The Study
Abstract 4346313: Unprocessed Red and Processed Meat and Alternative Protein Sources in Relation to Risk of Coronary Heart Disease: A Pooled Analysis of 1.7 million Participants
This study looked at what people eat and whether they later got heart disease, but it didn’t change anyone’s diet on purpose. It can show that eating more meat is linked to higher heart disease risk, but it can’t prove that meat caused the disease because other lifestyle factors might be involved.
Analysis score
Maximum 72 for a cohort study.
Where the score came from
Eating a lot of red meat or processed meat is linked to a higher chance of dying from heart disease, especially for women. Eating nuts, seeds, soy, or dairy instead can lower that risk.
Where does this study sit?
Reviews of RCTs (Meta-analyses)
Max 100Randomized Trials
Max 90Reviews of Cohort Studies
Max 85Cohort Studies
Max 72Reviews of Case-Control Studies
Max 63Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional & Case Series
Max 50Expert Opinion
Max 552 / 100
Quality score
Groups of people are followed over time to see who develops an outcome. Strong for identifying risk factors and associations, but cannot prove causation as firmly as RCTs.
Key takeaways
Summary
Based on the study abstract and findings.
- 1Yes, the results suggest that changing what you eat—especially replacing meat with plant-based foods—can meaningfully reduce heart disease risk, particularly for women.
- 2Women who eat ≥125g of unprocessed red meat daily have a 34% higher risk of fatal heart disease; men have a 6% higher risk.
- 3For processed meat (≥50g/day), women have a 39% higher risk, men a 13% higher risk.
- 4Replacing meat with plant proteins lowers risk.
Score breakdown, methodology, conflicts of interest, evidence analysis & raw study data
Publication
Journal
Circulation
Year
2025
Authors
Fenglei Wang, Molin Wang, T. Tong, L. Al-Shaar, You Wu, Timothy J. Key, Walter C Willett, S. Smith-Warner
Related Content
Claims (4)
Regular red meat, like steak or roast, isn't the same as processed stuff like bacon or hot dogs — they're made differently and might affect your health in different ways, so experts say we shouldn't treat them the same when studying their health effects.
Eating a lot of processed meats like bacon or hot dogs might be worse for your heart than eating regular red meat, especially for women.
Eating a lot of red meat — especially processed kinds like bacon or sausages — might increase your chances of dying from heart disease, and this seems to affect women more than men.
Swapping out red or processed meats for plant-based proteins like nuts, seeds, or soy could help lower the chance of dying from heart disease — especially in women.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making health decisions.