Scientist said on
Tuesday they may have found a reason why eating too much red
meat increases the risk of colorectal cancer
By studying cells
from volunteers eating different diets, they discovered that
red meat raises levels of compounds in the large bowel, which
can alter DNA and increase the likelihood of
cancer.
"It is the first
definite link between red meat and the very first stage in
cancer," said Professor Sheila Bingham, of the Medical
Research Council Dunn Nutrition Unit in Cambridge,
England.
In earlier
research, Bingham and her team showed there was a strong
correlation between eating red and processed meat and the risk
of colon cancer.
The chance of
developing colorectal cancer was a third higher in people who
regularly ate more than two portions of red or processed meat
a day compared to someone who ate less than one portion a
week.
In their latest
study, published in the journal Cancer Research, the
scientists studied cells from the lining of the colon from
people who consumed red meat, vegetarian, high red meat or
high fiber diets for 15 days.
"We looked at
whether eating red meat alters the DNA of these cells,"
Bingham told Reuters.
They found that red
meat consumption was linked to increased levels of substances
called N-nitrosocompounds, which are formed in the large
bowel. The compounds may stick to DNA, making it more likely
to undergo mutations that increase the odds of
cancer.
The DNA damage may
be repaired naturally in the body, and fiber in the diet may
help the process. But if it isn't, cancer can develop, Bingham
said.
The scientists said
the findings could help to develop a screening test for very
early changes related to the disease.
Colorectal is one
of the most common cancers in developed countries. More than
940,000 cases are diagnosed each year and about 492,000 people
die from the illness, according to the International Agency
for Cancer Research (IARC) in Lyon, France.
A diet rich in fat,
animal protein and refined carbohydrates and lack of exercise
are risk factors for the illness. Most cases are in people
over 60 years old and about 5 percent of them are
inherited.
Health experts
estimate that about 70 percent of colorectal cancers could be
prevented by changes in diet and nutrition. Diarrhea,
constipation and rectal bleeding can be symptoms
By
Patricia Reaney
(REUTERS) | 
