Bacon, ham and sausages now sit alongside cigarettes as a definite cause of cancer, the World Health Organisation (WHO) broadcast today.

The link between certain types of meat and some forms of cancer, such as bowel cancer, isn’t new - the evidence has been gathering over a number of years.

However, today’s announcement is nonetheless significant.

The World Health Organisation has classified processed meat as carcinogenic to humans, based on sufficient evidence in humans that the consumption of processed meat causes colorectal cancer.

The type of meat in the WHO spotlight is meat that has been “transformed through salting, curing, fermentation, smoking, or other processes to enhance flavour or improve preservation. Most processed meats contain pork or beef, but processed meats may also contain other red meats, poultry, offal, or meat by-products such as blood. Examples of processed meat include hot dogs (frankfurters), ham, sausages, corned beef, and beef jerky as well as canned meat and meat-based preparations and sauces”.

What does this classification actually mean?

Thankfully, Cancer Research UK says, “A prolonged high-meat diet isn’t good for you. But a steak, bacon sandwich or sausage bap a few times a week probably isn’t much to worry about”.

Overall the risks are much lower than for other things linked to cancer – such as smoking.

Although processed meats have been classed in the highest risk category, alongside smoking, it does not mean that each are of equally dangerous.

The classification describes the strength of the scientific evidence that a substance causes cancer, rather than the level of risk attached to it.

This is important because it is well known that insurance companies look at risks associated with certain habits such as smoking and drinking in addition to things like family medical history when deciding the premiums we pay for life insurance.

“For an individual, the risk of developing colorectal cancer because of their consumption of processed meat remains small, but this risk increases with the amount of meat consumed,” says Dr Kurt Straif, Head of the IARC Monographs Programme. “In view of the large number of people who consume processed meat, the global impact on cancer incidence is of public health importance”.

If we try and put this announcement into perspective, the evidence that processed meat causes cancer is as strong as the evidence for tobacco, but the risk for tobacco is much higher.

In 2011, scientists estimated that around 3 in every hundred cancers in the UK were due to eating too much red and processed meat (8,800 cases per year). Whereas, 64,500 cases every year are caused by smoking (19% of all cancers).

If no one smoked in the UK, then there would be 64,500 less cancers diagnosed. If no one ate processed or red meat, there would be 8,800 fewer cases.

It is the relative risk that insurers will take into consideration.

So, it’s unlikely that we’ll be asked questions by insurers about how much of these types of meat we eat on a daily basis, in the same way we are asked how many cigarettes we smoke. And it is unlikely that processed meat eaters will experience an increase in premiums.

However, if you are someone who has a very meaty diet and you are worried about cancer, Cancer Research UK suggest cutting down. There are healthier things to eat and if you do choose to eat processed or red meat, their message is to do so in moderation.

For help, advice and any questions you have about life insurance, our experienced team can be contacted on 0800 612 8005.