Regular consumption of coffee and potentially black tea, but not green tea, is associated with lower risk of type 2 diabetes in Asian men and women in Singapore.

The International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR) task force that developed new Guidelines for the Clinical Translation of Stem Cells discusses core principles that should guide the responsible transition of basic stem cell research into appropriate clinical applications.

A case-control study was conducted among Singapore Chinese women, comprised of 200 histologically confirmed cases of breast cancer and 420 hospital controls. Subjects were interviewed on family history of breast cancer, social and demographic characteristics, reproductive history, and diet one year prior to interview. Differences in risk factors were observed according to menopausal status. In the premenopausal group, the most consistently significant nondietary effect was an increased risk with late age at first birth. In postmenopausal women, the most consistent nondietary effects were increased risks with nulliparity, tall stature, high educational status, and a family history of breast cancer. In premenopausal women, the strongest dietary effects were low risks with high intakes of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), beta-carotene, soya protein as a proportion of all protein, and a high risk with high red-meat intake. No dietary effects were observed in postmenopausal women. Examination of effects by 10-year age groups suggested that the differences in the effects of age at first birth, nulliparity, height, education, beta-carotene intake, and PUFA intake between premenopausal and postmenopausal women were at least partly attributable to age-related differences in the baseline distributions of these variables. The variation in the effects of red meat and soya protein appeared to be attributable mainly to menopausal status itself, which is consistent with the hypothesis that these factors operate on risk by way of hormonal mechanisms.

Smoking is the major risk factor for chronic respiratory symptoms, but dietary factors may also play a role. Most studies of diet and lung disease have been cross-sectional and conducted in populations with a Western-style diet. We analyzed the relation between dietary intake at baseline and new onset of cough with phlegm in a population-based cohort of 63,257 middle-aged Chinese men and women initiated in Singapore between 1993 and 1998. Beginning in 1999, we ascertained respiratory symptoms by telephone interview and have identified 571 incident cases of cough with phlegm among the 49,140 cohort members with completed follow-up. Nonstarch polysaccharides, a major component of dietary fiber, total fruit, and soy isoflavones had the strongest associations. Odds ratios comparing highest and lowest quartiles after adjustment for age, sex, dialect group, total energy intake, and smoking were 0.61 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.47, 0.78; p for trend < 0.001) for nonstarch polysaccharides, 0.67 (95% CI: 0.52, 0.87; p for trend = 0.006) for fruit, and 0.67 (95% CI: 0.53, 0.86; p for trend = 0.001) for soy isoflavones. These data suggest that a diet high in fiber from fruit and, possibly, soyfoods may reduce the incidence of chronic respiratory symptoms. Associated nutrients, such as flavonoids, may contribute to this association.