Consuming Calcium-Rich Foods Reduces Risk Of Bowel Cancer

Consuming foods rich in calcium could significantly reduce the risk of developing bowel cancer, according to a new study.

Calcium is known to be particularly important for ensuring healthy bones and teeth, especially in growing children, but the new research suggests that people who eat a diet rich in calcium can also reduce their cancer risk.

The study funded by charity Cancer Research U.K. used data from over half a million women over 16 years. Of these women, 12,251 developed bowel cancer at some point during the study. The researchers asked all of the women about their dietary intakes and found that those who ate diets rich in calcium were significantly more likely to avoid a bowel cancer diagnosis than those with lower intakes.

“This is the most comprehensive single study ever conducted into the relationship between diet and bowel cancer, and it highlights the potential protective role of calcium in the development of this disease,” said Keren Papier, PhD, senior nutritional epidemiologist at the University of Oxford, U.K. and lead researcher of the study in a press release.

Each 300mg of calcium consumed daily resulted in a 17% lower risk of developing bowel cancer, about the amount found in a glass of dairy milk. Calcium rich foods include dairy milk, yoghurt and cheese, but it is also found in green leafy vegetables and many types of plant-based milk such as soy, which are often fortified with calcium.

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“We have some idea on why calcium has this effect,” said Dr Papier. “It’s suggested that calcium might protect against bowel cancer by binding to bile acids and free fatty acids to form a type of a harmless ‘soap’, which stops them from damaging the lining of our gut,” Dr Papier added.

Conversely, eating significant amounts of red meat, especially processed red meat is well-known to increase the risk of developing bowel cancer. A recent study from last year with data from over 30,000 people with bowel cancer suggests that those with a high intake of red meat could increase their bowel cancer risk by up to 40%.

Studies correlating specific components of diet to the chance of developing diseases like cancer can be difficult to make firm conclusions from. But the sheer number of people involved in the new study means that the links made are likely true.

Although the research was done on women with an average age of 60, the researchers believe that the results will likely hold true for men and younger people. Cases of bowel cancer are rising globally, including an alarming increase in young people and researchers aren’t sure why this is happening. Screening is recommended for people over 45 years old and people diagnosed earlier have a higher chance of a more positive outcome.