Monday Oct 19, 2014 (foodconsumer.org) -- The Western diet has been linked to a higher risk of colorectal cancer.  A new study in American Journal of Epidemiology suggests that eating Paleolithic diet or Mediterranean diet may lower the risk significantly.

Researchers compared the diets 564 men and women with colorectal cancer with the diet used by 1202 controls who did not have the disease and found greater adherence to either diet was associated with significantly reduced risk for colorectal cancer. When the cases were compared with 535 community controls, a similar association was found.

Specifically, those in the highest quintiles of the Paleolithic and Mediterranean diet scores relative to the lowest quintiles were 29% and 26% less likely to be diagnosed with colorectal cancer, respectively.  When community controls were used, those in highest quintiles of the Paleolithic and Mediterranean diet scores were at 16% and 23% reduced risk of colorectal cancer respectively. (David Liu)

Whalen KA, McCullough M, Flanders WD, Hartman TJ, Judd S, Bostick RM.  Paleolithic and Mediterranean Diet Pattern Scores and Risk of Incident, Sporadic Colorectal Adenomas.  Am J Epidemiol. 2014 Oct 17.