Cancer diet and

Buiatti E, Palli D, Decarli A, Amadori D, Avellini C, Biachi S, Bonaguri C, Cipriani F, Cocco P and Giacosa A. 1990. A case-control study of gastric cancer and diet in Italy II. Association with nutrients. Int J Cancer 45 896-901. 

Kono, S., Ikeda, M., Tokudome, S., and Kuratsune, M., A case-control study of gastric cancer and diet in northern Kyushu, Japan, J/> . J. Cancer Res., 79, 1067-1074, 1988. 

Young, T.B. and Wolf, D.A., Case-control study of proximal and distal colon cancer and diet in Wisconsin, 7 r. J. Cancer, 42,167-175, 1988. 

Dungal, N., and Sigurjonsson, J. Gastric cancer and diet. A pitot study on dietary habits in two districts differing markedly in respect of mortality from gastric cancer. Br. J. Cancer, 21 270-276,1967. 

Inflammatory reactions can result in production of mutagens (Weitzman and Stossel, 1982) and antibodies against dietary antigens are found in inflammatory bowel disease (Haeney et al., 1982). These observations indicate that food and immunity can interact in a dramatic way. The relationship between immune reactions in the gut, colon cancer, and diet may well be very significant to human health. It seems possible that the immune system could influence gut flora and their production of mutagens. Therefore, the relationships among dietary choices, gut immunity, and immunopathology should be studied further. 

Vitamin C occurs as L-ascorbic acid and dihydroascorbic acid in fruits, vegetables and potatoes, as well as in processed foods to which it has been added as an antioxidant. The only wholly undisputed function of vitamin C is the prevention of scurvy. Although this is the physiological rationale for the currently recommended intake levels, there is growing evidence that vitamin C may provide additional protective effects against other diseases including cancer, and the recommended dietary allowance (RDA) may be increased in the near future. Scurvy develops in adults whose habitual intake of vitamin C falls below 1 mg/d, and under experimental conditions 10 mg/d is sufficient to prevent or alleviate symptoms (Bartley et al., 1953). The RDA is 60 mg per day in the USA, but plasma levels of ascorbate do not achieve saturation until daily intakes reach around 100 mg (Bates et al., 1979). Most of the ascorbate in human diets is derived from natural sources, and consumers who eat five portions, or about 400-500 g, of fruits and vegetables per day could obtain as much as 200 mg of ascorbate. 

RIBOLI E and NORAT T (2001) Cancer prevention and diet opportunities in Europe , Public Health Nutrition, 4, 475-84. 

In countries such as Japan, although the incidence of latent, small or non-infiltrative prostate cancer is similar to that found in Western countries, the incidence of invasive cancer and associated mortality is far lower (Adlercreutz and Mazur, 1997). In Japan, diets have traditionally included large amounts of soy, and it has been proposed that this may be responsible for the protective effect. To date, however, the results are inconsistent, although there may be an inverse correlation with non-fermented soy foods. The active component... 

NOMURA A, GROVE J S, STEMMERMANN G N, STEVENSON R K (1990) A prospective Study of stomach cancer and its relation to diet, cigarettes and alcohol consiunption. Cancer Res. 50 627-31. 

In animals, the major function of carotenoids is as a precursor to the formation of vitamin A. Carotenoids with provitamin A activity are essential components of the human diet, and there is considerable evidence that they are absorbed through the diet and often metabohzed into other compounds. Beyond their important role as a source of vitamin A for humans, dietary carotenoids, including those that are not provitamin A carotenoids, have been implicated as protecting against certain forms of cancer and cardiovascular disease. ... 

Experimental and epidemiologic evidence suggests an association between breast cancer and the Western diet (high in calories, fat, and cooked meats). Obesity in postmenopausal... 

Other agents, including selenium, vitamin E, lycopene, green tea, nonsteriodal anti-inflammatory agents, isoflavones, and statins, are under investigsation for prostate cancer and show promise. Selenium is a naturally occurring trace element that is an essential nutrient in the human diet.8 However, none of these agents is currently recommended for routine use outside a clinical trial. 

Phytochemicals have been the subject of many studies evaluating their effects in relation to common chronic human illnesses such as cancer and cardiovascular diseases. These studies encounter difficulties in using this information to influence the dietary patterns of consumers because in the past they have used models or experiments with animals. However, in the last decade, researchers have moved away from animal studies in favour of human cell models or human intervention studies. Scientists still need to determine the likely incidence of illness from exposure to known amounts of a given natural compound in the diet and specifically in relation to the complex matrices of whole foods. Therefore, it is inevitable that some animal studies have to be continued for toxicological studies. 

Associations between breast cancer and total and specific fruit and vegetable group intakes were examined using standardized exposure definitions (Smith-Warner and others 2001). Data sources were eight prospective studies that had at least 200 incident breast cancer cases, included assessment of usual dietary intake, and had completed a validation study of the diet assessment method or a closely related instrument. 

Gandini S, Merzeninch H, Robertson C and Boyle P. 2000. Meta analysis of studies on breast cancer risk and diet the role of fruit and vegetable consumption and the intake of associated micronutrients. Eur J Cancer 36 636-646. 

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