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Vegetarians at lower cancer risk
(China Daily)
Updated: 2009-07-22 11:48

Vegetarians at lower cancer risk

A totally meatless diet lowers the risk of developing relatively rare types of cancer, according to a study by Britain's Oxford University.

The study shows that vegetarians developed cancers of the stomach, lymph nodes, bladder and blood less frequently than meat eaters.

But the incidence of the most common types of cancer - affecting the breast, colon and prostate - was about the same in both groups. In the study, the Oxford scientists examined data from more than 61,000 patients.

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A possible explanation for the lower incidence of stomach cancer among vegetarians could be the presence of carcinogens in cooked and processed meat. However, vegetarians in the study developed colon cancer, for which meat consumption is also a suspected risk factor, as often as did meat eaters.

The researchers do not recommend a change of diet on the basis of the study. The most sensible course of action, they say, is simply to eat balanced meals.