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 05 September 2008 06:14 BST

Western diet linked with cancer in Chinese women

Tuesday, 10 Jul 2007 12:54
Western diet linked to increased breast cancer risk in Chinese women
Chinese women who eat a western-style diet are reportedly at an increased risk of contracting breast cancer.

US scientists say their research is the first time that an association between a western diet of predominantly meat and sugar has been associated with breast cancer in postmenopausal Asian women.

"The issue [of diet] is of particular relevance to women in Asia, for whom breast cancer rates are traditionally low but increasing steadily in recent years," writes study author Marilyn Tseng of the Fox Chase Cancer Centre in Philadelphia.

In arriving at their findings, researchers identified two distinct diet patterns, classified as 'meat-sweet' and 'vegetable-soy'.

The mainly-western 'meat-sweet' diet contains pork, poultry, organ meats, beef and lamb with saltwater fish and other shellfish as well as confectionary, desserts, bread and milk, while the 'vegetable-soy' diet more traditionally prevalent in China includes different vegetables, soy-based products and freshwater fish.

Research published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention, based on interviews with 1,602 women based in Shanghai diagnosed with breast cancer between 1996 and 1998, says the western-style 'meat-sweet' pattern is "strongly-associated" with higher instances of breast cancer.

"Our study suggests the possibility that the 'meat-sweet' pattern increased breast cancer risk by increasing obesity," Dr Tseng continues.

"Low consumption of a western dietary pattern plus successful weight control may protect against breast cancer in a traditionally low-risk Asian population that is poised to more broadly adopt foods characteristic of western societies."

China has experienced rapidly-increasing rates of childhood obesity during recent years in urban areas due to the prevalence of western fast food and reduced rates of physical activity.End of story


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