(SPM Wire) An apple a day may keep the doctor away, but too much red meat can increase your risk of death, according to the first major study of meat’s impact on overall mortality.

Individuals who eat more red and processed meat have an increased risk of death from all causes and also from cancer or heart disease over a 10-year period, according to a new report in “Archives of Internal Medicine” journal.

The new study of more than half-a-million older and middle-aged Americans found that men who eat the equivalent of a small quarter- pound hamburger daily face a 27 percent higher risk of dying of heart disease and a 22 percent increased risk of cancer.

The numbers also are startling for women: those who eat large amounts of red meat face a 50 percent increased risk of death by heart disease and a 20 percent higher risk of dying of cancer.

By contrast, a higher intake of white meat appeared to be associated with a slightly decreased risk for overall death and cancer death, concluded the researchers, who were funded by the National Cancer Institute.