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TOXALIM researchers have obtained encouraging results to limit this undesirable effect of red meat and cold cuts.

• For this, they have provided two groups of animals and healthy volunteers for 3 days, a diet of these foods. But the meat of one group was added with a compound called tocopherol. Better known as vitamin E, this antioxidant is found in vegetable oils such as sunflower and wheat germ.

• The results of the experiment are clear: the addition of vitamin E directly into the meat significantly decreases the oxidation reaction which converts meat lipids into aldehydes. As a consequence, the deleterious effects of red meat and cold cuts on colon cells were significantly reduced.

As part of this project, the researchers have moved closer to cold-cuts producers. "We believe that enriching these products with tocopherol could reduce their impact on colorectal carcinogenesis" says Fabrice Pierre, team leader. The idea is all the more interesting that adding vitamin E does not affect the appearance and taste of these foodstuffs. Regarding red meat, researchers already imagine enriching the diet of animals with tocopherol. This, indeed, seems to change the properties of meat to make it less aggressive to the cells of the colon.