Men who eat a diet consisting of moderate amounts of processed red meats are more likely to die of heart failure, according to a new study.

Examples of processed meats include cold cuts (like salami or ham), bacon, sausage, and hot dogs. Such meats are preserved through smoking, salting, curing, or through the addition of preservatives. Unprocessed red meats do not have food additives, and have a lower level of sodium.

The Cohort of Swedish Men study is the first of its kind to look at the effects of processed red meats separately from unprocessed red meats. The researchers analyzed 37,035 men between the ages of 45 and 79 years who have no history of heart failure or cancer.

Nearly 12 years after a follow-up, researchers discovered that 2,891 of the participants suffered from heart failure, 266 of whom died. The researchers also found that men who consumed 75 grams per day or more of processed red meats were 28 percent more likely to suffer from heart failure compared to men who consumed 25 grams per day or less.

“Processed red meat commonly contains sodium, nitrates, phosphates and other food additives, and smoked and grilled meats also contain polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, all of which may contribute to the increased heart failure risk,” said Alicja Wolk, D.M.Sc., senior author of the study and professor in the Division of Nutritional Epidemiology at the Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, Sweden.

The findings are published in the journal Circulation: Heart Failure.