“About 68% of the calories from bacon come from fat—and about half of those are from saturated fat—so it's definitely not the healthiest meat you can choose.” Bacon and other smoked, cured and processed meats are usually treated with nitrates or nitrites—chemical added to preserve shelf life and enhance color.
In light of the more recent evidence, it's best to reduce your intake of all processed meats to once every couple of weeks. Therefore, keeping your bacon intake to a minimum is recommended – eating it every couple of weeks is best.
Bacon contains some essential micronutrients, including potassium, which supports bone health, heart health, muscle strength and prevents high blood pressure. You can also find over 50% of the RDA of two essential minerals in bacon; selenium and phosphorus.
Processed meats are meats that have been preserved by smoking or salting, curing or adding chemical preservatives. They include deli meats, bacon and hot dogs. Eating processed meats increases your cancer risk. Unfortunately, when these processed meats are preserved, cancer-causing substances form.
Daily bacon leads to heart disease.
Eating bacon daily for breakfast may lead to excess 'bad' cholesterol build up in your blood vessels, blocking them which puts you at a high risk of developing heart-related conditions, including coronary artery diseases, heart attack, and congestive heart failure." Dr.
“Certainly bacon is not a health food, and I don't advise consuming it on a daily basis,” she says. “But if you eat a couple strips of bacon at brunch on the weekend, I don't think it's going to present a significant health risk—as long as your overall diet is sensible and healthy.”
"My recommendation is to limit meat intake, in particular processed meat intake," Rohrmann told NPR's "The Salt," adding that "we know that meat is rich in some vitamins and minerals and, thus, my recommendation is to limit the [total] amount of meat to about 300 to 600 grams a week."
Nutritionally speaking, bacon fat is actually lower in saturated fat and higher in the good monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats than butter. According to the USDA, a tablespoon of unsalted butter has 102 calories, 12 grams of fat and 2 miligrams of sodium; salted butter has 90 miligrams of sodium. What is this?
The problem with processed meats
The American Institute of Cancer Research recommends avoiding bacon and other processed meats completely. While eating any type of red meat has been associated with increased health risks, processed meats are even worse for your health.
The healthiest way to cook bacon is to cook it until crispy (but not burned), which allows the most fat to melt off.
For example, eggs typically are eaten with other foods high in salt, saturated fat and cholesterol, such as bacon, cheese and butter. These foods are known to increase heart disease risk and should be eaten sparingly.
Overall, bacon is lower in calories and saturated fat and by trimming visible fat you can lower this again, so from a nutritional stand bacon wins. However, as discussed all processed meats should be eaten in moderation due to their links to cancer.
While bacon is flavorful and a breakfast favorite among many, it shouldn't be something you eat regularly. High in saturated fat, just 3–4 slices of bacon represents about a fifth of your daily limit for saturated fat.
“Bacon is high in purine. The body converts purine to uric acid. If uric acid builds too quickly and can't be eliminated, it deposits as crystals in the tissues. That's what cause the intense joint pain, swelling, redness, and possible temporary immobility.”
In order to reduce abdominal fat, high triglyceride levels, and insulin resistance (all of which are linked to weight gain), a higher fat breakfast comprising bacon may be the way to go.
Finally, health experts say to stay away from processed meats, which are generally considered to be unhealthy. These include any meat that has been smoked, salted, cured, dried, or canned. Compared to fresh meat, processed meats are high in sodium and can have double the amount of nitrates.
Worst cuts: Ribs, shoulder and mince. A perennial Australian favourite, lamb “tends to be fattier in general than other meats,” says Fox, though because lamb has less marbling than beef, it's easier to trim away excess fat and make cuts healthier before cooking.
Bacon is good for bodybuilding as long as your overall macronutrient goal for the day is achieved and you eat bacon in moderation.
Eggs are not only high in protein, they also contain many vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. So, bacon and eggs really can be a healthy breakfast option, if eaten in moderation.
But even if natural nitrates are only marginally better for you than synthetic ones, picking organic—or even grass-fed—bacon is still a cleaner choice. Both are free of nasty antibiotics and hormones, while grass-fed has the added benefit of coming from a pig that wasn't raised on corn or soy.