Green Tea Could Help Prevent Cancer in Smokers
Having a cup or more of green tea a day could help prevent the risk of developing cancer (especially in those who have no risk factors for the disease)for smokers according to a new study.
”The antioxidants may inhibit tumor growth,” I-Hsin Lin, a master’s degree student at Chung Shan Medical University in Taiwan who presented her fin
dings at the American Association of Cancer Research — International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer meeting in Coronado, Calif.
This protective effect was especially evident in a group of smokers who had specific genotypes that have been linked to cancer risk in other studies. Lin’s team evaluated 170 patients who had lung cancer and 340 healthy patients. These patients were asked to describe their smoking habits, green tea drinking habits, and other lifestyle factors on the last five years. Genotyping was also done with the participants to see if they had any of the genotypes found to be associated with cancer risk in other cancer studies. These include IGF1 (insulin-like growth factor 1), IGF2, and IGFBP3.
Those in the study who didn’t drink tea had a more than 5 times greater risk of developing lung cancer compared to those who had at least a cup of green tea each day. Those smokers who weren’t green tea drinkers had that risk factor increased by as much as 13 times over the smokers who did have green tea daily. Among those that had the protective genotype the difference was even greater. Green tea drinkers who didn’t have a genotype seen as susceptible had a 66% reduced risk in lung cancer over those who were susceptible. Heavy smokers had an even higher risk.
According to the findings the best way to avoid lung cancer is to stop smoking but green tea does appear to reduce risk. As many as 23% of U.S. adults are smokers.
Tags: cancer, green tea, reduced risk, smoking, study
