We all know a bad diet can put us at risk of many diseases–and that includes prostate cancer, a leading cause of death among men.
Now new research shows a bad diet could even raise the risk of dying from this disease.
Research from the Harvard School of Public Health recently studied men who ate a standard American diet, and the results were nothing short of shocking: When they developed prostate cancer, there were 2.5 times more likely to die.
Worse yet, this diet raised their risk of dying from any cause by 67 percent.
“There is currently very little evidence to counsel men living with prostate cancer on how they can modify their lifestyle to improve survival,” says Jorge Chavarro, senior author of the study and a researcher from the Harvard School of Public Health. “Our results suggest that a heart-healthy diet may benefit these men by specifically reducing their chances of dying of prostate cancer.”
The Study
The research, which now appears in the June 1 issue of Cancer Prevention Research, studied nearly 1,000 American doctors who developed prostate cancer. Researchers followed them for an average of 14 years, examining how their eating habits changed–or didn’t change–during the course of their treatment.
To help better examine these data, researchers split them into two groups based on their eating habits. Those who ate a diet rich in processed meat, high-fat dairy products, and refined grains were placed into a “Western” diet group, whereas those who ate healthier foods were placed in a separate group. Researchers then examined their risk of dying from prostate cancer.
Unfortunately, the news wasn’t good: Those who ate a Western diet nearly tripled their risk of dying from this disease. On the other, those who practiced healthier eating habits reduced their risk by as much as 36 percent–and that’s also from any cause.
For researchers, these results clearly demonstrate why Western diets just aren’t healthy.
“It has been known for some time that this type of diet can elevate risk of diabetes, heart attack, stroke and various cancers,” says Michael Schwartz, an urologist from the Arthur Smith Institute for Urology in New York. “Diets high in animal fat and low in fiber are associated with metabolic syndrome–a collection of conditions including abdominal obesity, elevated blood sugar levels and high blood pressure.”
But even if you don’t suffer from prostate cancer, eating a healthy diet is still a good idea, say experts. Healthy diets, which are rich in vegetables, fruits, lean meats and whole grains, have been repeatedly shown to lower the risk of many diseases, including several type of cancer. And it’s best to prevent cancer instead of dealing with it as it develops–though medical treatments have improved, people still face a huge risk of dying from it.
That’s easier said than done, though.
“This study provides evidence for what many of us have for years been telling our patients with prostate cancer–or patients who are interested in prostate cancer prevention,” says Schwartz.
Readers: How healthy is your diet?
Source:
High-Fat Diet May Raise Prostate Cancer Death Risk – WebMD.com
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