Replacing red meat with poultry may lower breast cancer risk

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In a study from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, scientists found that red meat consumption may increase the risk of breast cancer, whereas poultry consumption may be protective against breast cancer risk.

In the study, researchers analyzed information on the consumption of different types of meat and meat cooking practices from 42,012 women who were followed for an average of 7.6 years.

During follow-up, 1,536 invasive breast cancers were diagnosed.

The team found increasing consumption of red meat was associated with an increased risk of invasive breast cancer: women who consumed the highest amount of red meat had a 23% higher risk compared with women who consumed the lowest amount.

Conversely, increasing consumption of poultry was associated with decreased invasive breast cancer risk: women with the highest consumption had a 15% lower risk than those with the lowest consumption.

Breast cancer was reduced even further for women who substituted poultry for meat.

The findings did not change when analyses controlled for known breast cancer risk factors or potential confounding factors.

No associations were found between cooking practices or chemicals formed when cooking meat at high temperatures.

This study adds further evidence that red meat consumption may be associated with an increased risk of breast cancer whereas poultry was linked to decreased risk.

While the mechanism through which poultry consumption decreases breast cancer risk is not clear, the study does provide evidence that substituting poultry for red meat may be a simple change that can help reduce the incidence of breast cancer.

If you care about breast cancer, please read studies about a major cause of deadly breast cancer, and common blood pressure drugs may increase death risk in breast cancer.

For more information about cancer prevention, please see recent studies about nutrient in fish that can be a poison for cancer, and results showing this daily vitamin is critical to cancer prevention.

The was conducted by Dale P. Sandler et al and published in the International Journal of Cancer.

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