Breast Cancer: Mediterranean Diet, Olive Oil Help Reduce Health Risk

Previous studies have examined the benefits of the Mediterranean diet, particularly one supplemented with extra virgin olive oil. Now, new findings published in JAMA show that it could be helpful in preventing breast cancer.

The Mediterranean diet is known for containing more fish and white meats, along with a heavy amount of fruits and whole grains. In fact, previous studies have shown that it can even lower the risk of heart and stroke.

"All this despite the fact that the control group, or comparison group, followed an already health diet," said Dr. Miguel Angel Martinez-Gonzalez, a researcher at the University of Navarra, in a press release. "Which suggests that the results could have been even more significant had it been compared to a dietary pattern as the followed in non-Mediterranean Western countries."

In this recent study, researchers recruited 4,282 women between the ages of 60 and 80 who were at a high risk for cardiovascular disease, prescribing them a diet and following them for about 5 years. The women were randomly split into three groups: One ate a Mediterranean diet supplemented with extra virgin olive oil; one group's diet was supplemented with nuts; and the third group ate the diet but were advised to cut back on dietary fat.

Findings revealed that the group of participants that ate the diet supplemented with extra virgin olive oil had a 68 percent lower risk of developing malignant cancer than those who ate a standard Mediterranean diet.

"All this despite the fact that the control group, or comparison group, followed an already health diet," said Dr. Miguel Angel Martinez-Gonzalez, a researcher at the University of Navarra. "Which suggests that the results could have been even more significant had it been compared to a dietary pattern as the followed in non-Mediterranean Western countries."

However, researchers also noted that the group that had extra nuts and those advised to cut back on fat were statistically insignificant.

Thirty-five women who'd developed breast cancer were also identified during the five-year follow-up period. Researchers noted a flaw in the study, as not all women were screened for breast cancer with mammamograms, not blinded to the type of diet they receied and were all white, postmenopausal and at a high risk of cardiovascular disesease. However, the Mediterranean diet showed clear benefits against breast cancer, regardless, researchers noted. 

"The intervention paradigm implemented in the PREDIMED trial provides a useful scenario for breast cancer prevention because it is conducted in primary health care centers and also offers beneficial effects on a wide variety of health outcomes," the researchers wrote in the study. "Nevertheless, these results need confirmation by long-term studies with a higher number of incident cases."

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