A New Study Links Urinary Tract Infections With Consumption of Contaminated Meat

Any time scientists uncover new findings about the harms of meat consumption, we inch another step closer to a world free from the consumption of helpless animals. Indeed, the latest study from researchers has found that some urinary tract infections (UTIs) are caused by the consumption of contaminated meat.

What kind of meat, specifically, and what kind of contamination is causing a rise in UTIs? What should meat eaters know about meat consumption and the experience of UTIs?

The research is fascinating and worth exploring. Below, we uncover the gems from the latest research linking meat consumption to diagnoses of UTIs, and why the link exists.

Continue reading below for an exploration of intriguing research into the connection between certain kinds of contaminated meat products and the effect they have on the human body.

According to a report in NBC News, the results of a four-year study among a group of patients based in Southern California revealed that 1 in 5 UTIs was caused by the patients consuming chicken, turkey, pork, or beef that was contaminated with E. coli bacteria.

The results of the research were published in an article entitled Zoonotic Escherichia coli and urinary tract infections in Southern California, in the American Society for Microbiology's journal, mBio.

The patients were mostly Hispanic (37%) or white (31%) and lived in low or medium-family poverty rates.

"Most UTI patients were female (88%), with a median age of 50 years," according to the research paper's Abstract section.

Interestingly, the E. coli contamination ranked highest among turkey (82%), with chicken (58%), pork (54%), and beef (47%) behind it.

According to NBC News, study author Lance Price, who is also a professor of environmental and occupational health at George Washington University, said the inspiration for the research dates back 15 years, when Price observed that chicken and turkey samples he tested were contaminated with E. coli.

“For some reason, that was basically being ignored," Price said, per NBC News. "If it didn’t cause diarrhea, it was being ignored. And so that started me on this path."

The research paper also found that those with zoonotic infections were more commonly older men with a median age of 73, compared to their non-zoonotic infection counterparts, men with a median age of 65.

"These findings underscore the...UTI burden in Southern California and the need for targeted interventions to reduce risk in vulnerable communities," according to the authors in the Abstract section of the research paper.

According to NBC News, an intriguing facet of the study is that low-income neighborhoods boasted a 60% higher risk of food-borne UTIs than in wealthier neighborhoods.

The authors considered this may be due to groceries in lower income neighborhoods storing meat at improper temperatures, as well as keeping products out for too long (possibly beyond their expiration dates).