Guardian

Recent studies have shown that regular consumption of deep fried foods such as potato and plantain chips, pizza, burgers, suya, and stress can not only increase the risk of developing prostate cancer but to a more aggressive form. CHUKWUMA MUANYA writes.

CAN regular consumption of deep fried foods such as French fries, fried chicken and doughnuts lead to increased risk of prostate cancer?

Yes! A study by investigators at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, United States, found that regular consumption of deep-fried foods such as French fries, fried chicken and doughnuts was associated with an increased risk of prostate cancer, and the effect appeared to be slightly stronger with regard to more aggressive forms of the disease.

The study was published online in The Prostate.

Also, researchers have found that reducing stress in human models lowered prostate cancer risk and severity in patients. Several studies have found that men who take drugs that interfere with the stress hormone adrenaline have a lower incidence of prostate cancer.

George Kulik and colleagues at Wake Forest University have examined the relationship between stress and cancer progression in a mouse model of prostate cancer.

Kulik and colleagues in a study published in Journal of Clinical Investigation found that mice that had been subjected to stress (exposed to the scent of a predator) exhibited a significantly reduced response to a drug that induces cancer cell death compared to their unstressed counterparts. Administration of adrenaline also blocked cancer cell death. Conversely, drugs that inhibited adrenaline signaling ablated the effect of stress on prostate cancer.

These findings suggest that beta-blockers, which are used for the treatment of high blood pressure and block the effects of adrenaline, could increase the efficacy of anti-cancer therapies.

However, a review of laboratory data and available literature on prostate cancer chemo-preventive substances in Nigerian foodstuffs found that native pear fruit (Dacryodes edulis), Moringa oleifera and cloves (Syzygium aromaticum) contained prostate active polyphenols like ellagic acid, gallate, methylgallate, catechol, kaempferol quercetin and their derivatives.

Naturopaths backed with scientific evidence claim that if men start early eating meals rich in coconut milk, ginger, garlic, onions, tomatoes and local spices such as alligator pepper, as well live active lifestyles they will not develop prostate problems later in life. They also say the mix can also stop prostate enlargement and growth of cancers.

A professor of Epidemiology and Natural Medicine and Chairman, Oyo State of Nigeria Advisory Board on Traditional Medicine, Dayo Oyekole had told The Guardian that a special blend of castor bean, alligator pepper, ginger, coconut, and West African black pepper (Xylopia aethiopica, uda in Ibo) could be used to successfully shrink and remove prostate and fibroid growths.

Nigerian researchers have investigated the effect of varying doses of coconut milk on the prostate gland. They found that coconut milk reduced testosterone level and body weight, which are key risk factors for prostate cancer.

The issue of fried foods and cancer first came to the attention of health experts in April of 2002. At that time, a team of Swedish researchers announced that many common foods, especially those that are fried, contain a potentially cancer-causing (carcinogenic) chemical called acrylamide.

Since 2002, more research has confirmed that acrylamide is found in many of the foods eaten by humans. Acrylamide is formed during traditional cooking methods such as frying, baking, and roasting. Health experts believe that acrylamide has been present in our diets for hundreds and even thousands of years - since humans began using fire and heat to cook food!

At this point, it is not completely understood how acrylamide is formed in food. However, it is known that acrylamide is found in many high-carbohydrate foods that have been manufactured or cooked at high temperatures. This includes items such as French fries, potato chips, other snack foods, crackers, cereals, and some baked goods. A few other common foods, such as coffee and olives, also contain acrylamide.

In summary, acrylamide is formed in high carbohydrate foods that are prepared at high temperatures. It is found in a few other foods like coffee and olives as well.

While previous studies have suggested that eating foods made with high-heat cooking methods, such as grilled meats, may increase the risk of prostate cancer, The Prostate study is the first to examine the addition of deep-frying to the equation.

Specifically, Stanford, co-director of the Hutchinson Center’s Program in Prostate Cancer Research, and colleagues found that men, who reported eating French fries, fried chicken, fried fish and/or doughnuts at least once a week were at an increased risk of prostate cancer as compared to men who said they ate such foods less than once a month.

In particular, men who ate one or more of these foods at least weekly had an increased risk of prostate cancer that ranged from 30 to 37 per cent. Weekly consumption of these foods was associated also with a slightly greater risk of more aggressive prostate cancer. The researchers controlled for factors such as age, race, family history of prostate cancer, body-mass index and PSA screening history when calculating the association between eating deep-fried foods and prostate cancer risk.

“The link between prostate cancer and select deep-fried foods appeared to be limited to the highest level of consumption – defined in our study as more than once a week – which suggests that regular consumption of deep-fried foods confers particular risk for developing prostate cancer,” Stanford said.