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Pregnancy hormones and maternal diet may reduce breast cancer risk in the offspring.
"Birth weight is positively associated with the risk of breast cancer in the offspring and the underlying process is likely to involve the pregnancy endocrine milieu," noted a study group at the University of Athens. "We examined the association of diet and related factors during pregnancy with the levels (at the 16th and 27th gestational week) of maternal pregnancy estradiol, estriol, sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG), progesterone and prolactin, in a cohort of 270 Caucasian women who delivered in a major hospital in Boston, USA."
P. Lagiou and colleagues determined, "Estradiol and estriol were not strongly associated with any of the diet-related variables, but SHBG was significantly and consistently related inversely to prepregnancy body mass index and weight gain during pregnancy, and positively to vegetable and pulses intake. Pregnancy progesterone was associated positively with alcohol and inversely with polyunsaturated lipid and vitamin B12 intake, whereas pregnancy prolactin was inversely associated with cereal consumption."
"If the pregnancy hormones studied are indeed involved in the intra-uterine origin of breast cancer, these findings, if confirmed, would focus dietary advice to pregnant women, with a view to reducing the risk of breast cancer in the offspring, towards avoidance of excess energy intake and an emphasis on plant foods," concluded the investigators.
"This advice does not contradict current dietary advice on prudent diet during pregnancy and throughout life," they added.
Lagiou and colleagues published their study in European Journal of Cancer Prevention (Diet during pregnancy and levels of maternal pregnancy hormones in relation to the risk of breast cancer in the offspring. Eur J Cancer Prev, 2006;15(1):20-26).
For additional information, contact P. Lagiou, Department of Hygiene and Epidemiology, School of Medicine, University of Athens, 75 M Asias Street, Goudi, GR-11527 Athens, Greece; E-mail: pdlagiou@med.uoa.gr.
The publisher of the European Journal of Cancer Prevention can be contacted at: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 530 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106-3261, USA.
Keywords: Athens, Greece, Breast Cancer, Breast Carcinoma, Breast Cancer Risk, Cancer Prevention, Diet and Nutrition, Pregnancy Hormones, Obstetrics, Pregnancy, Women's Health.
This article was prepared by Biotech Week editors from staff and other reports. Copyright 2006, Biotech Week via NewsRx.com.
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