The potential of nuts and peanut butter in the prevention of cancer:an epidemiological approach

Growing scientific evidence has indicated that nut intake might have beneficial effects on cancer-related mortality. However, prospective evidence on the relation between nut consumption and cancer risk is limited. This thesis investigated the associations between nut and peanut butter intake and the risk of cancer (sub)types in men and women in the prospective Netherlands Cohort Study on diet and cancer (NLCS). In 1986, 120,852 men and women, aged 55-69 years, completed a baseline questionnaire on diet and cancer risk factors. During 20.3 years of follow-up, cancer cases in the total cohort were identified through annual record linkage with the Netherlands Cancer Registry and the Netherlands Pathology Registry (PALGA). The results indicated that nut consumption shows promising potential in the prevention of several cancer (sub)types. However, the protective effects were not very strong and differed between men and women. For peanut butter intake, the associations with cancer risk were less consistent

Nut and peanut butter consumption and the risk of lung cancer and its subtypes: A prospective cohort study

Objectives: Nut consumption has been associated with reduced cancer-related mortality, but evidence for a relation between nut intake and lung cancer risk is limited. We investigated the association between total nut, tree nut, peanut, and peanut butter intake and the risk of lung cancer and its subtypes in the Netherlands Cohort Study.Materials and Methods: In 1986, dietary and lifestyle habits of 120,852 participants, aged 55-69 years, were measured with a questionnaire. After 20.3 years of follow-up, 3720 subcohort members and 2861 lung cancer cases were included in multivariable case-cohort analyses.Results: Total nut intake was not significantly associated with total lung cancer risk in men or women. For small cell carcinoma, a significant inverse association with total nut intake was observed in men after controlling for detailed smoking habits (HR (95%CI) for 10+ g/day vs. nonconsumers: 0.62 (0.43-0.89), p-trend: 0.024). Inverse relations with small cell carcinoma were also found for tree nut and peanut intake in men in continuous analyses (HR (95%CI) per 5 g/day increment: 0.70 (0.53-0.93) and 0.93 (0.88-0.98), respectively). For the other lung cancer subtypes, no significant associations were seen in men. Nut intake was not related to the risk of lung cancer subtypes in women, and no associations were found for peanut butter in both sexes.Conclusion: Increased nut intake might contribute to the prevention of small cell carcinoma in men. No significant associations were found in men for the other subtypes or total lung cancer, in women, or for peanut butter intake.</p

Nut and Peanut Butter Consumption and the Risk of Total Cancer:A Prospective Cohort Study

Background: Nut intake has been associated with reduced cancer-related mortality, but there is very limited evidence on total cancer risk. We investigated the associations of nut and peanut butter intake with the risk of total cancer and smoking- and alcohol-related cancer subgroups.Methods: In the prospective Netherlands Cohort Study, 120,852 men and women aged 55 to 69 years provided information on lifestyle and dietary habits at baseline in 1986. After 20.3 years of follow-up, 19,255 total cancer cases and 3,499 subcohort members were included in multivariable-adjusted Cox regression analyses, using a case-cohort approach.Results: No significant associations were found between total nut, tree nut, peanut, and peanut butter intake and total cancer risk in men and women. There were also no significant associations with smoking-(un)related and alcohol-(un)related cancers in both sexes.Conclusions: Our findings suggest that nut and peanut butter intake are not associated with a reduced risk of total cancer inmen or women.Impact: Nut and peanut butter consumption are not related to the risk of total cancer.</p