In France, a recent data analysis of four nutritional scores showed that a diet that encourages both healthy eating and physical activity and discourages alcohol consumption was associated with a reduced overall cancer risk, as well as lower breast, prostate, and colorectal cancer risks.
“Among all risk factors for cancer (besides tobacco), nutrition and physical activity are modifiable lifestyle factors which can contribute to cancer risk,” said Mathilde Touvier, MSc, MPH, PhD, head of the Nutritional Epidemiology Research Team of the French National Institute of Health and Medical Research.
In order to examine links between the four nutritional indices and cancer risk, the team drew data from the NutriNet-Santé study, launched in 2009 to investigate associations between nutrition and health in a French cohort. This study included a large sample of 41,543 participants aged 40 or older, who had never been diagnosed with cancer prior to inclusion in the study.