Partial substitution of red meat or processed meat with plant-based foods and the risk of colorectal cancer.
Eur J Epidemiol
; 39(4): 419-428, 2024 Apr.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-38253935
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES:
Shifting from animal-based to plant-based diets could reduce colorectal cancer (CRC) incidence. Currently, the impacts of these dietary shifts on CRC risk are ill-defined. Therefore, we examined partial substitutions of red or processed meat with whole grains, vegetables, fruits or a combination of these in relation to CRC risk in Finnish adults.METHODS:
We pooled five Finnish cohorts, resulting in 43 788 participants aged ≥ 25 years (79% men). Diet was assessed by validated food frequency questionnaires at study enrolment. We modelled partial substitutions of red (100 g/week) or processed meat (50 g/week) with corresponding amounts of plant-based foods. Cohort-specific hazard ratios (HR) for CRC were calculated using Cox proportional hazards models and pooled together using random-effects models. Adjustments included age, sex, energy intake and other relevant confounders.RESULTS:
During the median follow-up of 28.8 years, 1124 CRCs were diagnosed. We observed small risk reductions when red meat was substituted with vegetables (HR 0.97, 95% CI 0.95 - 0.99), fruits (0.97, 0.94 - 0.99), or whole grains, vegetables and fruits combined (0.97, 0.95 - 0.99). For processed meat, these substitutions yielded 1% risk reductions. Substituting red or processed meat with whole grains was associated with a decreased CRC risk only in participants with < median whole grain intake (0.92, 0.86 - 0.98; 0.96, 0.93 - 0.99, respectively; pinteraction=0.001).CONCLUSIONS:
Even small, easily implemented substitutions of red or processed meat with whole grains, vegetables or fruits could lower CRC risk in a population with high meat consumption. These findings broaden our insight into dietary modifications that could foster CRC primary prevention.Key words
Full text:
1
Collection:
01-internacional
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Colorectal Neoplasms
/
Red Meat
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Fruit
Type of study:
Etiology_studies
/
Prognostic_studies
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Risk_factors_studies
Limits:
Adult
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Aged
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Animals
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Female
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Humans
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Male
/
Middle aged
Country/Region as subject:
Europa
Language:
En
Journal:
Eur J Epidemiol
Journal subject:
EPIDEMIOLOGIA
Year:
2024
Document type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Country of publication: