Salt Cured Raw Pork

It can be very heavy in sodium and fat, so it may be one of the less heart friendly pork options if eaten often. Per serving, it contains about 1,698 kcal, 182.74 g fat, 66.69 g saturated fat, 195.22 mg cholesterol, and 6,092.68 mg sodium, which is far above a full day of sodium for most people. The biggest concern is usually the sodium and saturated fat load, not carbs (it has 0 g carbs).

Usually, uncured raw pork is the healthier baseline, especially for sodium. For example, a raw pork belly weighing 1 oz has about 147 kcal, 15.03 g fat, 5.48 g saturated fat, and only 9.07 mg sodium, while the cured salt pork has much higher levels in sodium because it is salt cured.

It depends on the cut, not just the animal. A lean raw beef top sirloin entry has about 38 kcal and 1.31 g fat per 1 oz, while a raw pork belly entry has about 147 kcal and 15.03 g fat per 1 oz, so in that comparison the pork cut is much more calorie dense. Lean pork cuts can be closer to lean beef, but fatty pork cuts can be much higher.

"Cured with salt" can sometimes mean mainly salt curing, but many processed meats use curing agents like nitrite or nitrate, and health agencies describe processed meats as meats preserved by curing, salting, smoking, or chemical preservatives. The safest way to know is to check the ingredient list for terms like sodium nitrite, sodium nitrate, or celery powder/juice (a natural nitrate source).

IARC classifies processed meat as Group 1 carcinogenic to humans (meaning the evidence that it can cause cancer is strong), and WHO notes the clearest link is with colorectal cancer. A commonly cited estimate is that eating 50 g of processed meat daily is associated with about an 18% higher risk of colorectal cancer.