Friday June 3, 2016 (foodconsumer.org) -- New studies led by researchers at UConn Health suggest that eating whole walnuts at an optimal level may help prevent colon cancer.   In the studies, carcinogen-exposed mice whose diet was supplemented with walnuts developed fewer tumors compared to those who did not eat walnuts.

Specifically, mice fed a standard diet supplemented with walnuts at a dose of 9.4%% or 15% of total fat were found at 30% reduced risk for colon cancer.  In mice fed the total Western diet supplemented with 7% walnuts or 10.5% of total fat, the reduction in tumor risk was 130% in male mice.

However, when more walnuts were incorporated into the diets, the anticancer property disappeared, particularly in female mice.

Further research showed that walnuts affected specific groups of bacteria in the gut microbiome which can be negatively influenced by carcinogens with regard to the diversity and richness.  (David Liu)

Nakanishi M, Chen Y, Qendro V, Miyamoto S, Weinstock E, Weinstock GM, Rosenberg DW.  Effects of walnut consumption on colon carcinogenesis and microbial community structure.  Cancer Prev Res (Phila). 2016 May 23.