1.
Legume consumption and risk of all-cause, cardiovascular, and cancer mortality in the PREDIMED study.
Papandreou, C, Becerra-Tomás, N, Bulló, M, Martínez-González, MÁ, Corella, D, Estruch, R, Ros, E, Arós, F, Schroder, H, Fitó, M, et al
Clinical nutrition (Edinburgh, Scotland). 2019;(1):348-356
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Abstract
BACKGROUND & AIMS Limited prospective studies have examined the association between legumes consumption and mortality, whereas scarce, if at all, previous studies have evaluated such associations taking into consideration specific grain legumes. We aimed to investigate the association between total legumes consumption and grain legumes species (dry beans, chickpeas, lentils, and fresh peas) with all-cause, cardiovascular disease (CVD), cancer and other-cause mortality among elderly Mediterranean individuals at high CVD risk. METHODS We prospectively assessed 7216 participants from the PREvención con DIeta MEDiterránea study. Dietary intake was assessed at baseline and yearly during follow-up by using a validated food frequency questionnaire. RESULTS During a median follow-up of 6.0 years, 425 total deaths, 103 CVD deaths, 169 cancer deaths and 153 due to other-causes deaths occurred. Hazard ratios (HRs) [95% confidence interval (CI)] of CVD mortality were 1.52 (1.02-2.89) (P-trend = 0.034) and 2.23 (1.32-3.78) (P-trend = 0.002) for the 3rd tertile of total legumes and dry beans consumption, respectively, compared with the 1st tertile. When comparing extreme tertiles, higher total legumes and lentils consumption was associated with 49% (HR: 0.51; 95% CI: 0.31-0.84; P-trend = 0.009) and 37% (HR: 0.63; 95% CI: 0.40-0.98; P-trend = 0.049) lower risk of cancer mortality. Similar associations were observed for CVD death in males and for cancer death in males, obese and diabetic participants. CONCLUSIONS These findings support the benefits of legumes consumption for cancer mortality prevention which may be counterbalanced by their higher risk for CVD mortality. TRIAL REGISTRATION The trial is registered at http://www.controlled-trials.com (ISRCTN35739639). Registration date: 5th October 2005.
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The potential of nuts in the prevention of cancer.
González, CA, Salas-Salvadó, J
The British journal of nutrition. 2006;:S87-94
Abstract
Cancer is a disease that is characterized by the loss of genetic control over cell growth and proliferation, mainly as a result of the exposure to environmental factors. Cessation of smoking and a high consumption of fruits and vegetables are the most important means of reducing the risk of cancer in our society. Like fruits and vegetables, nuts are a source of vegetable protein, monounsaturated fatty acids, vitamin E, phenolic compounds, selenium, vegetable fibre, folic acid and phytoestrogens. There are numerous mechanisms of action by which these components can intervene in the prevention of cancer, although they have not been fully elucidated. There are very few epidemiological studies analyzing the relationship between nuts consumption and risk of cancer. One of the greatest difficulties in interpreting the results is that the consumption of nuts, seeds and legumes are often presented together. The most commonly studied location is the colon/rectum, an organ in which the effect of nuts is biologically plausible. Although the results are not conclusive, a protective effect on colon and rectum cancer is possible. Likewise, some studies show a possible protective effect on prostate cancer, but there is insufficient data on other tumour locations. New epidemiological studies are required to clarify the possible effects of nuts on cancer, particularly prospective studies that make reliable and complete estimations of their consumption and which make it possible to analyse their effects independently of the consumption of legumes and seeds.