Soya may lower ovarian cancer risk
Source: AsiaOne Health
Women who eat more soya-based foods than average may have less risk for certain cancers in the ovaries and the lining of the uterus, according to the combined findings of a few studies.
The uterine lining cancers – also known as endometrial cancer – and ovarian cancer are all known to be affected by hormones such as oestrogen, which are mimicked by compounds in soya.
While some soya compounds that act like oestrogen are linked to a higher rate of breast cancer, studies have suggested the opposite for endometrial and ovarian cancer.
The new report, in the International Journal Of Obstetrics And Gynaecology, hints that the odds of developing these cancers may be 40 per cent lower among women who eat the highest amounts of soya-based foods.
One of the authors of the new analysis, Dr Kwon Myung at the National Cancer Centre in Goyang, South Korea, told Reuters Health that the data is too preliminary to draw any firm conclusions.
The seven studies Dr Myung’s team reviewed – they rejected others that were of poorer quality – included more than 169,000 women, of whom 3,516 had one of the two cancers. Most of the studies evaluated the intake of soya or soya components from foods such as legumes, soya curd, or soya protein.
Still, Dr Myung said confirmation of the findings would require “a higher level of evidence” and scientists have yet to determine the optimal amount of soya-based foods.
