Tweet
HELEN PUTTICK, Health Correspondent
March 19 2004
CHOCOLATE muffins and Scotch pies could help ward off cancer, according to the first guide of its type in the world.
Burgers, biscuits, and knickerbocker glories are also among foods normally labelled bad for your health which achieve positive scores on the database, designed to help people protect themselves against the killer disease.
Dr Margaret Ritchie, of St Andrews University, launched the internet-based index yesterday after four years of research breaking down the chemical components of food. The finished chart details levels of natural compounds called phyto-oestrogens in 8000 different foods.
Studies have shown teenage girls and young women who consume relatively high levels of phyto-oestrogens are far less likely to develop aggressive forms of breast cancer in middle age. Links have also been drawn between lower risk of prostate cancer in men and reduction in the severity of cancer in women who have already been diagnosed.
Dr Ritchie said: "In Indonesia, they can consume up to 200mg of phyto-oestrogens a day and they have the lowest rates of breast and prostate cancer in the world."
With a view to enabling further research on the link and providing consumers with better information, Dr Ritchie set out to create an official list of the phyto-oestrogen content of foodstuffs.
As well as using existing research, her mission involved contacting supermarkets across the country for information and carrying out intricate chemical analysis of products, ranging from Yorkshire pudding to abalone.
She then double-checked her mathematics by recruiting 14 volunteers to record everything they ate during a day, keeping duplicates of every item. Dr Ritchie worked out how much phyto-oestrogen each individual had consumed based on her database and then homogenised the duplicate products so she could analyse the total phyto-oestrogen content and verify her database was right.
The work produced some surprising findings. Choc ices contain 85 micrograms of phyto-oestrogens per 100g, jam doughnuts 200mcg per 100g and grilled beef sausages 580mcg per 100g.
However, it is wholemeal bread, soya, and raisins which are among the real winners, and their high phyto-oestrogen content pushes up the scores for products which contain them. Dr Ritchie said the use of soya in foods like Scotch pies and Cornish pasties explained their high scores.
While she recommended trying to boost cancer protection by eating healthier meals such as wholemeal humus rolls and wholemeal rice with tofu, she also said: "It is rather nice that someone can say I have had a Scotch pie and there is something in it that is good for me."
She hopes people with a family history of cancer will use the database to guide their food choices, recommending consumption of 20-40mg of phyto-oestrogens a day, but advising studies show as little as 5mg can make a difference.
Dr Ritchie said: "If you say to people 'start changing your bread to wholemeal, start using more plant foods in sandwich fillings', then you are probably taking amounts which could be protective."
Dr Catherine Hankey, lecturer in nutrition at Glasgow University, said of the database: "It is really a research tool rather than something that can be used by the public. I do not think there is enough understanding . . . the public struggle with nutritional labelling at the moment."
Ian Young, development consultant of Europe for Health Scotland, the health education agency, also warned the public on how they used it.
He said: "Foods like soya are obviously very high in this compound, but there are different ways you can get your soya."
He added that people had to consider what else foods contained before selecting them for their phyto-oestrogen properties, saying: "You get nice things like mung beans which are high in the compound. You could produce a nice vegetarian curry."
Dr Tim Key, of Cancer Research UK, warned that the power of phyto-oestrogens to reduce the risk of developing some types of cancer had not been proven.
However, he called it "an interesting hypothesis."
http://www.theherald.co.uk/news/12291.html
March 19 2004
CHOCOLATE muffins and Scotch pies could help ward off cancer, according to the first guide of its type in the world.
Burgers, biscuits, and knickerbocker glories are also among foods normally labelled bad for your health which achieve positive scores on the database, designed to help people protect themselves against the killer disease.
Dr Margaret Ritchie, of St Andrews University, launched the internet-based index yesterday after four years of research breaking down the chemical components of food. The finished chart details levels of natural compounds called phyto-oestrogens in 8000 different foods.
Studies have shown teenage girls and young women who consume relatively high levels of phyto-oestrogens are far less likely to develop aggressive forms of breast cancer in middle age. Links have also been drawn between lower risk of prostate cancer in men and reduction in the severity of cancer in women who have already been diagnosed.
Dr Ritchie said: "In Indonesia, they can consume up to 200mg of phyto-oestrogens a day and they have the lowest rates of breast and prostate cancer in the world."
With a view to enabling further research on the link and providing consumers with better information, Dr Ritchie set out to create an official list of the phyto-oestrogen content of foodstuffs.
As well as using existing research, her mission involved contacting supermarkets across the country for information and carrying out intricate chemical analysis of products, ranging from Yorkshire pudding to abalone.
She then double-checked her mathematics by recruiting 14 volunteers to record everything they ate during a day, keeping duplicates of every item. Dr Ritchie worked out how much phyto-oestrogen each individual had consumed based on her database and then homogenised the duplicate products so she could analyse the total phyto-oestrogen content and verify her database was right.
The work produced some surprising findings. Choc ices contain 85 micrograms of phyto-oestrogens per 100g, jam doughnuts 200mcg per 100g and grilled beef sausages 580mcg per 100g.
However, it is wholemeal bread, soya, and raisins which are among the real winners, and their high phyto-oestrogen content pushes up the scores for products which contain them. Dr Ritchie said the use of soya in foods like Scotch pies and Cornish pasties explained their high scores.
While she recommended trying to boost cancer protection by eating healthier meals such as wholemeal humus rolls and wholemeal rice with tofu, she also said: "It is rather nice that someone can say I have had a Scotch pie and there is something in it that is good for me."
She hopes people with a family history of cancer will use the database to guide their food choices, recommending consumption of 20-40mg of phyto-oestrogens a day, but advising studies show as little as 5mg can make a difference.
Dr Ritchie said: "If you say to people 'start changing your bread to wholemeal, start using more plant foods in sandwich fillings', then you are probably taking amounts which could be protective."
Dr Catherine Hankey, lecturer in nutrition at Glasgow University, said of the database: "It is really a research tool rather than something that can be used by the public. I do not think there is enough understanding . . . the public struggle with nutritional labelling at the moment."
Ian Young, development consultant of Europe for Health Scotland, the health education agency, also warned the public on how they used it.
He said: "Foods like soya are obviously very high in this compound, but there are different ways you can get your soya."
He added that people had to consider what else foods contained before selecting them for their phyto-oestrogen properties, saying: "You get nice things like mung beans which are high in the compound. You could produce a nice vegetarian curry."
Dr Tim Key, of Cancer Research UK, warned that the power of phyto-oestrogens to reduce the risk of developing some types of cancer had not been proven.
However, he called it "an interesting hypothesis."
http://www.theherald.co.uk/news/12291.html
Comment