Men who eat a lot of red meat and processed meats have a higher risk of developing prostate cancer than those who limit such foods.

Researchers studied 175,343 American men between the ages of 50 and 71 years to examine the association between meat consumption and prostate cancer risk. They followed the participants for 9 years and the data regarding their diet (including how much and what type of meat they typically ate, as well as the cooking methods) were collected.

At 9 years of follow-up, it was found that those who ate the most red and processed meats had higher risks of developing any stage of prostate cancer, or advanced cancer in particular. During the follow-up period 10,313 participants developed prostate cancer and 419 died from the disease. Overall, 20 percent of men with the highest intakes of red meat, which in this study included beef and pork, were 12 percent more likely than those who consumed the least to develop prostate cancer. That's after a range of other factors, like smoking, exercise habits and education, were taken into account.

There was a stronger connection to advanced prostate cancer - with the risk being almost one-third higher among those who ate the most red meat versus those who ate the least.

Similar findings were seen with processed meat. But when the researchers broke the men's diet information down further, they found that red processed meats - like bacon and red-meat sausage and hot dogs - were related to higher prostate cancer risk, while white processed meats, like poultry cold cuts, were not.

When it came to cooking methods, the only one that was linked to prostate cancer was grilling/barbecuing.

The findings suggest that processed red meats and high-heat cooking methods - namely, grilling and barbecuing - are particularly linked to a higher prostate cancer risk. It is in line with the theory that meats cooked at high temperatures may be linked to cancer because the cooking process produces certain chemicals - including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and heterocyclic amines - that are known to cause cancer in animals.