Page 26 - EatingWell Special Edition Superfoods 2019

D I S E A S E F I G H T E R S

solutions—even though science has found a link. their diets matched up. These so-called prospective
Just like the disease itself, diet advice is compli- studies take longer but are seen as more reliable
cated. When it comes to cancer prevention, “we because the results aren’t as influenced by such
may never fully understand all the individual com- variables as the participants’ backgrounds. But
ponents that make up a healthy diet,” says Carrie that type of study has drawbacks too. Research-
R. Daniel-MacDougall, Ph.D., M.P.H., of the Uni- ers ask people to report total consumption of fruits

versity of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. “It’s and vegetables (but don’t record much detail about
incredibly complex.” which types of produce they eat). And the studies
While experts still say plants are a major part of usually look at the occurrence of all cancers bun-
an overall pattern of eating that your body prefers, dled together, so protection from any one partic-
they now recognize that what you’re not having ular kind of food against a particular cancer gets
when you help yourself to broccoli may be as impor- lost in the background. For example, if tomatoes
tant as eating the vegetable itself. “People who are really do guard against prostate cancer, bundling

eating fruits and vegetables are eating less of some- them with every other kind of produce and prostate
thing else, often animal products,” says Gary Fraser, with every other kind of cancer masks the correla-
Ph.D., of Loma Linda University, whose research tion. Pooling data like that might also dilute areas
has found that vegetarians are less likely to develop where benefits may be stronger. “If you lump all
cancer, for reasons that aren’t fully understood. Data cancers together, you get weaker evidence for any
published in 2018 in JAMA individual one,” says Alice Bender, M.S., R.D.N, of
Internal Medicine showed the American Institute for Cancer Research.
Rather than that vegetarians have a 29%
negating reduced risk of rectal cancer. FURTHER, STUDIES FACE LIMITATIONS BY FACTOR-
the value of The study was part of ongo- ing out the effects of what you’re not eating. People
vegetables, ing research following more who eat little red and processed meat and replace
the underlying than 77,000 Seventh-Day that space on their plates with fiber-rich plant foods

message is: you Adventists. (beans, broccoli, whole fruit, etc.) could cut their
can’t count on The enthusiasm of the colorectal cancer risk by as much as 50%.
easy, singular early days—when we heard The harm may come not just from the meat it-
solutions. you could cancer-proof your- self, but also from how it’s prepared, says Daniel-

self with produce—arose MacDougall. The smoke from meat on a barbecue
largely from studies com- has some of the same carcinogens as cigarettes and
paring the diets of people who had cancer with car exhaust, she says. Char your rib-eye or singe
the diets of people who didn’t. Problem is, these it in the broiler, and that crispy crust likely con-
studies can be biased because volunteers who don’t tains heterocyclic amines and polycyclic aromatic
have cancer tend to be health-conscious (and eat hydrocarbons, carcinogens formed when meat is
more veggies). exposed to high temperatures. Curing, which pre-
Other tantalizing clues helped back up the ini- serves about one-quarter of the meat Americans

tial findings that fruits and vegetables were pro- buy, may also be problematic. Processed meats have
tective. Take breast cancer. Japanese women who been linked to a 20% to 50% greater risk of colorec-
move to the United States tend to approach the tal cancer, says a report in Nutrition and Cancer,
higher risk level of their adopted home, suggesting perhaps because they contain more fat and poten-
that something about their new diet and lifestyle tially harmful additives like nitrites and nitrates.
makes a big difference. Eating foods prepared this way once in a while will
Newer studies (the ones that found that produce likely do no harm, but your odds may increase if

offered little, if any, protection from overall cancer charred steak and bacon play a big part of your diet.
risk) are stronger evidence because they started Alcohol and sugar also make the list of potentially
with a group of people with no illness, noting who cancer-causing foods. Women who binge-drink
developed cancer and who didn’t, and saw how regularly or have more than two drinks a day are

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