Lung cancer is the most common malignancy and the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in men and women in the United States, according to the University of Maryland Medical Center. Each year over 160,000 deaths are reported in the US alone. Dietary intake of flavonoids, powerful antioxidants that work as cancer preventatives, is significantly associated with decreased lung cancer risk, according to the University of California, Los Angeles. If you want to use flavonoids or any other supplements, be sure to consult with your doctor first.
Anti-tumorigenic Effects
Scientific interest in flavonoids has recently been aroused due to their anti-inflammatory, anti-mutagenic and anti-carcinogenic properties. Investigators at the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health conducted a population-based case--control study on lung cancer patients. The results of this study, published online in May 2008 in "Cancer" journal, showed that frequent consumption of foods rich in flavonoids reduces the risk of lung cancer.
Antioxidant Activity
An increased intake of fruits and vegetables is linked to a reduced risk of lung cancer, suggests a 1999 study by Loïc Le Marchand and colleagues at the University of Hawaii. Fruits and vegetables are rich in antioxidant flavonoids, polyphenolic phytochemicals that may neutralize cancer-causing substances and free radicals in your body and may help prevent cancer in the lung.
Cytochrome P450 Enzymes
In a study published in the January 2000 issue of the "Journal of the National Institute" S.P. Murphy and colleagues from the University of Hawaii reported that flavonoids may suppress the production of reactive oxygen species, or ROS, which could induce DNA damage in normal cells. These robust antioxidants can also inhibit cytochrome P450 enzymes that are associated with metabolic activation of chemical carcinogens and toxins. By inhibiting the expression and activity of cytochrome P450s, flavonoids could help prevent cancer by decreasing levels of endogenous carcinogens.
Clinical Trials
A Finnish epidemiological study demonstrates a potential link between the intake of dietary flavonoids and the risk of lung cancer. The result of this study was published in the "American Journal of Epidemiology" in April 7, 1997. After a 24-year study on the dietary habits of 9,959 subjects, the researchers involved in this study concluded that the risk of developing lung cancer is lower for those subjects having a diet rich in flavonoids.
References
- University of Maryland Medical Center; Lung Cancer; Steven D. Ehrlich; July 17, 2010
- "Journal of the National Institute": Intake of Flavonoids and Lung Cancer; S.P. Murphy; Jan. 2000
- "American Journal of Epidemiology"; Dietary Flavonoids and the Risk of Lung Cancer and Other Malignant Neoplasms; Paul Knekt; April 7, 1997
- "Journal of the National Cancer Institute"; Intake of Flavonoids and Lung Cancer; Loïc Le Marchand, et al.; Nov. 15, 1999
- "Cancer"; Dietary Flavonoid Intake and Lung cancer--a Population-Based Case-control Study; Y. Cui, et al.; May 2008
- University of California, Los Angeles; Fruits, Vegetables, Teas may Protect Smokers from Lung Cancer; Kim Irwin; May 29, 2008
