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Cancer Risk Declines as Fruit and Veggie Intake Climbs
August 7, 2008
Researchers recently completed one of the largest cancer studies ever performed, which surveyed nearly 500,000 adult Americans age 50 and up, then followed their health for four years. The study identified smoking and heavy drinking as major risk factors for the development of head and neck cancers. Certain foods, however, emerged as particularly protective factors against these cancers, even in smokers and alcoholics.
Study participants who ate the most vegetables (typically 4 or more servings per day) had 1/3 lower risk of head and neck cancers than the group that ate the fewest (less than one serving per day.) Peppers, tomatoes, carrots and legumes (such as beans, peas and string beans), were all linked to lower cancer odds. Odds of developing cancer also decreased as consumption of rosacea fruits increased. (Rosacea fruits include apples, nectarines, peaches, plums, strawberries and pears).
The study’s authors are unclear about which compounds provide the protective effect. According to Dr. Neil D. Friedman, “numerous potentially beneficial compounds are present in these foods and it’s not possible to pinpoint which of those, or a combination thereof, are responsible” (International Journal of Cancer). Previously, Dr. Gary Frazier had reported how fruit intake substantially reduces the risk of lung cancer in non-smoking Seventh-day Adventists. While the exact agents causing this risk reduction remain unclear, this large, landmark study did show that cancer risk declined as fruit and veggie intake climbed.
Topics: Health News