Is your diet and lifestyle putting
you at risk of breast cancer?
In
recent years a growing number of medics have claimed there is a link between
breast cancer and diet and lifestyle.
Until now, though, no comprehensive study has conclusively
proved the claims.
Now co-ordinators of the largest-ever survey on breast
cancer hope to provide the definitive guide on which foods to avoid, what to
eat to help keep the disease at bay - and which lifestyle factors will increase
your risk of developing the disease.
Evidence already suggests that using dietary measures alone
can cut the risk of breast cancer by as much as half. Soya, fruit and
vegetables are thought to help reduce the risk. In addition, studies show that
pregnancy and breast-feeding tend to protect against the disease, although
women on the Pill and HRT are shown to have an increased risk.
Researchers conducting the new survey, funded by the
European Commission, will question thousands of women with breast cancer below
the age of 40 from seven different countries including Scotland.
Those quizzed will be asked about their diet before and
after breast cancer, the use of hormonal pills, the amount of exercise taken
each week, the number of children they have and the age at which they gave
birth. The women will also be asked about their family history of the disease.
Scientists have already discovered that two mutations in a
gene are responsible for 70 per cent of breast cancer cases where the disease
runs strongly in the family. The genes called BRCA1 and BRCA2 contain errors in
their make-up which can reduce the body's ability to fight cancer. It is also
thought that other mutations known as BRCA3 influenced by environmental factors
can contribute to developing the disease.
The researchers will divide those taking part into three
main groups: those women with BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations, BRCA3 mutations and
those with no genetic risk factors.
The survey, which forms part of a longer-term study will
take three years.
Evidence so far suggests that pregnancy tends to protect against
breast cancer, probably by reducing a woman's lifetime exposure to oestrogen.
Women who do not have children are 10 to 30 per cent more likely to develop the
disease.
It's also thought that breast-feeding may help prevent the
disease. Women who have breast-fed for at least two years in total are thought
to enjoy a 20 per cent to 30 per cent reduction in risk.
Studies also show that women who take the Pill are up to
twice as likely to develop breast cancer, depending on length of use. Other
research suggests that women who take HRT for five years or more have a 35 per
cent increase in risk.
There is also evidence linking a diet high in fruit and
vegetables with a reduced risk of breast cancer. Fruits and vegetables tend to
be high in antioxidant nutrients such as betacarotene and vitamin C, and these
help to combat damaging molecules called free radicals, which are heavily
implicated in the processes that cause cancer.
Other research shows that soya can also help reduce breast
cancer risk. Populations, such as the Japanese, who eat an abundance of such
foods have been shown to enjoy significantly reduced rates of the disease.
However, researchers found that Japanese girls who moved to America have a much
higher risk of breast cancer than their contempories who stayed in Japan. This
implies diet plays an important part in protecting against cancer.
The research team taking part in the latest survey also
hopes to explain why a higher incidence of breast cancer occurs in Scotland.
Statistics show that one in nine women develop breast cancer in Britain as a
whole - but the incidence in Scotland is slightly higher. More than 13,000
women die from breast cancer each year - and Britain has the highest death rate
in the world.
'I would be very surprised if certain foods in the Scottish
diet are not responsible for some incidences of breast cancer,' says Professor
Steel.
'If we can identify the foods and lifestyle changes that
protect against breast cancer, we hope to half the Scottish incidence of breast
cancer. However, this would depend on people willing to change their habits
quite radically.'
Article written by by NAOMI COLEMAN.
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