American Journal of Epidemiology Advance Access published online on October 14, 2009
Since evidence relating diet to breast cancer risk is not sufficiently consistent to elaborate preventive proposals, the authors examined the association between dietary patterns and breast cancer risk in a large French cohort study.
Two dietary patterns were identified: "alcohol/Western" (essentially meat products, French fries, appetizers, rice/pasta, potatoes, pulses, pizza/pies, canned fish, eggs, alcoholic beverages, cakes, mayonnaise, and butter/cream) and "healthy/Mediterranean" (essentially vegetables, fruits, seafood, olive oil, and sunflower oil).
The first pattern was positively associated with breast cancer risk, especially when tumors were estrogen receptor-positive/progesterone receptor-positive. The "healthy/Mediterranean" pattern was negatively associated with breast cancer risk, especially when tumors were estrogen receptor-positive/progesterone receptor-negative.
Adherence to a diet comprising mostly fruits, vegetables, fish, and olive/sunflower oil, along with avoidance of Western-type foods, may contribute to a substantial reduction in postmenopausal breast cancer risk.
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