According to a significant research study that investigated dairy consumption and cancer risk in Chinese adults, higher intake of dairy products was related to greater threats of liver cancer and female breast cancer.
The very first major study to examine dairy consumption and cancer danger in Chinese adults found that higher consumption was connected with increased dangers of liver cancer and female breast cancer.
Overall evidence to date on whether consuming dairy items impacts the threat of cancer has not corresponded. Studies on Western populations indicate that dairy items might be connected with a lower threat of colorectal cancer and a higher threat of prostate cancer, but have discovered no clear link for breast or other kinds of cancer. [1] These outcomes, nevertheless, might not be the exact same for non-Western populations, where quantities and kinds of dairy consumption and ability to metabolize dairy items are extremely various.
In China there is really little consumption of cheese and butter, and the consumption of milk and yogurt is likewise far lower than in Western populations. Additionly, a lot of Chinese grownups can not effectively metabolize dairy products due to a lack of lactase, a crucial enzyme for breaking down the milk sugar lactose. [2]
To develop whether dairy products impact the threat of cancer differently in Chinese people, scientists from Oxford Population Health, Peking University, and the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, have today published the outcomes of a new massive study in BMC Medicine. This collected information from over 510,000 participants in the China Kadoorie Biobank Study.
University of Oxford
The individuals (59% female, 41% male), who came from ten geographically varied areas throughout China and joined the study between 2004 and 2008, had no previous history of cancer. When recruited, each individual (aged 30-79 years) completed a questionnaire about how often they took in various foodstuff, consisting of dairy products. The researchers classified the participants into 3 groups: routine dairy customers (a minimum of as soon as a week), monthly dairy consumers, and individuals who never or rarely consumed dairy products (non-consumers).
Participants were followed up for an average of around 11 years, and the scientists utilized information from nationwide cancer and death registries in addition to medical insurance records to identify new cancer medical diagnoses. Both non-fatal and deadly events were consisted of. The data analyses took into account a range of other aspects that can impact cancer threat, including age, sex, area, family history of cancer, socio-economic status (i.e. education and earnings), lifestyle aspects (i.e. alcohol consumption, smoking, physical activity, soy usage, and fresh fruit intake), body mass index, chronic hepatitis B virus infection (for liver cancer), and female reproductive elements (for breast cancer).
The study found:
In general, around a 5th (20%) of the individuals taken in dairy products frequently (mainly milk), 11% taken in dairy products monthly, and 69% were non-consumers. The typical usage was 38g each day in general in the entire study population and 81g per day amongst regular dairy customers (compared to a typical usage of around 300g each day in individuals from the UK Biobank).
Throughout the research study period 29,277 new cancer cases were tape-recorded, with the greatest rate being for lung cancer (6,282 cases), followed by female breast (2,582 cases), stomach (3,577 cases), colorectal (3,350 cases), and liver cancer (3,191 cases).
Individuals who took in dairy items frequently had considerably higher dangers of developing liver and breast cancer. For each 50g/day intake, the threat increased by 12% and 17% respectively.
Regular dairy consumption was related to an increased danger of lymphoma (though this was not statistically substantial).
There was no association between dairy consumption and colorectal cancer, prostate cancer, or any other kind of cancer investigated. [3]
Both liver and breast cancer are amongst the most typical types of cancer in China, accounting for around 393,000 and 368,000 brand-new cancer cases each year respectively. Possibly, female sex hormones present in cows milk (such as estrogen and progesterone) may have a function in the increased threat of breast cancer, whilst saturated and trans-fatty acids from dairy products might increase the threat of liver cancer. For the majority of Chinese individuals who do not produce adequate lactase, dairy products may likewise be broken down into items that affect cancer risk.
Dr. Maria Kakkoura, Nutritional Epidemiologist at Oxford Population Health, and the very first author of the research study, stated: “This was the very first significant research study to examine the link between dairy products and cancer risk in a Chinese population. Additional research studies are needed to validate these current findings, establish if these associations are causal, and examine the potential hidden mechanisms involved.”
The average level of dairy consumption in China stays much lower than in European nations, it has actually increased rapidly in current years.
Partner Professor Huaidong Du, Senior Research Fellow at Oxford Population Health, and one of the senior co-authors of the research study, included: “Whilst our results recommend there might be a direct link between routine dairy intake and specific cancers, it is necessary to be conscious that dairy items provide protein, vitamins, and minerals. It would not be prudent to reduce dairy consumption based exclusively on the arise from the present research study or without making sure adequate consumption of protein, vitamins, and minerals from other sources.”
The research study is released in BMC Medicine.
Referral: “Dairy intake and threats of site-specific and total cancers in Chinese adults: an 11-year prospective research study of 0.5 million individuals” by Maria G. Kakkoura, Huaidong Du, Yu Guo, Canqing Yu, Ling Yang, Pei Pei, Yiping Chen, Sam Sansome, Wing Ching Chan, Xiaoming Yang, Lei Fan, Jun Lv, Junshi Chen, Liming Li, Timothy J. Key and Zhengming Chen on behalf of the China Kadoorie Biobank (CKB) Collaborative Group, 6 May 2022, BMC Medicine.
DOI: 10.1186/ s12916-022-02330-3.
Research studies on Western populations show that dairy products might be associated with a lower risk of colorectal cancer and a greater danger of prostate cancer, but have discovered no clear link for breast or other types of cancer. The data analyses took into account a range of other factors that can affect cancer danger, including age, sex, area, household history of cancer, socio-economic status (i.e. education and earnings), lifestyle factors (i.e. alcohol intake, cigarette smoking, physical activity, soy consumption, and fresh fruit consumption), body mass index, chronic liver disease B virus infection (for liver cancer), and female reproductive elements (for breast cancer).
There was no association between dairy intake and colorectal cancer, prostate cancer, or any other type of cancer investigated. Both liver and breast cancer are amongst the most common types of cancer in China, accounting for around 393,000 and 368,000 brand-new cancer cases each year respectively. Potentially, female sex hormones present in cows milk (such as estrogen and progesterone) may have a function in the increased risk of breast cancer, whilst saturated and trans-fatty acids from dairy products might increase the risk of liver cancer.
World Cancer Research Fund/American Institute for Cancer Research. Meat, Fish and Dairy Products and the Risk of Cancer. Constant Update Project Expert Report 2018.
” Country, local, and worldwide quotes for lactose malabsorption in adults: a systematic evaluation and meta-analysis” by Christian Løvold Storhaug, MS; Svein Kjetil Fosse, MS and Dr Lars T Fadnes, PhD, 6 July 2017, The Lancet Gastroenterology and Hepatology.DOI: 10.1016/ S2468-1253( 17 )30154-1.
The complete list of site-specific cancer types investigated by the study is as follows: bladder, cervical, colorectal, endometrial, female breast, kidney, laryngeal, leukaemia, liver, lung, lymphoma, oesophageal, oral cavity, ovarian, pancreatic, prostate, and stomach.
” Current cancer scenario in China: bad or great news from the 2018 Global Cancer Statistics?” by Rui-Mei Feng, Yi-Nan Zong, Su-Mei Cao and Rui-Hua Xu, 29 April 2019, Cancer communications.DOI: 10.1186/ s40880-019-0368-6.
This work was supported by Wellcome as part of their Livestock, Environment and People (LEAP) program.
Notes.