In a finding that could reshape dietary advice for cancer prevention, researchers found that regular consumption of yogurt may help prevent certain types of colorectal cancer, especially in the aggressive form that develops in the proximal colon. Protective effects appear to be related to beneficial bacteria found in yogurt and tumor tissue.
The large-scale study, published today in gut microbes, tracked more than 132,000 health professionals over decades, documenting their dietary habits and cancer outcomes. The team from General Brigham Young found that people who consumed two or more yogurt weekly had a 20% lower risk of colorectal cancer, which was 20% lower, which was positive for Bifidobacterium, which was A beneficial bacteria commonly found in yogurt.
“Our study provides unique evidence about the potential benefits of yogurt,” said Shuji Ogino, Ph.D., head of the Molecular Pathology Epidemiology Program at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, corresponding author of the study. “My lab’s approach is to try to link long-term diets and other exposures to key differences in tissues, such as the presence or absence of specific bacteria.”
The study drew from two of the largest ongoing health studies in the United States (Nurse Health Research and Health Professionals Follow-up Study) that have been tracking participants’ health and lifestyle factors since the 1970s and 1980s. During the follow-up period, the researchers recorded 3,079 cases of colorectal cancer, which could be used for detailed bacterial analysis in 1,121 cases.
These findings are particularly striking for cancer in the proximal colon, part of the large intestine closest to the small intestine. This type of cancer usually has worse survival outcomes than cancers in other parts of the colon, making prevention strategies particularly valuable.
“Yogurt and other fermented milk products have long been believed to be beneficial to gastrointestinal health,” said Tomotaka Ugai, co-educationalist at the Department of Pathology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. “Our new findings suggest that this protective effect may target bidificiency,” noted. Bacillus positive tumors.”
The mechanisms behind yogurt’s protective effects may involve its impact on the gut microbiome, the complex microbial community living in our digestive system. Bifidobacterium found in about 31% of colorectal tumors studied seemed to play a key role in this relationship, although the researchers stressed that more work is needed to fully understand the connection.
Andrew T. Chen, head of the clinical and translational epidemiology department of Massachusetts General Hospital and study co-author, Andrew T. Chan, the risk of colorectal cancer. It provides us with some avenues to investigate these factors in young people A specific role in the risk of rectal cancer.”
The team used advanced molecular techniques to analyze tumor samples to measure Bifidobacterium DNA levels in cancer tissues. This detailed analysis allowed them to identify specific subtypes of colorectal cancer that might be more responsive to dietary interventions.
Although the study shows that yogurt is a hope for a preventive measure, the researchers warn that their findings need to be replicated in other populations, as their research group consists primarily of health professionals who are primarily non-Hispanic whites. Furthermore, although the food questionnaires used in the study were accurately validated, they relied on participants’ self-report.
Despite these limitations, the advantages of this study are still in large-scale, long-term follow-up, and complex analysis of bacterial presence in tumor tissues. The results show that something as simple as yogurt in a regular diet may help reduce the risk of certain types of colorectal cancer.
The study was conducted as part of the work of the Optistimisticc team, funded by Cancer Research through the Cancer Grand Challenge, a research program that co-founded a research program with the National Cancer Institute. The team aims to change understanding of how the microbiome promotes cancer development and may develop new prevention strategies.
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