Bewerkt vlees, groenten en de kans leukemie*
Uit een Taiwanese studie onder 515 kinderen in de leeftijd van 2-20 jaar blijkt dat het eten van bewerkt en gerookt vlees de kans op kinderleukemie sterk doet vergroten terwijl daarentegen het eten van groenten die kans sterk doet verminderen. Als een keer of meer per week bewerkte (waaronder gerookte en gepekelde) vleesproducten zoals
vleeswaren, bacon, ham, worsten gegeten werd was de kans op leukemie 74% hoger. Als regelmatig groenten en gefermenteerde
sojaproducten gegeten werden was de kans 50% lager.
Processed Meats Raise Leukemia Risk, Vegetables Lower It
A diet high in cured meats may lead to a 74 percent higher risk of childhood leukemia, according to a study conducted by researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health and published in the journal BMC Cancer.
Researchers examined the dietary habits and leukemia rates among 515 Taiwanese children and youths between the ages of 2 and 20. A total of 145 leukemia patients were included in the study, and each was compared with two healthy participants of the same age and sex. The scientists used detailed dietary questionnaires to determine participants' intake of cured meats including bacon, ham, hot dogs, dried salted duck, salted fish and Chinese sausage. For leukemia patients, cured meat intake was calculated for the time period before the onset of the disease; for healthy patients, intake was calculated for the beginning of the
study.
The researchers found that the rate of leukemia was 74 percent higher among those who ate cured meat products more than once per week than among those who ate it less frequently. In contrast, children who ate vegetables and soy products frequently had a 50 percent lower leukemia risk than children who ate vegetables and soy products
rarely.
The risk of cancer among children who ate large amounts of both cured meats and soy or vegetable products was significantly lower than the rate among those who ate large amounts of cured meats alone.
Based on the results of the study, the researchers have recommended that children limit their intake of cured meats and fish.
Cured meats have previously been linked to an elevated risk of other cancers. One of the primary suspects for this effect are the chemicals known as nitrites that are used in the preservation process.
Leukemia is a term that describes a cluster of different cancers of the blood or bone marrow, characterized by the excessive production of blood cells.
BMC Cancer 2009, 9:15doi:10.1186/1471-2407-9-15
Abstract
Background
Consumption of cured/smoked meat and fish leads to the formation of carcinogenic N-nitroso compounds in the acidic stomach. This study investigated whether consumed cured/smoked meat and fish, the major dietary resource for exposure to nitrites and nitrosamines, is associated with childhood acute leukemia.
Methods
A population-based case-control study of Han Chinese between 2 and 20 years old was conducted in southern Taiwan. 145 acute leukemia cases and 370 age- and sex-matched controls were recruited between 1997 and 2005. Dietary data were obtained from a questionnaire. Multiple logistic regression models were used in data analyses.
Results
Consumption of cured/smoked meat and fish more than once a week was associated with an increased risk of acute leukemia (OR = 1.74; 95% CI: 1.15–2.64). Conversely, higher intake of vegetables (OR = 0.55; 95% CI: 0.37–0.83) and bean-curd (OR = 0.55; 95% CI: 0.34–0.89) was associated with a reduced risk. No statistically significant association was observed between leukemia risk and the consumption of pickled vegetables, fruits, and tea.
Conclusion
Dietary exposure to cured/smoked meat and fish may be associated with leukemia risk through their contents of nitrites and nitrosamines among children and adolescents, and intake of vegetables and soy-bean curd may be
protective. (April
2009)
