Flame-grilled foods linked with higher risk of breast cancer

Monday, November 20, 2006 by: Jessica Fraser
Tags: breast cancer, cancer risk, cancer prevention

https://www.naturalnews.com/021133_breast_cancer_risk.html

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Researchers from Johns Hopkins University examined the diets and eating patterns of 312 women with breast cancer and 316 women without the disease, and found that women who ate flame-grilled foods more than twice per month experienced a 74 percent increased risk of breast cancer compared to women who never ate flame-grilled foods.

"Cooking meat at high temperatures in direct heat over an open flame can lead to the production of cancer-causing chemicals known as heterocyclic amines, or HCAs," said lead researcher Dr. Kala Visvanathan at a recent conference on cancer prevention sponsored by the American Association for Cancer Research.

The researchers also reported similar increases in breast cancer risk for women who ate more meat in general, Visvanathan said.

Women who reported eating more than 64 grams of meat per day -- compared to women who ate equal to or less than 64 grams per day -- ran a 43 percent increased risk of developing breast cancer, the researchers found.

An additional breast cancer risk factor was the women's ability to metabolize an enzyme that activates cancer-causing HCAs. Visvanathan's team found that women who rapidly metabolized the enzyme -- called NAT2 -- and also ate grilled foods and higher quantities of meat were far more likely to develop breast cancer than women who were slow to metabolize NAT2 and never ate grilled foods or meat.

However, the researchers found that in women who rapidly metabolize NAT2 and eat flame-grilled foods and meat, supplementing the diet with aspirin significantly compensated for the increased breast cancer risk.

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