Consumption of processed meats in by children: In this case-control study, Peters et al. studied the relationship between the intake of certain foods (in particular: bacon, sausage, ham, salami, pastrami, lunch meat, corned beef, bologna, hot dogs, oranges and orange juice, grapefruit and grapefruit) and the risk of leukemia in children from birth to age 10 in Los Angeles County between 1980 and 1987. The study found that children eating more than 12 hot dogs per month have 9 times the normal risk of developing childhood leukemia (odds ratio [OR] = 9.5). A strong risk for childhood leukemia also existed for those children whose fathers’ intake of hot dogs was 12 or more per month (OR = 11.0). Consumption of fruit was not found to provide any protection. (42)
