Creators Syndicate

FIGHT BACK!  BY DAVID HOROWITZ 

Say It Isn't So! 
         
        The stories about hot dogs and cancer in the news  recently
have been enough to frighten any parent. Last March,  there was a
report that eating hot dogs doubles a child's  risk of developing brain
cancer. Then, in June, another study  came out that seemed to link hot
dogs with childhood  leukemia. It's scary stuff. But the real risk here
may be  overreaction. 
        Both these stories were based on preliminary studies  that
hinted at some connection between children's eating  habits and cancer.
But neither of those studies was  conclusive, and neither one said how
or why hot dogs might  contribute to malignancies in children. 
        The first study, reported in the March issue of Cancer:  Causes
and Control, was extremely limited in scope. It looked  at only 60
children after they had already developed tumors  of the brain. And
while children who ate hot dogs at least  once a week seemed to have
double the risk of such tumors,  the study did not rule out other
possible causes -- either in  the children's diets, environments or
genetic predispositions  for cancer. In addition, this particular type
of cancer is  extremely rare in children. The risk is normally about
one in  30,000. Doubling that risk makes it two in 30,000 -- which is 
still very low. 
        More recent results, from the University of Southern 
California, were almost accidental. The researchers were  actually
conducting a study on the health effects of  electromagnetic fields.
But the study included, among other  things, a questionnaire on
processed and cured meats. And  when they examined the questionnaires,
out came this  statistical correlation between hot dogs and childhood 
leukemia. 
        This was a much larger study than the previous one. The 
researchers compared the hot dog intake of 232 young leukemia  patients
with an equal number of children who did not develop  cancer. Those who
ate hot dogs 12 times or more a month  seemed to be nine times more
likely to develop cancer than  those who did not. 
        But as the research team themselves pointed out, this  was not
a controlled study of that particular health  connection and did not
include data on other possible  carcinogens. Nor did the report offer
any explanation of why  eating hot dogs might cause cancer. Was it the
meat, the  nitrites used to preserve it, the age of the hot dogs, the 
relish or even the buns? Those questions may seem far  fetched, but
they illustrate the point that these studies  raise more questions than
they answer -- and that much more  research needs to be done before hot
dogs are stricken from  the American diet. 
        Hot dogs are not health food, by any means. They are  high in
fat and sodium and should be considered an occasional  treat rather
than a dietary staple. Treats are an important  feature of a balanced
diet. They make eating more healthful  foods the rest of the time
palatable. So, until we have the  answers, the watchword on hot dogs
seems to be moderation. 
        If you have questions or comments, please write to David 
Horowitz at 72662,1775. COPYRIGHT 1994 CREATORS SYNDICATE, INC.