An Allergen in Red Meat Cause Heart Disease

Previous studies have shown us that due to high amounts of fat saturation in red meat, heart’s arteries tend to get blocked, resulting in an unprecedented heart attack. But the impact that red meat has on the heart may just have been increased with this latest study, which shows that red meat as an allergen.

These new findings were published in the journal Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology.

Bad News for Meat Lovers

Anaphylaxis is one of the negative occurrences that take place as a result of a food allergen. This is a life-threatening condition in which the body hyper-reacts by constricting airways and dropping blood pressure to levels that are too dangerous for human survival.

Simple things such as a bite from the Lone Star tock could increase your sensitivity to this allergen in red meat. This may be used to explain why the southeastern U.S. has high cases of the allergy.

The researchers estimate that about one percent of the American population is allergic to red meat, but this figure may be much higher when we include individuals who do not display full-blown symptoms.

As opposed to the normal food reactions that begin 30 minutes after eating, it may take anything from 3 to 6 hours before the reaction to red meat starts. The only way you can avoid the red meat allergy is to avoid all types of red meat.

How the Study was done

To accomplish this study, the researchers obtained blood samples from 118 adults which were then analyzed. The analysis revealed antibodies to alpha-Gal in 26% of these samples.

Imaging procedure was used to get more details such as the quantity of plaque in the alpha-Gal sensitized patients and in the non-alpha-Gal sensitized patients. It was revealed that the alpha-Gal sensitized patients had a 30% higher plaque concentration. We already know that plaques are structurally unstable, a fact that made the researchers infer that these patients face increased risk of stroke and heart attack. CPR for adults is a quick first aid technique you can use in the event of an unprecedented heart attack.

Dr. Coleen McNamara said that even though the study was done on a small group of subjects in Virginia, it raises the very important possibility that we may have under-recognized the role that red meat plays in heart diseases.

McNamara is a professor of medicine in the Cardiovascular Research Center of the University of Virginia Health System.

“We must execute more clinical studies in bigger populations and diverse regions then back the findings with laboratory work for us to get a better picture of how disastrous red meat can be to the heart,” she said.

There are plans underway to continue with more research in animals and humans so as to confirm these studies.