|
E-mail this page to a friend!
Nutrition, Vitamins & Supplements for Seniors
Quercetin Identified as Flavonol to Reduce Risk of
Pancreatic Cancer
Smokers benefit most from intake of 'hidden' plant
nutrients
| |
 |
|
| |
Cornell associate
professor says it may be triterpenoids in apple peels that fight
cancer (see "An Apple Peel a Day... below main story. |
|
Oct. 4, 2007 - Eating flavonol-rich foods may help
reduce the risk of pancreatic cancer, says a team of international
researchers. Quercetin, which is found naturally in apples, onions and
red wine, has been identified as one of the most beneficial flavonols
(subgroup of flavonoids) in preventing and reducing the risk of
pancreatic cancer.
Although the overall risk was reduced among the
study participants, smokers who consumed foods rich in flavonols had a
significantly greater risk reduction.
| |
Related Stories |
|
| |
Wine, Beer, Liquor It Doesn't Matter Too Much
Jumps Breast Cancer Risk
Three drinks of alcohol a day is as bad as smoking a
pack a day
Sept. 27, 2007
Fountain of Youth in Napa? Sales of Red Wine Boom on
Health, Aging Benefits
Boomers, senior citizens especially interested in the
health effects
April 2, 2007
Adequate Vitamin D3 Could Prevent 600,000 Breast,
Colon Cancer Cases
Vitamin D3 is obtained through diet, supplements and sunlight
Aug. 22, 2007
Read more
on
Nutrition, Vitamins & Supplements |
|
This study, published in the October 15 issue of
the American Journal of Epidemiology, is the first of its kind to
evaluate the effect of flavonols compounds found specifically in
plants on developing pancreatic cancer. According to the research
paper, only a few prospective studies have investigated flavonols as
risk factors for cancer, none of which has included pancreatic cancer.
Researchers from Germany, the University of Hawaii
and University of Southern California tracked food intake and health
outcomes of 183,518 participants in the Multiethnic Cohort Study for
eight years.
The study evaluated the participants food
consumption and calculated the intake of the three flavonols quercetin,
kaempferol, and myricetin. The analyses determined that flavonol intake
does have an impact on the risk for developing pancreatic cancer.
| |
About Quercetin
Other common name(s): quercetine, sophretin,
meletin
Scientific/medical name(s):
3,3',4',5,7-pentahydroxyflavone
Description: Quercetin is a type of plant-based chemical (phytochemical)
known as a flavonoid (see also
Phytochemicals). Good sources include apples, onions, teas, red
wines, and many other foods. Quercitin is also available as a dietary
supplement.
Overview: Quercetin appears to have anti-inflammatory and
antioxidant properties. It has been promoted as being effective against
a wide variety of diseases, including cancer. While some early lab
results appear promising, as of yet there is no reliable clinical
evidence that quercetin can prevent or treat cancer in humans.
>>
More about Quercetin at American Cancer Society
|
|
The most significant finding was among smokers.
Smokers with the lowest intake of flavonols presented with the most
pancreatic cancer. Smoking is an established risk factor for the often
fatal pancreatic cancer, notes the research.
Among the other findings were that women had the
highest intake of total flavonols and seventy percent of the flavonol
intake came from quercetin, linked to apple and onion consumption.
It is believed that these compounds may have
anticancer effects due to their ability to reduce oxidative stress and
alter other cellular functions related to cancer development.
Unlike many of the dietary components, flavonols
are concentrated in specific foods rather than in broader food groups,
for example, in apples rather than in all fruit, notes the research
study. Previously, the most consistent inverse association was found
between flavonols, especially quercetin in apples and lung cancer, as
pointed out in this study. No other epidemiological flavonol studies
have included evaluation of pancreatic cancer.
While found in many plants, flavonols are found in
high concentrations in apples, onions, tea, berries, kale, and broccoli.
Quercetin is most plentiful in apples and onions, according to the U.S.
Apple Association, distributor of the news release about the research.
>>Source:
U.S. Apple Association
 About The Pancreas
The pancreas is a gland located deep in the abdomen
between the stomach and the spine (backbone). The liver, intestine and
other organs surround the pancreas.
The pancreas is about 6 inches long and is shaped
like a flat pear. The widest part of the pancreas is the head, the
middle section is the body, and the thinnest part is the tail.
The pancreas makes insulin and other hormones.
These hormones enter the bloodstream and travel throughout the body.
They help the body use or store the energy that comes from food. For
example, insulin helps control the amount of sugar in the blood.
 The pancreas also makes pancreatic juices. These
juices contain enzyme that help digest food. The pancreas releases the
juices into a system of duct leading to the common bile duct. The common
bile duct empties into the duodenum, the first section of the small
intestine.
>> More on Pancreatic Cancer at National Cancer
Institute -
http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/wyntk/pancreas
National Cancer Institute says:
Pancreatic Cancer: Who's at Risk?
No one knows the exact causes of pancreatic cancer.
Doctors can seldom explain why one person gets pancreatic cancer and
another does not. However, it is clear that this disease is not
contagious. No one can "catch" cancer from another person.
Research has shown that people with certain
risk factors are more likely than others to develop pancreatic
cancer. A risk factor is anything that increases a person's chance of
developing a disease.
Studies have found the following risk factors:
● Age -- The likelihood of developing pancreatic
cancer increases with age. Most pancreatic cancers occur in people over
the age of 60.
● Smoking -- Cigarette smokers are two or three
times more likely than nonsmokers to develop pancreatic cancer.
●
Diabetes -- Pancreatic cancer occurs more often in people who have
diabetes than in people who do not.
● Being male -- More men than women are diagnosed
with pancreatic cancer.
● Being African American -- African Americans are
more likely than Asians, Hispanics, or whites to get pancreatic cancer.
● Family history -- The risk for developing
pancreatic cancer triples if a person's mother, father, sister, or
brother had the disease. Also, a family history of colon or ovarian
cancer increases the risk of pancreatic cancer.
Chronic
pancreatitis -- Chronic pancreatitis is a painful condition of the
pancreas. Some evidence suggests that chronic pancreatitis may increase
the risk of pancreatic cancer.
Other studies suggest that exposure to certain
chemicals in the workplace or a diet high in fat may increase the chance
of getting pancreatic cancer.
Most people with known risk factors do not get
pancreatic cancer. On the other hand, many who do get the disease have
none of these factors. People who think they may be at risk for
pancreatic cancer should discuss this concern with their doctor. The
doctor may suggest ways to reduce the risk and can plan an appropriate
schedule for checkups.
An Apple Peel a Day Might Keep Cancer at Bay
June 1, 2007 - An apple a day keeps the doctor
away" Or, what appears to be more accurate: An apple peel a day might
help keep cancer at bay, according to a new Cornell study.
Cornell researchers have identified a dozen
compounds -- triterpenoids -- in apple peel that either inhibit or kill
cancer cells in laboratory cultures. Three of the compounds have not
previously been described in the literature.
"We found that several compounds have potent
anti-proliferative activities against human liver, colon and breast
cancer cells and may be partially responsible for the anti-cancer
activities of whole apples," says Rui Hai Liu, Cornell associate
professor of food science. Liu is affiliated with Cornell's Institute of
Comparative and Environmental Toxicology and is senior author of the
study, which is online and published this month in the Journal of
Agricultural and Food Chemistry.
In previous Cornell studies, apples had been found
not only to fight cancer cells in the laboratory but also to reduce the
number and size of mammary tumors in rats. The Cornell researchers now
think that the triterpenoids may be doing much of the anti-cancer work.
Click to More Senior News on the
Front Page
Copyright: SeniorJournal.com |
