Large study links nut consumption is reduced mortality.

Who ate nuts daily of the largest study of its kind, a handful were 20 percent less and were people who did not consume nuts so the Dana contains the report published in the New England Journal of medicine, say scientists from the Harvard School of Farber Cancer Institute, Brigham and women's Hospital and public health more than die by any cause over a period of 30 years is even better news. Regular nut-eaters found is thinner than people who did not eat the nuts, may find that eating more nuts will need to reduce the widespread concerns on obesity.

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Experts confirm that fruit and vegetable consumption reduces risk of mortality

Sep. 26, 2013 — A European study analyzes the relationship between fruit and vegetable consumption and the risk of mortality. As previous research has already suggested, this study concludes that fruit and vegetable consumption reduces all-cause mortality, and especially cardiovascular disease mortality.

The benefits of fruit and vegetable consumption are not a new discovery. However, new research confirms their role in reducing mortality. This reduction is more significant in the case of deaths from cardiovascular disease.

The analysis, recently published in the 'American Journal of Epidemiology', was directed by researchers from ten countries, including Spain, as part of the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC).

The sample analyzed includes 25,682 deaths (10,438 due to cancer and 5,125 due to cardiovascular disease) among the 451,151 participants studied over more than 13 years.

"This study is the most significant epidemiological study that this association has examined to date," Maria Jose Sanchez Perez, director of the Andalusian School of Public Health's (EASP) Granada Cancer Registry and one of the authors of the research, explains to SINC.

According to the results, a combined fruit and vegetable consumption of more than 569 grams per day reduces the risk of mortality by 10% and delays the risk of mortality by 1.12 years compared to a consumption of less than 249 grams per day.

Furthermore, for every 200 gram increase in daily fruit and vegetable consumption, the risk falls by 6%. The proportion of deaths that could be prevented if everyone eating too few fruit and vegetables increased their consumption by 100-200 grams per day -- thus reaching the recommended 400-500 grams per day -- is 2.9%.

Previous studies already noted that fruit and vegetable consumption, in accordance with the recommended daily allowance, prevents the development of chronic diseases, and reduces the risk of mortality by 10-25%.

"There is now sufficient evidence of the beneficial effect of fruit and vegetable consumption in the prevention of cancer and other chronic diseases," Sanchez states, "for this reason, one of the most effective preventative measures is promoting their consumption in the population."

Fruit for the heart

A diet rich in fruit and vegetables reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease mortality by 15%. Furthermore, more than 4% of deaths due to cardiovascular disease could be prevented by consuming more than 400 grams of fruit and vegetables a day.

Considering fruit consumption separately, no significant risk reduction was observed, whereas vegetable consumption alone was associated with a lower risk of mortality, which was even more significant for raw vegetables: high consumption reduces the risk of mortality by 16%.

"With regard to cancer mortality, no statistically significant risk reduction was found, although it will be necessary to assess this according to specific types of cancer," Sanchez adds.

Nevertheless, the expert highlights that given that fruit and vegetable consumption is associated with the risk of certain cancers -- colon and rectal, stomach, lung, etc. -- it is to be expected that their consumption will also have a positive effect on mortality due to these tumours.

Greater effect in people with bad habits

The mortality risk reduction due to fruit and vegetable consumption was greater in those participants who consumed alcohol (around 30-40% risk reduction), who were obese (20%), and "possibly" also in those who smoked.

The authors add that this positive effect is probably due to their high antioxidant content, which mitigates the oxidative stress caused by alcohol, tobacco and obesity.

"As such, these population groups in particular could benefit from the positive effects of fruit and vegetables in preventing chronic diseases and their associated mortality risk," Sanchez concludes.

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External beam radiation therapy for breast cancer does not increase mortality risks

Sep. 24, 2013 — Early-stage breast cancer patients who receive external beam therapy (XRT) are not at higher risk for serious long-term side effects in the chest area, including increase in deaths from cardiac disease and secondary malignancies, according to research presented today at the American Society for Radiation Oncology's (ASTRO's) 55th Annual Meeting.

The study utilized patient information from the National Cancer Institute's Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) database. It evaluated women identified as having primary Stage T1aN0 breast cancer (tumor of 5mm or less that has not spread to the lymph nodes), who received surgery, with or without post-operative radiation therapy, between 1990 and 1997. The analysis was done to determine if XRT was associated with increased mortality due to breast cancer, secondary cancer in the chest area or cardiac conditions for these patients; only patients with breast cancer (BC) identified as the first malignancy were included. The women had a median age of 55-59 and were divided into two groups: 2,397 who received XRT after surgery, and 2,988 who did not receive XRT after surgery.

Cause of death (COD) codes were used to identify cardiac mortality, breast cancer mortality, and deaths from secondary chest cancers in order to assess overall survival (OS), breast cancer survival (BCS), second-tumor specific survival and cardiac-cause specific survival (CCS), and then compared between the XRT and non-XRT groups. The incidence of mortality was compared between the XRT and non-XRT groups utilizing the Chi-Square test; and, the relative risk (RR) and associated 95 percent confidence interval (CI) were calculated. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis and log-rank test were performed to assess OS, BCS, second-tumor specific survival and CCS.

At 10 years post-treatment, OS rates were 91.6 percent for the XRT patients and 87 percent for the non-XRT group; BCS rates were 97 percent for the XRT patients and 95.7 percent for the non-XRT group; and CCS was 96.7 percent for the XRT patients and 92.7 percent for the non-XRT group.

Analysis of the data further demonstrates that, with a median follow up of 14 years, there was no statistically significant difference in deaths from subsequent non-breast cancers in the chest area, the majority of which were lung cancers. The number of deaths from cardiac causes was not significantly higher for those patients treated with XRT for left-sided breast cancer, compared to those with right-sided breast cancer among the patient sample and time period reviewed. More women from the non-XRT group died from all causes, including cardiac causes, suggesting that those patients had worse general health conditions than the women who received radiation therapy.

"Breast conserving therapy, consisting of lumpectomy and XRT, has been an excellent approach to early breast cancer treatment, offering equivalent disease control and better cosmetic results compared to mastectomy as demonstrated by multiple randomized controlled trials in the past," said Jason Ye, MD, the study's presenting author and a second-year resident in radiation oncology at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York City. "Our study's results suggest that serious long-term side effects of radiation therapy, such as increase in deaths from cardiac disease and secondary malignancies, are rare. Radiation therapy is an integral part of early stage breast cancer treatment for those who choose to have a lumpectomy instead of a mastectomy, with its benefits likely far outweighing the potential risks in majority of the cases. The field of radiation oncology is rapidly changing, with new technology constantly being introduced that may reduce these risks further. Continued long term follow up and additional studies are needed to monitor for potential long term side effects."

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