Milk protects against bowel cancer - colorectal cancer

Colorectal Cancer :: Milk protects against bowel cancer - colorectal cancer

Drinking a pint of milk a day may offer protection against bowel cancer. A daily consumption of two half-pint glasses of milk was associated with a 12 per cent reduction in the risk of developing the disease when compared with low milk consumption, which for the research was taken as less than a sixth of a pint a day.

The link was found by researchers who pooled data from ten studies in five countries looking at the effect of diet on colorectal cancer.

More than half a million people took part in the studies, of whom nearly 5,000 were later diagnosed with bowel cancer.

Previous animal research had suggested that calcium, chiefly obtained from milk and dairy products, might protect against the disease.

The analysis showed an increased reduction in risk with higher milk consumption.

The study also found, separately, that higher total calcium intake correlated to a reduced risk of bowel cancer.

Increasing calcium intake to 1,000mg a day or more could result in 15 per cent fewer cases of the disease in women, and 10 per cent in men, the authors said.