A case–control study on seaweed consumption and the risk of breast cancer

Abstract

Gim (Porphyra sp.) and miyeok (Undaria pinnatifida) are the seaweeds most consumed by Koreans. We investigated the association between the intake of gim and miyeok and the risk of breast cancer in a case -control study. Cases were 362 women aged 30 -65 years old, who were histologically confirmed to have breast cancer. Controls visiting the same hospital were matched to cases according to their age (SD 2 years) and menopausal status. Food intake was estimated by the quantitative FFQ with 121 items, including gim and miyeok. Conditional logistic regression analysis was used to obtain the OR and corresponding 95 % CI. The average intake and consumption frequency of gim in cases were lower than in controls. The daily intake of gim was inversely associated with the risk of breast cancer (5th v. 1st quintile, OR, 0·48; 95 % CI, 0·27, 0·86; P for trend, 0·026) after adjustment for potential confounders. After stratification analysis was performed according to menopausal status, premenopausal women (5th v. 1st quintile, OR, 0·44; 95 % CI, 0·24, 0·80; P for trend, 0·007) and postmenopausal women (5th v. 1st quintile, OR, 0·32; 95 % CI, 0·13, 0·80; P for trend, 0·06) showed similar inverse associations between gim intake and the risk of breast cancer after an adjustment for potential confounders except dietary factors. Miyeok consumption did not have any significant associations with breast cancer. These results suggest that high intake of gim may decrease the risk of breast cancer.

The effect of consuming Palmaria palmata-enriched bread on inflammatory markers, antioxidant status, lipid profile and thyroid function in a randomised placebo-controlled intervention trial in healthy adults

“…There was no apparent visible difference in the appearance of the seaweed bread compared to the placebo bread. The daily dosage of P. palmata selected for this study was based on the reported seaweed intake in Asian populations (5.3 g/day in Japan to 8.5 g/d in Korea) where beneficial effects have been reported [1,2]. The composition of the bread consumed by the participants each day was as follows: 165 g fibremalt, 60 ml water, 5 g P. palmata, 1 g salt, 1 g dough improver, 7 g fresh yeast and 13 g honey.…”

Seaweed consumption and prevalence of depressive symptoms during pregnancy in Japan: Baseline data from the Kyushu Okinawa Maternal and Child Health Study

“…Nevertheless, epidemiological information concerning the effects of seaweed consumption has been scarce. Inverse associations have been reported between seaweed consumption and stomach cancer [2], colorectal cancer [3], allergic rhinitis [4], mortality from all causes, pancreatic cancer, lung cancer, kidney cancer, and cerebrovascular disease [5], breast cancer [6], and elevated blood pressure [7], while positive associations have been shown between seaweed consumption and prostate cancer [8], upper aerodigestive tract cancer [9], mortality from colon cancer [5], metabolic syndrome [10], and thyroid cancer [11]. …”

Components of the Cultivated Red Seaweed Chondrus crispus Enhance the Immune Response of Caenorhabditis elegans to Pseudomonas aeruginosa through the pmk-1 , daf-2/daf-16 , and skn-1 Pathways

“…For example, ␤-carotene and lutein were identified as antimutagenic substances in edible red algae, which indicated their potential anticancer activity (3). Furthermore, studies on mice/rats and humans demonstrated that dietary supplementation with various extracts of a variety of seaweeds correlated with a decreased risk of breast cancer (4,5). Polysaccharides, proteins, peptides, and amino acids from a number of seaweeds showed beneficial activity against diabetes, cancer, AIDS, and vascular diseases (2).…”