Colon cancer

COLON CANCER
Colon cancer is the second leading cause of cancer mortality in the United States, accounting for 56,000 deaths each year. Consumption of foods high in saturated fat and cholesterol increase the risk for this disease. Alcohol and smoking are associated with causing polyps, benign growths in the large intestine that may become malignant. Low intake of whole grains, high in fiber, and vegetables, especially those high in folate, are also linked to colon cancer. See Broccoli, Cabbage,
Polyps, Water, Whole Grains, Women’s Health.

• Meat Raises Risk of Colon Cancer - Women who eat beef, lamb, or pork as a daily main dish are at two and a half times the risk for developing colon cancer as women who eat meat less than once a month. . The conclusion, drawn from a study of 88,751 nurses, over a ten-year period, found that the more fish and poultry in the diet the less chances of getting colon cancer. “The substitution of other protein sources, such as beans or lentils, for red meat might also be associated with a reduced risk of colon cancer in populations that consume more legumes,” researchers concluded. Investigators also found that eating the fiber from fruit appeared to reduce the risk of colon cancer. The fruits mentioned as possibly protective included apples and pears.
“The less red meat the better,” recommended Dr. Walter Willett, professor of epidemiology and nutrition at the Harvard School of Public Health, who directed the study. “At most, it should be eaten only occasionally. And it may be maximally effective not to eat red meat at all.”
Sources: Walter C. Willett et al., “Relation of Meat, Fat, and Fiber Intake to the Risk of Colon Cancer in a Prospective Study among Women,” New England Journal of Medicine 323:1664-72, 1990 and Anastasia Toufexis, “Red Alert on Red Meat,” Time, December 24, 1990.

• Whole Grains Protective Against Colon Cancer - In a population-based case-control study of over 4000 people in California, Utah, and Minnesota, cancer researchers reported that high whole grain intake was associated with up to 60 percent less risk for this disease, while intake of refined grains increased the risk one and a half to two times. Foods high in fiber, vitamin B-6, thiamine, and niacin were also protective.
Source: M. L. Slattery, “Plant Foods and Colon Cancer; An Assessment of Specific Foods and Their Related Nutrients,” Cancer Causes Control 8(4):575-90, 1997.

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