Highly processed foods tied to increased risk of certain cancers

(Reuters Health) - People who consume mostly packaged foods and drinks with lots of unpronounceable ingredients may be more likely to develop certain cancers than people who subsist mostly on whole foods found in nature, a French study suggests.

Researchers examined data from dietary surveys completed by nearly 105,000 adults who didn’t have cancer. By the time half the participants had been in the study for at least five years, 2,228 cancer cases had been diagnosed – including 739 breast cancers, 281 prostate cancers, and 153 colorectal cancers.

Every 10 percent increase in the amount of heavily processed foods and drinks people consumed was associated with a 12 percent higher risk of developing all cancers and an 11 percent higher risk of developing breast cancer during the study, researchers report in The BMJ.

“Consumers should not be alarmed at this stage, as these results need to be confirmed,” said lead study author Bernard Srour of the French Institute of Health and Medical Research INSERM in Paris.


Source : Yahoo