocytogenes causes the disease listeriosis, which starts with fever, muscle aches and diarrhea, and spreads to neurological problems. It can infest hot dogs after cooking but before packaging. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention calls the disease an important public health problem.
The Hot Dog Fix
The fix is meat alternatives, often called veggie dogs. Meat alternatives are made with vegetable protein (soy) and appear and taste like meat – except they have good-quality nutritional value. In 1999, the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) permitted certain soy products to use labeling that stated the product reduced the risk of heart disease. In general, veggie dogs have half the calories and half the sodium as meat hot dogs, with no saturated fat, yet have about equal the amount of protein.
The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) issued Golden Bun awards to the most delicious alternative meat hot dogs. People who rated the franks were both meat-eaters and vegetarians. Two companies that make veggie dogs are Yves and Lightlife Foods. Morningstar Farms makes a veggie sausage.
The Truth About Hot Dogs
Hot dogs made with meat have a long tradition and are a favorite food. But problems in their content and processing – excess salt and saturated fat, byproducts, bacteria, nitrites and mechanically separated meat machines – dictate finding a better, alternative wiener. Soy-based veggie dogs promote the American hot dog tradition, but in a much better, healthier way.
Arlene Lengyel - Arlene is a graduate of Clayton College of Natural Health with a Doctor of Naturopathy degree. Naturopathy promotes an all-inclusive, ...
