Only two foods are known to be cancer-causing – one of them is a Christmas favourite.
Steffan Rhys Deputy Content Hub Director
16:14, 20 Dec 2025
A traditional Christmas dinner, with turkey and all the trimmings(Image: SolStock via Getty Images)
Millions of us are buying in the the food we need for Christmas as we plan the main mean and the rest of the festive period. But what you might not know is there is a direct link between cancer and a favourite item on your plate on Christmas Day.
Many people believe sugar causes cancer, but this is not the case. Only two foods are known to have a direct link to cancer: alcohol and processed meats. And the beloved pigs in blankets fall firmly into the processed meats category.
Of course, no one is suggesting that you are going to get cancer because you ate some pigs in blankets on Christmas Day, just as no one is suggesting you will be diagnosed with cancer as a result of a glass of wine or sherry, though recent scientific studies say there is no safe amount of alcohol to drink.
In a recent report, Vivek Murthy, the former surgeon general of the US Public Health Service, warned that alcohol use had been directly linked with at least seven types of cancers and that even light or moderate alcohol consumption can increase a person’s risk of cancer.
Processed meat and alcohol are both classified as Group 1 carcinogens by the World Health Organisation, meaning they are carcinogenic to humans. The WHO says: “There is convincing evidence that the agent causes cancer.” Tobacco smoking and asbestos are also Group 1 carcinogens, though the WHO stresses that this does not mean that alcohol and processed meat are equally as dangerous as smoking and asbestos.
What is processed meat?
The World Health Organisation says “meat that has been transformed through salting, curing, fermentation, smoking, or other processes to enhance flavour or improve preservation” counts as processed meat. Sausages and bacon are among examples given by the WHO.
Why does processed meat cause cancer?
Research has linked three meat-related chemicals to increased bowel cancer risk. These chemicals are either naturally found in meat, added during processing or produced when cooking:
Experts say that all three can damage the cells in our bowel, and it’s the accumulation of this damage over time that increases cancer risk.
Why does alcohol cause cancer?
Alcohol causes cancer through biological mechanisms as the compound breaks down in the body. This means that any drink containing alcohol, regardless of its price, quality or strength, poses a risk of developing cancer and that there is no “safe” amount of alcohol to drink. The WHO says the risk of developing cancer “increases substantially the more alcohol is consumed” but that “latest available data indicate that half of all alcohol-attributable cancers… are caused by ‘light’ and ‘moderate’ alcohol consumption – less than 1.5 litres of wine or less than 3.5 litres of beer or less than 450 millilitres of spirits per week”.
Processed meat and heart disease
In 2021, Oxford University said the “largest review of all large-scale studies to date finds red and processed meat increase the risk of heart disease”.
Across the world, coronary heart disease claims nearly nine million lives a year, the largest of any disease. Researchers at the University of Oxford’s Nuffield Department of Population Health said evidence from its analysis “indicated that each 50g/day higher intake of processed meat (eg bacon, ham, and sausages) increased the risk of coronary heart disease by 18%”.
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