(27-05-13) Citrus fruit significantly reduces breast cancer risk in latest systematic review

by Ethan Evers

(NaturalNews) A high intake of citrus fruits lowers breast cancer risk in
women by 10 percent, according to a new systematic review of past studies. But
importantly, "high" intake was only 17 to 33 grams daily in one of the studies
analyzed, and this provided a 32 percent risk reduction of breast cancer.

The anti-cancer effects of citrus fruits
Citrus fruits are excellent sources of numerous phytochemicals such as beta-
cryptoxanthin, limonoids and quercetin, each of which has shown potent activity
against cancer in laboratory studies. In human studies, citrus fruit
consumption has been shown to offer protection from pancreatic, stomach,
throat, colorectal and breast cancers. However, in some studies there is only
borderline significance or even conflicting results. This is often due to the
low level of citrus fruit eaten (even by the highest consumers) and the
difficulty in separating the protective effects of citrus from other fruit or
vegetables.

Citrus reduces breast cancer risk by at least 10 percent
For the above reasons, researchers in Korea produced a new systematic review
which combines previous studies from China, the USA and Australia, in an
attempt to clarify the role of citrus fruit in breast cancer prevention. It
includes a total of 8,393 participants with ages ranging from 20 to 98. When
all the data was combined together, an overall risk reduction of 10 percent was
observed for the highest consumers of citrus fruit compared to the lowest.
However, if one single study from 20 years ago is left out of the analysis, the
results look far better with an average overall risk reduction of about 20
percent.

Interestingly, the largest study of all those in the analysis (with 3,015
participants), and the only one to reach statistical significance on its own
(p=0.002), also happened to show the highest protective effect of citrus
consumption, yielding 32 percent risk reduction. This study, out of China, also
showed citrus to be the most protective of all the fruits observed in the diet
(including grapes, peaches, pears, bananas, apples) and on par with the
protective effects of vegetables. Most notable is that such a level of
protection was achieved with a citrus intake of just 17 to 33 grams daily,
which equals about one eighth of a cup of orange juice.

The China advantage: Synergies with green tea?
It appears that Chinese women may require considerably less citrus for
protection from breast cancer than Americans. For example, a previous study
showed that American women consuming a half-cup serving (125 grams) daily had
risk reductions of only 20 percent for postmenopausal, and 17 percent for
premenopausal breast cancer. Why might Chinese women be protected by less
citrus fruit?

The answer might come from the green tea they drink. A recent and very
surprising study from Japan showed that when green tea drinkers consumed citrus
fruit daily, they (women) saw a statistically significant 18 percent reduction
in overall cancer risk, including a non-statistically significant 26 percent
reduction in breast cancer. Importantly, these risk reductions were over and
above the protective effects of green tea. Since green tea consumption was not
factored into to the Chinese study in this way, it is possible we are seeing a
similar synergistic effect in that population.

The new systematic review confirms that citrus fruit clearly has a role to
play in breast cancer prevention. While even small amounts of citrus may offer
meaningful protection, women looking to maximize their risk reduction should
consider eating at least half a cup of citrus fruit daily, and including green
tea for its synergizing effects.

Sources for this article include:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23593085

http://www.naturalnews.com

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12704679

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15342450

http://www.naturalnews.com

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20104526

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