Choose to Cut Colorectal Cancer Risk

The second leading cause of cancer deaths in the US, colorectal cancer is a disease that may be influenced by dietary choices. Michael J. Orlich, from Loma Linda University (California, USA), and colleagues analyzed data collected on a group of 77,659  participants in the Adventist Health Study 2 (AHS-2).  Diet was assessed via questionnaire, with subjects categorized into 1 of 4 vegetarian dietary patterns (vegan, lacto-ovo vegetarian, pescovegetarian, and semivegetarian); or a nonvegetarian dietary pattern.  During a mean follow-up of 7.3 years, 380 cases of colon cancer and 110 cases of rectal cancer were identified.  Vegetarians had a 22%  lower risk for all colorectal cancers, 19% lower risk for colon cancer and 29%  lower risk for rectal cancer, as compared to nonvegetarians,. More specifically, vegans had a 16% lower risk of colorectal cancer, lacto-ovo (eat milk and eggs) vegetarians 18% less risk, pescovegetarians (eat fish) 43% less, and semivegetarians 8% less risk. Observing that:  “Vegetarian diets are associated with an overall lower incidence of colorectal cancers,” the study authors submit that: “If such associations are causal, they may be important for primary prevention of colorectal cancers.”