By Greg Arnold, DC, CSCS, February 13, 2006, abstracted from “Dietary Phytoestrogen, Serum Enterolactone and Risk of Prostate Cancer: The Cancer Prostate Sweden Study” in the March 2006 issue of Cancer Causes and Control
Prostate cancer is the second most common cancer (behind skin cancers) but the number one cancer killer of American men. An estimated 234,460 new cases will be diagnosed and result in 27,350 deaths in 2006. If prostate cancer is found early and has not spread, the 5-year survival rate is 100%. But if the cancer has spread to other parts of the body, that survival rate plummets to 34%.1
Although the American Cancer Society places a premium on prevention through regular prostate screening tests, they admit that there are “potential problems” with the current screening tests because they are not 100% accurate.2
Now a new study3 has found that a supplement found to elicit a number of benefits in women, including increasing bone density,4 helping protect against breast cancer,5 and helping lower blood pressure6 may also help protect men against prostate cancer.
As a part of the eastern diets for centuries, soy has gained popularity in the United States over the past two decades and now generates over $1.4 billion in sales each year.7 In the study, researchers studied questionnaire data for 1,499 prostate cancer cases and 1,130 controls and found that foods rich in phytoestrogens (soy, flaxseed, sunflower seeds) but not isoflavones (the antioxidants found in soy) or lignans (antioxidants found in flaxseed) was associated with a decreased risk of prostate cancer. Specifically, those with the highest intake of foods rich in phytoestrogens had a 26% reduced risk of prostate cancer.
Unfortunately, the researchers did not give the exact servings per day that exerted these protective effects but only gave blood levels of phytoestrogens (55 nmol per liter in the highest 25% and 9 nmol per liter in the lowest 25%). Nevertheless, they concluded that “our results support the hypothesis that certain foods high in phytoestrogens are associated with a lower risk of prostate cancer.”
Reference:
1 “What Are The Key Statistics For Prostate Cancer?” posted on the American Cancer Society Website www.cancer.org/docroot/CRI/content/CRI_2_4_1X_What_are_the_key_statistics_for_prostate_cancer_36.asp?sitearea=
2 “Can Prostate Cancer Be Found Early?” posted on the American Cancer Society Website www.cancer.org/docroot/CRI/content/CRI_2_4_3X_Can_prostate_cancer_be_found_early_36.asp?rnav=cri
3 Hedelin M. Dietary Phytoestrogen, Serum Enterolactone and Risk of Prostate Cancer: The Cancer Prostate Sweden Study. Cancer Causes and Control 2006; 17(2): 169-180
4 Atkinson C. The effects of phytoestrogen isoflavones on bone density in women: a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial. Am J Clin Nutr 2004 Feb;79(2):326-33
5 Muir K. Diet, energy intake and breast cancer risk in an Asian country. IARC Sci Publ. 2002;156:543-5
6 Yang G. Longitudinal study of soy food intake and blood pressure among middle-aged and elderly Chinese women. Am J Clin Nutr. 2005 May;81(5):1012-7
7 Supermarket News Vol. 46, No. 11, March 11, 1996, p. 51
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