The Mediterranean diet reduces the risk of obesity-related cancers

A new study has shown that following the Mediterranean diet, it may reduce the risk of obesity-bound cancer, including liver and kidney cancer. This study suggests that even moderate adherence provides some protection and highlights the role of diet in cancer prevention.

study: Mediterranean diet and obesity link cancer epic adherence. Image credit: ShutterStock AI Generator / Shutterstock.com

recently Jama Network Open The study will determine whether adherence to the Mediterranean diet (Meddiet) affects the risk of developing obesity-related cancers.

How does obesity affect cancer risk?

Both obesity and Too fat It increased significantly between 1975 and 2016 in both male and female adults, with a recent study estimated that 39% of the world's population is currently considered obese or overweight. The International Institute for Cancer Research reports that excess weight is associated with a higher risk of developing cancer at 13 anatomical sites, including the kidneys, liver, breast, endometrium and esophagus.

Several epidemiological studies and clinical trials have reported beneficial effects of mediate promoting weight loss and on reducing abdominal steatosis. For example, a prospective European study of cancer and nutrition (EPIC) Spanish cohort studies identified an inverse relationship between high adherence to mediates in excess weight individuals and the risk of obesity. Similarly, another study demonstrated that Mediat improved survival rates after breast cancer diagnosis.

An epic study found that every two points increase in mediate score reduced the overall cancer risk by 4%, increasing the point value reflecting higher adherence to this diet. Similar observations were published in a recent meta-analysis, reporting that high mediate adherence reduces the risk of cancer death and the incidence of certain cancers.

Several factors, including genetic susceptibility, hypoxia, insulin resistance, adipokines, and stromal cells inflammationand growth factors are Obesity and cancer. To date, it remains unclear whether fat mediates a beneficial role for mediate in obesity-related cancers (ORCs).

About the research

The current study investigated the association between mediate compliance and the risk of ORC in the grand cohort. The researchers also determined whether this association was mediated by body mass index (BMI) and waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) measurements.

Individuals diagnosed with cancer at baseline, lack of diagnosis or follow-up information, and were excluded from the analysis without dietary or lifestyle data.

The analysis considered 14 food groups and nutrients. We estimated daily intakes for each participant in grams of different nutritional content and total energy intake.

Meddiet patterns were measured using Meddiet scores (MDS) and relative Meddiet scores (RMeddiet). Cases of accidental cancer in the grand study were identified during a 14.9 year follow-up period.

Survey results

A total of 450,111 study participants, of which 29.2% were male, and 70.8% of women in the grand cohort met the eligibility criteria for the current study. The average age of the study participants was 51.1 years. At baseline, the average BMI was 25.3, while the average WHR was 0.8.

Approximately 4.9% of study participants who were not diagnosed with cancer at baseline developed ORC during the study follow-up period. This includes 0.053, 0.049, and 0.043 per person year for the low, moderate, and high mediate adherence groups.

Individuals with the highest MDS score reported higher education levels, were younger, not nonsmokers, not physically active, and had higher energy intake. In a fully adjusted model, greater mediate adherence was associated with a lower risk of ORC.

A similar association was observed between moderate mediate adherence and ORC. However, when MDS was modeled continuously, no association was identified. These findings were consistent with sensitivity analysis using RMedDiet scores and multivariable adjustment models.

Site-specific ORC assessments showed an inverse association between higher compliance with mediates and risk of hepatocytes, colorectal, and renal cancer. Mediet's moderate adherence was inversely proportional to esophageal cancer. However, this association was not observed for postmenopausal breast, endometrial, and ovarian cancers.

Stratified analysis revealed an inverse association between compliance with MDS and the risk of ORC in former smokers. Taken together, lower risk of incident ORC resulted in moderate alcohol intake and lower meat consumption. Mediation analyses did not identify any significant associations between high and low mediate adherence and the risk of ORC mediated by BMI or WHR.

Conclusion

The findings confirm that higher compliance with mediates may moderately reduce the risk of ORC, allowing moderate compliance associated with a small reduction in the risk of certain cancers. In the future, additional research is needed to unravel mechanisms that higher mediate adherence may reduce the risk of developing cancer.