Gastric cancer involves any presence of cancerous cells located throughout the digestive tract originating from the stomach. Several contributing factors can fuel this type of cancer, from hereditary predisposition to the presence of Helicobacter pylori bacteria, age, gender, ethnicity, use of tobacco products and geographical location. Research has shown that the majority of patients are male, over 60 years old, have type A blood, are non-white smokers and descend from Japan, China, Southern and Eastern Europe, or South and Central America. However, the American Cancer Society posits that not all individuals with gastric cancer have these initial risks, and that diet can play a considerable role.
Smoked Foods
Smoked foods in the diet can lead to gastric cancers. Charcoal and gas-smoked food is particularly harmful to individuals with a familial history of cancer. According to the Wisconsin Nutrition Institute, smoked foods contain polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons that remain in the body for about a month. These chemicals spread throughout the body the same way cholesterol does, circulating to all of the major organs and beyond. To illustrate this situation better, imagine a 2.4-pound steak, charcoal grilled. This steak is loaded with the same amount and type of cancer-causing chemicals as 600 cigarettes.
Salt-Cured Fish
Cured, or salted fish, such as sardines and anchovies, can lead to gastric cancers. In developing countries where the diet consists of salt-laden foods, the prevalence rate for familial predisposition and frequency of mortality due to primary gastric cancers is at an all-time high. A study in the "British Journal of Cancer" in 2004 examined a longitudinal study of Japanese people between 1990 and 2001. Study results showed a clear association between high salt intake in the diet and extremely high occurrences of mortality due to gastric cancer, specifically. Numerous other studies have followed, reporting strikingly similar results.
Salt-Cured Meats
Salt-cured meats can also lead to gastric cancers. Meats such as bologna, salami, hot dogs, sausage and ham have been positively associated with a wide variety of gastric cancers, ranging from the esophagus to the colon. In a study reported by the "Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers and Prevention" journal, researchers at the Oncology Institute of Uruguay found that salt-cured meat consumption among 246 men between 1988 and 1992 showed clear associations with gastric cancers in 4.7 percent of nonsmokers, increasing with the use of tobacco and/or alcoholic beverages.
Pickled Vegetables
Pickled vegetables also pose a risk for gastric cancers. Pickled foods are preserved in a brine consisting of various spices and curing salts. The brine changes meats and certain vegetables to a pink color, indicating that curing salt was used. One example of this process is seen in the Korean staple food Kimchi. The American Cancer Society suggests that genetic predisposition and inherited cultural aspects of food can play an integral part in these cancers.
Nitrates and Nitrites
Basically, any food not previously mentioned that contains nitrates can lead to gastric cancers. Nitrates change to nitrites when introduced to the gastrointestinal tract's pH level in saliva. Nearly 80 percent of all nitrates consumed by humans come from vegetable sources. According to Argonne National Laboratory, evidence from research on the nitrate role in gastric cancers in humans has been inconclusive, but these compounds have been undeniably confirmed as carcinogenic in animal studies, and more studies are under way.
References
- American Cancer Society: What Are the Risk Factors For Stomach Cancers?
- Wisconsin Institute of Nutrition: Cancer Prevention by Changing Diet
- British Journal of Cancer: Salt and Salted Food Intake and Subsequent Risk of Gastric Cancer Among Japanese Men and Women
- Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers and Prevention: Salted Meat Consumption As a Risk Factor for Cancer of the Oral Cavity and Pharynx--A Case-Control Study from Uruguay
- Argonne National Laboratory: Human Health Fact Sheet
