For women over 50, breast cancer isn’t their only concern–it’s developing another deadly type of cancer called endometrial cancer.
Reducing the risk of this disease can often lead to invasive procedures, however, such as a hysterectomy.
However, they now may be a new way to prevent it without ever going under the knife.
According to new research published in the British Journal of Cancer, women who adhered to a Mediterranean-type diet reduced their risk by more than 50 percent. Complete adherence wasn’t necessary either; following just some of the guidelines of the Mediterranean diet also led to a 34 percent decrease.
Those who did not follow the diet faced a higher risk of developing this disease, however, say researchers.
“Our research shows the impact a healthy, balanced diet could have on a woman’s risk of developing womb [uterine] cancer,” says Cristina Bosetti, a researcher from the IRCCS-Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche in Milan, Italy. “This adds more weight to our understanding of how our everyday choices, like what we eat and how active we are, affect our risk of cancer.”
Analyzing more than 5,000 Italian women at risk of endometrial cancer, researchers interviewed them about their dietary habits, specifically examining how much vegetables, fruits, healthy fats, and whole grains they consumed on a regular basis. The Mediterranean diet primarily focuses on these food groups.
Researchers then rated each woman’s diet based on a point scale, ranking their diets from worst to best.
Comparing these diets to the rate of endometrial cancer diagnosed in the group, they made a huge discovery: Those who mostly adhered to the Mediterranean diet were 57 percent less likely to develop endometrial cancer.
“Some components of the Mediterranean diet have favourable [sic] effects on endometrial cancer, and the Mediterranean diet as a whole has been shown to have a beneficial role on various neoplasms,” write researchers in the online version of the British Journal of Cancer. “Our study provides evidence for a beneficial role of the Mediterranean diet on endometrial cancer risk, suggesting a favourable [sic] effect of a combination of foods rich in antioxidants, fibres [sic], phytochemicals, and unsaturated fatty acids.”
In addition, full adherence to the Mediterranean diet principles was not a requirement, say researchers. Those who only adhered to several of its components reduced their risk by 46 percent, whereas those who only followed some of them still lowered their risk by 34 percent. It was those followed few of its principles–or followed none at all–that didn’t benefit. In these cases, they often did not eat a healthy diet.
So bottom line? To reduce your risk of endometrial cancer, eat healthy–and do it often.
“Cancer risk is affected by our age and our genes, but a healthy lifestyle can also play a part in reducing the risk of some cancers,” says Julie Sharp, the head of health information at Cancer Research UK.
Readers: Do you follow the Mediterranean diet? Why or why not?
Sources:
This Diet Tied to Lower Uterine Cancer Risk – WebMD.com
Mediterranean Diet and Risk of Endometrial Cancer: A Pooled Analysis of Three Italian Case-Control Studies – Nature.com
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