Mate and Tea Intake, Dietary Antioxidants and Risk of Breast Cancer: a Case-Control Study.

Recently, we reported an inverse association between high 'mate' intake (infusion of Ilex paraguariensis herb, a staple beverage in temperate South America) and breast cancer (BC) risk. Stronger inverse associations were found in high strata of tea, vegetable, fruit and energy intakes, and in overweight/obese women, suggesting possible roles for 'mate' mainly from its antioxidant contribution. The present study attempted to thoroughly explore possible associations among 'mate' and tea intake, dietary antioxidants and BC risk. Combining two databases of previous studies, 572 BC incident cases and 889 controls were interviewed with a specific questionnaire featuring socio-demographic, reproductive and lifestyle variables, and a food frequency questionnaire (64 items), focusing on 'mate' intake (consumer status, daily intake, age at start, age at quit, duration of habit). Food-derived nutrients were calculated from available databases. Odds ratios (OR) and their 95% confidence intervals were calculated through unconditional logistic regression, adjusting for relevant potential confounders. The highest 'mate' intake was significantly inversely associated with BC risk for both low and high carotenoids (OR=0.40 vs. 0.41), vitamin C (OR=0.33 vs. 0.50), vitamin E (OR=0.37 vs. 0.45), flavonols (OR=0.38 vs. 0.48) and reduced glutathione (OR=0.48 vs. 0.46) strata. High tea intake showed significant inverse risk associations only with high carotenoids (OR=0.41), vitamin E (OR=0.48) and reduced glutathione (OR=0.43) strata. In conclusion, a strong and inverse association for 'mate' intake and BC was found, independent of dietary antioxidant levels. Also strong inverse associations with tea intake were more evident only at high levels of certain dietary antioxidants.

Meat Consumption, Related Nutrients, Obesity and Risk of Prostate Cancer: a Case-Control Study in Uruguay.

BACKGROUND: In order to determine the role of meat consumption and related nutrients in the etiology of prostate cancer we conducted a case-control study among Uruguayan men in the time period 1998-2007. RESULTS: The study included 464 cases and 472 controls, frequency matched for age and residence. Both series were drawn from the four major public hospitals in Montevideo. Unconditional logistic regression was used to estimate odds ratios (ORs) and 95 % confidence intervals (95 % CI) of prostate cancer by quartiles of meat intake and related nutrients. The highest vs. the lowest quartile of intake of total meat (OR = 5.19, 95 % CI 3.46-7.81), red meat (OR = 4.64, 95 % CI 3.10-6.95), and processed meat (OR = 1.78, 95% CI 1.22-2.59) were associated with increased risk of prostate cancer. Meat nutrients were directly associated with the risk of prostate cancer (OR for cholesterol 5.61, 95 % CI 3.75-8.50). Moreover, both total meat and red meat displayed higher risks among obese patients. CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that total and red meat and meat nutrients may play a role in the etiology of prostate cancer in Uruguay.

Mate Intake and Risk of Breast Cancer in Uruguay: a Case- Control Study.

Regarding 'mate' intake (infusion of Ilex paraguariensis herb, a staple beverage in temperate South American regions), most epidemiologic studies showed positive associations with risk of some cancers, (e.g. upper aerodigestive tract), but evidence on breast cancer (BC) risk is limited to a previous multi-site study, which reported a non significant odds ratio [OR]=0.85, 95% confidence interval [95% CI] 0.67-1.09, p for trend=0.31) for the highest quartile of intake. The present study was conducted in order to further assess associations of 'mate' intake with BC risk. We combined two databases of women belonging to public and private healthcare hospitals. The sample included 572 BC incident cases and 889 controls interviewed with a specific questionnaire featured by socio-demographic, reproductive and lifestyle variables, and a food frequency questionnaire of 64 items, also analyzing 'mate' intake (consumer status, daily intake, age at start, age at quit, duration of habit, intensity of intake). ORs and their 95%CI were calculated through unconditional logistic regression, adjusting for relevant potential confounders. The highest quartile of 'mate' intake was inversely associated with BC risk (OR=0.40, 95%CI 0.26-0.57, p for trend <0.001). Stratified analyses also displayed strong significant inverse associations for 'mate' in frequent tea drinkers (OR=0.22), high energy intake (OR=0.23), high body mass index (OR=0.29) and in postmenopausal women (OR=0.36), among other results. As conclusions, we found evidence of a significant inverse association for 'mate' intake and BC risk.

Maté consumption and risk of cancer: a multi-site case-control study in Uruguay.

In the time period 1990-2004 we conducted a multisite case-control study in order to examine the relationship of mate consumption and risk of 13 cancer sites in Montevideo, Uruguay. The study included 13,201 participants (8,875 cases and 4,326 controls) drawn from the four major public hospitals in the city of Montevideo. Newly diagnosed and microscopically confirmed cases of cancers of the mouth, pharynx, esophagus, stomach, colon, rectum, larynx, lung, female breast, cervix uteri, prostate, bladder and kidney were included in the study. Controls were drawn from the same hospitals and in the same time period and were afflicted by non-neoplastic conditions not related with tobacco smoking or alcohol drinking and without recent changes in their diets. Odds ratios for mate consumption was directly associated with cancers of the upper aerodigestive tract (UADT), esophagus, stomach, larynx, lung, cervix uteri, prostate, bladder, and kidney. In conclusion these results suggest that chemicals, like benzo[a]pyrene, could be responsible of the carcinogenic effect of mate in the above mentioned cancer sites.

Dietary patterns and risk of colorectal cancer: a factor analysis in uruguay.

In the time period 1996-2004, a case-control study of colorectal cancer was conducted in Montevideo, Uruguay. The study included 610 cases and 1,220 controls, frequency matched for age, sex, and residence. All cases were newly diagnosed and microscopically confirmed and controls were drawn from the same hospitals. Controls were submitted to factor analysis (principal components method) and 4 dietary patterns for men (prudent, traditional, Western, drinker) and 3 for women (prudent, Western, drinker) were retained. These were rotated and normalized by the Kaiser method. Scores were applied to all participants (cases and controls) and odds ratios were estimated by logistic regression and polynomial regression. The Western pattern showed an OR of 2.62 (95 % CI 1.36-5.08) for colon cancer among men, and women displayed a similar increase in risk. However, rectal cancer was not associated with this diet, rather being inversely associated with the prudent and traditional patterns among men (OR 0.49, 95 % CI 0.28-0.57 for the traditional pattern). In conclusion, whereas the Western pattern was directly associated with colon cancer, the prudent pattern was strongly protective for rectal cancer.