Smokers Should Eat Broccoli
Reported November 19, 2008
(Ivanhoe Newswire) — Broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables have a cancer preventative property that appears to work specifically in smokers.
In the first comprehensive study of its kind, researchers at Roswell Park Cancer Institute, in Buffalo, N.Y., analyzed cancer cases and controls matched on smoking status. The study included all commonly consumed cruciferous vegetables, taking into account their raw versus cooked forms.
Among smokers, the protective effect of the vegetable intake ranged from a 20 percent reduction in risk of lung cancer to a 55 percent reduction in risk.
Broccoli is not a therapeutic drug, but for smokers who believe they cannot quit nor do anything about their risk, this is something positive, Li Tang, Ph.D., the studys lead author, was quoted as saying.
Researchers noted the strongest risk reduction was seen in patients with squamous and small-cell carcinomas, two subgroups more strongly associated with heavy smoking.
SOURCE: American Association for Cancer Researchs Seventh Annual International Conference on Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Research in Washington D.C., Nov. 16-19, 2008