Fruits, vegetables offer little protection against cancer

The london researchers have been shown that Fruits, vegetables offer little protection against cancer. Study by Mount Sinai researchers of over eight years of dietary data from more than 400,000 people has found that the relationship between high use of fruits and vegetables and a reduced risk of cancer is not as strong as commonly thought.


Paolo Boffetta, lead author of the study and Deputy Director of The Tisch Cancer Institute at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, and colleagues analyzed data from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) study to assess relationships between cancer risk and intake of total fruits, total vegetables, and total fruits and vegetables combined. In this population, an increase of 200 grams a day of fruits and vegetables resulted in a reduction of about 3 percent of cancer risk.


Vegetable use by itself also afforded a modest benefit but was limited to women. Heavy drinkers who ate many fruits and vegetables had a somewhat reduced risk, but only for cancers caused by smoking and alcohol. However, eating fruits and vegetables is beneficial for health in general and the results of this study do not justify changing current recommendations aiming at increasing intake of these foods," said Boffetta.