Saturated fat and risk of breast cancer has been controversial as some studies indicated an association and other didn’t. The data above is based on a large meta-analysis, combining 45 studies and including over 600,000 women. There conclusion is that a high saturated fat diet (or high meat diet) does increase the risk for breast cancer. The increase is modest, but a 20% increase in the second leading cause of death from cancer can mean several thousand extra cases each year.

A low saturated fat diet can now be recommended not only for preventing heart disease but also for preventing colon cancer and may also be linked to higher risk of diabetes.