Nutrients Reduce Chances of Prostrate Cancer

Omega-3 fatty acids guard against advanced prostate cancer, flaxseed slowed tumor cell growth,

and vitamin K improved chances of staying cancer-free.

Reprinted from Healthway Happenings August/September 2009

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Researchers in this prostate cancer study compared about 470 men with aggressive prostate cancer to 470 healthy men.  Some of the men had an inflammatory gene (Cox-2 variant) that raised their chances of getting the disease.  Overall, men who consumed the most omega-3s were about one-third as likely to have aggressive prostate cancer as were men who consumed the least.  Among those with the Cox-2 gene variant, men who consumed the most omega-3s had less than one-fifth the chance of aggressive prostate cancer compared to men who got the least omega-3s.  Study authors noted that, “this is one of the first studies to show protection against advanced prostate cancer and interaction with Cox-2,” continuing, “The Cox-2 increased risk of disease was essentially reversed by increasing omega-3 fatty acid intake by a half a gram per day.”  Reference: Clinical Cancer Research, 2009, Vol. 15, No. 7, 2559-66