Some studies are suggesting eating meat, dairy products and sugar boosts breast cancer risk.
One study published in European Journal of Cancer suggests high levels of insulin-like growth factor -I or IGF-I boosts breast cancer risk.
The study led by J.P. Peyrat at Centre Oscar Lambret in France and colleagues measured this protein in the blood samples collected from patients with primary breast cancer and controls without the malignancy and found breast cancer patients had much higher levels of IGF-I.
IGF-I is a protein that is known to promote cell growth and inhibit apoptosis or programmed cell death, a combination that is seen commonly in malignant tumors. In vitro studies have already revealed that IGF-I is able to stimulate breast cancer cell growth, according to background information in the study report.
Among 44 breast cancer patients and 92 controls aged 35 or older, the average serum concentrations of IGF-I were found significantly higher in women with primary breast cancer than those without the disease, 26 ng/ml versus 20 ng/ml.
Breast cancer
The researchers concluded that “We conclude that IGF-1 could be an important factor involved in the development of breast cancer and that treatment reducing IGF-1 levels could be beneficial for patients.”
Another study published in Breast Cancer Research and Treatment aslo found those who had the highest quartile of IGF-I were 92 percent more likely to be diagnosed with breast cancer than those with the lowest quartile of IGF-I.
Increased elevls of IGF-I were found in both premenopausal women and postmenopausal women who had breast cancer compared with that in controls. But the association was found only in Caucasian women, but not in Hispanic women.
Dana E. and colleagues at H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute in Tampa, Florida conducted the study involving 184 cases of breast cancer and 522 controls.
In fact, quite some studies have suggested that IGF-I is a risk factor for breast cancer.
Helzlsouer KJ and colleagues from Endogenous Hormones and Breast Cancer Collaborative Group in the United Kingdom reviewed 17 prospective studies involving 4,790 cases of breast cancer and 9,428 matched controls in 12 countries and found those whose IGF-I levels were highest were 28 percent more likely to suffer breast cancer than those who had lowest levels.
Breast cancer cell
Their findings were published in the June 2010 issue of the Lancet Oncology.
Other studies have shown high consumption of protein -rich foods likely meat, dairy products, milk, added sugar in processed foods and soft drinks, and some minerals are associated with elevated levels of IGF-I.
Dr. Colin T Campbell, a distinguished nutrition professor at Cornell University suggests in his book China Study that Americans eat too much protein, particularly animal protein.
Another recent study has found that older men who had higher levels of IGF-I were more likely to die from all cancers.
Breast cancer is diagnosed in more than 175,000 women and kills about 50,000 each year in the United States, according to the National Cancer Institute. The disease is expected in one in 7 women in their lifetime.
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Drinking three glasses of milk per day decreases the risk of cardiovascular disease by 18 percent, says researchers.
Wageningen and Harvard University researchers examined 17 studies from Europe, USA and Japan, and found no link between the consumption of regular or low-fat dairy and any increased risk of heart disease, stroke or total mortality.
“Milk and dairy are the most nutritious and healthy foods available and loaded with naturally occurring nutrients, such as calcium, potassium and protein, to name a few,” said Cindy Schweitzer, Technical Director, Global Dairy Platform.
“It”s about going back to the basics; maintaining a healthy lifestyle doesn”t have to be a scientific equation,” she said.
An Israeli study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition showed that a higher dairy calcium intake is related to greater diet-induced weight loss.
The study, which sampled more than 300 overweight men and women during two years, revealed that those with the highest dairy calcium intake lost 38 percent more weight than those with the lowest dairy calcium intake.
Additionally, from dispelling the myth that dairy causes heart disease, to revealing dairy”s weight loss benefits, below is a 2010 roundup of select dairy research:
•US researchers examined 21 studies that included data from nearly 350,000 and concluded that dietary intakes of saturated fats are not associated with increases in the risk of either coronary heart disease or cardiovascular disease. The study was published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
•A study published in the American Journal of Epidemiology examined 23,366 Swedish men and revealed that intakes of calcium above the recommended daily levels may reduce the risk of mortality from heart disease and cancer by 25 percent.