Consuming poultry instead of red meat may decrease breast cancer risk

08 Aug 2019 --- Red meat consumption may increase the risk of breast cancer, whereas poultry consumption may diminish breast cancer risk. This is according to a new study, published in the International Journal of Cancer. The findings did not change when analyses controlled for known breast cancer risk factors or potential confounding factors such as race, socioeconomic status, obesity, physical activity, alcohol consumption, and other dietary factors. The researchers note that further work is warranted to determine the role of poultry consumption in hindering the development of breast cancer.

“Red meat has been identified as a probable carcinogen because there had been some suggestion of an association between red meat consumption and cancer risk from the previous studies,” Yong-Moon Park MD, MS, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Fellow, Epidemiology Branch, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, tells NutritionInsight.

“However, epidemiological studies of red meat consumption and risk of breast cancer are still inconsistent. There is not much evidence of the association between poultry consumption and breast cancer risk. Our study adds further evidence that red meat consumption may be associated with increased risk of breast cancer whereas poultry may be associated with decreased risk. Furthermore, the fact that breast cancer risk could be reduced for women who substituted poultry for red meat is important new information,” he adds.

Breast cancer is the most commonly occurring cancer in women and the second most common cancer overall, according to the World Cancer Research Fund. There were over two million new cases recorded in 2018 alone.

Increasing consumption of poultry is associated with decreased invasive breast cancer risk.In the study, investigators analyzed information on the consumption of different types of meat, as well as meat cooking practices from 42,012 women who were followed for an average of seven years. During follow-up, 1,536 invasive breast cancer cases were diagnosed. Conversely, increasing consumption of poultry was associated with decreased invasive breast cancer risk: women with the highest consumption had a 15 percent lower risk than those with the lowest consumption. Breast cancer was reduced even further for women who substituted poultry for meat.

No associations were observed for cooking practices or chemicals formed when cooking meat at high temperature.

Senior author Dale P. Sandler, Ph.D., of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences says that while the mechanism through which poultry consumption decreases breast cancer risk is not clear, the study does provide evidence that substituting poultry for red meat may be a simple change that can help reduce the incidence of breast cancer.

Despite the fact that there is no clear mechanism to explain the protective association between poultry consumption and breast cancer risk, Park speculates that it is possible that poultry consumption may be associated with lower levels of the prooxidants and mutagenic activity. “This may be induced by the high content of saturated fat and heme iron in red meat. It is also possible that different cooking methods for poultry versus for red meat play a role, although we did not find a significant association between red meat cooking practices and breast cancer risk. 

“In addition, people who reported higher consumption of poultry tend to have generally healthier dietary and lifestyle patterns compared to those with lower consumption of poultry, although we accounted for such differences in our analyses,” Park says.

According to Park, the research followed the diets of women before they developed breast cancer, in relation to subsequent risk. “While beyond the scope of our study, healthy diets are considered important to reduce the recurrence of breast cancer or the risk of other chronic diseases, such as cardiovascular disease in breast cancer survivors. It is generally recommended that diets for breast cancer survivors have low amounts of saturated fats. So, it seems reasonable to advise breast cancer survivors to reduce red meat consumption.”

Red meat is traditionally associated with an increased risk for an array of noncommunicable diseases, such as cancer and CVD.However, well-designed intervention studies are needed to support this recommendation, Park says. “Our findings need to be replicated in other populations. Further investigation is needed to understand the possible reasons behind the protective association of poultry on breast cancer risk.”

One out of eight women in the US will develop invasive breast cancer in the course of her lifetime, according to the US Breast Cancer Statistics and research is continuously trying to uncover the cause of the devastating disease. Last year, a study from the Biomedical Research Centre at the University of Salford found that matcha green tea can kill breast cancer cells by preventing them from “refueling.” 

Red meat is traditionally associated with an increased risk for an array of noncommunicable diseases, such as cancer and CVD. Replacing red meat with healthy plant proteins may be a running start to slashing the risk factors for CVD, according to recent research from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. 

Despite its known adverse health effects, however, processed meat consumption in the US remains as high as 18 years ago. This is despite public health guidelines that advise the contrary, an Elsevier study found. Moreover, it showed that one-quarter of US adults are still eating more unprocessed red meat than the recommended level, while less than 15 percent meet the guidelines for fish/shellfish consumption. However, according to the findings, poultry consumption now exceeds that of unprocessed red meat compared to 18 years ago.

By Kristiana Lalou