Soy Consumption Lower Prostate Cancer Risk in Men
23 April 2011
Soy has been a major plant source of dietary protein for people in Asia for centuries, and evidence suggests that soy consumption may protect against cancer in humans, including prostate cancer. Recent study confirms that soy and isoflavone consumption is inversely associated with prostate cancer risk in men.
Each year in Australia, close to 3,300 men die of prostate cancer, and around 20,000 new cases are diagnosed. A lower incidence of prostate cancer occurs in men from certain Asian countries, such as
China and Japan, compared to the incidence in the United States and Europe. The lower incidence may be due in part to a higher intake of isoflavone-rich soyfoods in Asian cultures. A recent meta-analysis was conducted to provide a quantitative evaluation on the association between soy consumption and prostate cancer risk in men.
This meta-analysis systematically reviewed 14 studies on soy consumption and 9 on isoflavones in association with prostate cancer risk. The researchers extracted the most adjusted relative risks (RRs) and odds ratios (ORs) of the highest and the lowest reported categories of intake from each study and conducted the analysis using a random-effects statistic model.
The results of this analysis showed that consumption of soy foods was associated with a 26% reduction in prostate cancer risk in men. When separately analysed, consumption of nonfermented soy foods was associated with a 30% reduction in prostate cancer risk.
Conclusions: The results of this study suggest that consumption of soy foods is associated with a reduction in prostate cancer risk in men. This protection may be associated with the type and quantity of soy foods consumed.
Source:
Lin Yan and Edward L Spitznagel; Soy consumption and prostate cancer risk in men: a revisit of a meta-analysis; Am J Clin Nutr 2009; 89:1155–63.
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