Abstract
Carrots are consumed worldwide. Several meta-analysis studies on carrot consumption have indicated that carrots play a central role as a protecting vegetable against development of different types of cancers. A cancer-preventive role of carrots is plausible because they are the main dietary source of the bioactive polyacetylenic oxylipins falcarinol (FaOH) and falcarindiol (FaDOH), which have shown anti-proliferative and anti-inflammatory activity in numerous in vitro studies. In addition, purified FaOH and FaDOH have, in recent studies in colorectal cancer (CRC)-primed rats, demonstrated an anti-neoplastic effect in a dose-dependent manner. The mechanisms of action for this effect appears to be due to inhibition of pro-inflammatory and transcription factor biomarkers for inflammation and cancer. However, studies of the CRC-preventive effect of carrots in a large cohort are still missing. We therefore examined the risk of being diagnosed with CRC as predicted by intake of carrots in a Danish population of 57,053 individuals with a long follow-up. Self-reported intake of raw carrots at a baseline of 2–4 carrots or more each week (>32 g/day) was associated with a 17% decrease in risk of CRC with a mean follow-up of >18 years, compared to individuals with no intake of raw carrots even after extensive model adjustments (HR 0.83 CI 95% 0.71; 0.98). An intake below 2–4 carrots each week (<32 g/day) was not significantly associated with reduced risk of CRC (HR 0.93 CI 95% 0.82; 1.06). The results of this prospective cohort study clearly support the results from studies in cancer-primed rats for CRC and hence a CRC-preventive effect of carrots.
Highlights
The cancer-preventive effects of fruit and vegetables have been intensively studied for over30 years
This study was conducted as a prospective cohort study investigating risk of colorectal cancer (CRC) in individuals originally included in the Diet, Cancer and Health study [48]
55,875 intake less than 32 g/day had an insignificant decrease in risk between 0.88 and 0.91
Summary
The cancer-preventive effects of fruit and vegetables have been intensively studied for over30 years. The cancer-preventive effects of fruit and vegetables have been intensively studied for over. The cancer-preventive effects of fruit and vegetables were mainly ascribed to their content of minerals, fibers and antioxidants. Fruit and vegetables have very varied composition of nutrients and other constituents, and it is still possible that there are cancer-preventive effects to be identified for the intake of individual fruit and vegetables. Vegetables contain a wide variety of compounds with many interesting bioactivities that are unrelated to antioxidant effects. Some of these bioactive constituents may contribute to the potential cancer-preventive effects
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