A woman has between an 8 percent and an 11 percent risk of developing breast cancer at some point in her life, according to the World Health Organization. Numerous factors contribute to this risk, including hormone levels and obesity. Saturated fat intake might be another risk factor, one that women can do something about.
Research Results
A study by Sheila Bingham published in 2003 in the journal "Lancet" found that high intakes of saturated fat led to a slightly higher risk of developing breast cancer. Researchers discovered this link through the use of food journals, as it was not noticeable in food frequency questionnaires, another common method of determining the typical diet of a person. Another study, published by Dr. Norman Boyd in the "British Journal of Cancer" in 2003, also found a link between fat consumption, especially saturated fat, and increased breast cancer risk. A third study by Anne Thiébaut published in 2007 in the "Journal of the National Cancer Institute," found that total fat might increase breast cancer risk, regardless of the type of fat involved, in postmenopausal women.
Types of Studies
Many of the studies that have found links between saturated fat and breast cancer have been either international correlation studies, in which fat consumption and breast cancer incidence are compared between countries; animal studies; or case-control studies, in which diets of those with and without breast cancer are compared, according to Cornell University. Most cohort studies, which follow women over time and compare the diets of those who eventually develop cancer with those who do not, have not shown this link. However, both the Bingham and Thiébaut studies were cohort studies, so perhaps the change in methods for tracking fat intake used in the Bingham study and the narrowing of the study group used in the Thiébaut study have made the effects of saturated fat on breast cancer risk a bit clearer. More study is needed to clarify the issue.
Considerations
The many factors that contribute to breast cancer risk make it difficult to specify how much of an effect any one nutrient or diet might have on breast cancer. Overall diet is probably more important than any specific nutrient, notes Cornell University, because people eat whole foods, not individual nutrients. When it comes to the effect of saturated fat on breast cancer, the narrow range in the amount of fat consumed by women in the United States might make it hard to determine its effects.
Recommendations
Decreasing the amount of saturated fat you consume and increasing the amount of fruits and vegetables you consume is a healthy dietary change that may decrease your risk for breast cancer, as well as other conditions such as heart disease. More importantly, you should keep your weight in a healthy range because there is stronger evidence for the link between obesity and breast cancer than between saturated fat and breast cancer, notes Stephanie Smith-Warner of the Harvard School of Public Health.
