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University of Mississippi Medical Center Improves Menu, Drops Hot Dogs
Physicians Committee Statement from Karen Smith, R.D., Senior Dietitian
"I congratulate University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC) in Jackson, Miss., in leading the movement to prevent diet-related diseases by removing hot dogs from its menu and encouraging other children’s hospitals to do the same.
"'UMMC will be implementing a new menu on approximately April 1st and hot dogs will no longer be served,' said a UMMC dietitian in an e-mail to the Physicians Committee on March 7.
"In February, the Physicians Committee—a nonprofit representing more than 12,000 physicians—placed a billboard and sent a letter urging UMMC's Batson Children’s Hospital to protect patients from #HazardousHotDogs, which are linked to increased colorectal cancer risk. Hot dogs are also the No. 1 choking risk for children.
"Mississippi is in the colon cancer corridor, a cluster of nine states with high death rates from colorectal cancer, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The World Health Organization warns that processed meats, including hot dogs, are ‘carcinogenic to humans’ and there is no amount safe for consumption."
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Founded in 1985, the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine is a nonprofit organization that promotes preventive medicine, conducts clinical research, and encourages higher standards for ethics and effectiveness in education and research.
