Abstract
The role of dairy products in cancer is unclear. We assessed consumption of fermented milk, non-fermented milk, cheese, and butter, estimated from semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaires, in relation to prospective risk of breast, prostate, colorectal, smoking-, and obesity-related cancers in 101,235 subjects, including 12,552 cancer cases, in the population-based Northern Sweden Health and Disease Study. Most analyses (n = 20) rendered null results. In men, we observed an increased prostate cancer risk among high-consumers of cheese (hazard ratio (HR) for highest vs. lowest quintile (Q5–Q1), 1.11; 95% CI, 0.97–1.27; Ptrend = 0.013). In women, high-consumers of cheese had a decreased risk of overall cancer (HR Q5–Q1, 0.95; 95% CI, 0.88–1.04; Ptrend = 0.039), smoking-related (HR Q5–Q1, 0.84; 95% CI, 0.72–0.97; Ptrend ≤ 0.001), and colorectal cancers (HR Q5–Q1, 0.82; 95% CI, 0.63–1.07; Ptrend = 0.048). Butter yielded a weak decreased obesity-related cancer risk in women (HR Q5–Q1, 0.91; 95% CI, 0.81–1.02; Ptrend = 0.049). Fermented milk yielded HRs below zero in women, but with no clear linear associations. In conclusion, this study does not support any major adverse or beneficial effects of fermented milk, non-fermented milk, cheese, and butter in the diet from a cancer risk perspective.
Highlights
Cancer is a major public health threat with an expected increase in morbidity worldwide paralleling welfare development and aging populations
This prospective cohort study is derived from the Northern Sweden Diet database (NSDD; https://www. umu.se/en/biobank-research-unit/research/nsdd— northern-sweden-diet-database/basic-information/), which contains baseline characteristics and refined dietary data from the Northern Sweden Health and Disease Study cohorts (NSHDS), described in detail elsewhere [33]
Of the 108,065 subjects with adequate information in the NSDD, 12,552 incident cancer cases were identified, that is, cases diagnosed after data collection during a mean follow-up of 19.9 years
Summary
Cancer is a major public health threat with an expected increase in morbidity worldwide paralleling welfare development and aging populations. Changes in even modest risk factors can be expected to have a substantial impact on overall incidence, with implications for public health. Nutrition plays a key role in cancer development and growth [2]. Many cancers may be prevented by dietary modifications, such as avoiding red meat and increasing consumption of plant-based food [3]. Lacto-vegetarians and others who do not want to substitute red meat solely with plant-based protein sources, such as beans, may find dairy products an attractive alternative. In order to evaluate the potential impact of this food regime on cancer risk, the role of dairy products in cancer development needs further elucidation
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