Fat intake increases prostate cancer risk

The news on Dennis Hopper losing his battle against prostate cancer has drawn attention from moviegoers and fans.

Prostate cancer is a common cancer diagnosed in an estimated 170,000 men each year in the United States. The disease is not as aggressive as many others, but it does kill about 30,000 men in the country each year.

The risk of the disease however may be minimized by following a healthy life style including a healthy diet. It has not been implied that Mr. Hopper follows an unhealthy lifestyle.

Numerous studies have been reported on foodconsumer.org to reveal the association between diet and the risk of prostate cancer.

One recent study also suggests that eating too much fat is one risk factor for prostate cancer.

Reducing intake dietary fat may cut the risk for early onset of prostate cancer, according to a new study in the Jan 2010 issue of the British Journal of Nutrition.

The study led by Page E Liu from University of Nottingham Medical School in the United Kingdom showed that those who had highest intake of fat were at significantly greater risk for prostate cancer.

For the study, the researchers examined dietary data collected from 512 patients with prostate cancer and 838 people without the disease using a self-administered food frequency questionnaire.

Those who had the highest intake of total fat, saturated fatty acids, monounsaturated fatty acids and polyunsaturated fatty acids were at 2.53, 2.49, 2.69 and 2.34 times higher risk for prostate cancer respectively, compared to those who had the lowest intake.

Of course, fat is not the only possible risk factor for the disease.

The possible risk factors include drinking, exposure to pesticide, lack of sunlight exposure or vitamin D deficiency, obesity, high meat intake, and some retroviruses among others, according to previous research.

On the other hand, flaxseed, omega-3 fatty acids, low fat diet, high serum vitamin D, green tea and physical exercise may reduce the risk of prostate cancer.

(Reporting by Jimmy Downs and editing by Sheilah Downey)
foodconsumer.org