Dying for a Hamburger: Modern Meat Processing and the Epidemic of Alzheimer's disease

Peter Harmathy teaches fine arts in Victoria, B.C.

Dr. Murray Waldman is a coroner for the City of Toronto, has held
numerous positions as medical director for hospitals and large
corporations, and is frequently published in medical journals and the
Toronto Star. Marjorie Lamb is a writer and broadcaster for Canadian
periodicals and CBC Radio, and is the author of several books, including
the bestselling Two Minutes a Day for a Greener Planet.

In this book, Waldman and Lamb make a convincing case linking beef
consumption with the rise in Alzheimer’s disease, especially in those
parts of the world (notably Pacific Rim countries) where Alzheimer’s
was once considered rare. The problem isn’t mad-cow disease (which can
be transmitted from beef cattle to humans), but the lesser-known prion
diseases that can also be transmitted to humans. Whereas mad-cow disease
is swift in felling its human victims, prion diseases are very slow to
develop. The source of the two diseases is the same: the feed given to
cattle could still be tainted with the diseased flesh of other animals,
and even if it isn’t, the offspring of prion-diseased cattle would be
impossible to eliminate from the food chain.

So far, research into prions has not conclusively proven the connection
between prions and Alzheimer’s disease. But the facts presented in
this book are both startling and persuasive. Dying for a Hamburger is a
compelling warning to scientists and government and industry officials
that something may be seriously wrong.