Harvard researchers link prostate cancer and dietary calcium

April 4, 2000
Web posted at: 2:11 a.m. EDT (0611 GMT)

From staff reports

(CNN) An excess of dietary calcium may increase the risk of prostate cancer, according to researchers at Harvard University.

"We observed a moderate increase in the risk of prostate cancer associated with higher intake of dairy foods and dairy calcium," reported Dr. June Chan of the Harvard School of Public Health.

The finding was presented Tuesday in San Francisco at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research.

One possible explanation for this finding is that calcium can reduce the body's level of Vitamin D, which has been shown to protect the prostate.

	CALCIUM
Find out how much calcium you're getting in your favorite dairy foods: Select a food Butter Cream Ice Cream Milk Yogurt Cheese ----------------------- Serving: Amt. (Mg): Source: USDA - Nutrient Data Lab (Sept. 1996) - all data rounded to nearest 0.5

"It turns out that Vitamin D is one of those hormones that slows down the growth of many types of cells not just prostate cancers and will then prevent the progression of the disease to a more advanced stage," said Dr. Howard Scher of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.

However, there were some shortcomings noted about the study, which was conducted by researchers of the Physicians Health Study at Harvard and a Harvard teaching hospital, Brigham and Womens Hospital in Boston.

To reach their findings, the researchers looked only at mens consumption of five dairy products and excluded calcium supplements. "This study did not assess total dietary intake," said Chan. "So we could not adjust for a lot of other foods and nutrients that we would normally like to do."

Also important to note is that calcium is essential to help prevent osteoporosis, the thinning of bones as a person ages.

"One needs to maintain the integrity of the skeleton," said Scher. "Otherwise, one runs the risk of fractures. So its a very delicate balance. If one stops taking calcium, one may be at risk for developing one of these fairly severe complications. Whereas the effect of possibly developing prostate cancer is unknown."

Researchers emphasized their study only suggests a possible link between calcium and prostate cancer, and they are not recommending any dietary changes. For now, men should get from diet and supplements a total of about 1,000 milligrams of calcium a day.

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American Association for Cancer Research
Fox Chase Cancer Center
ACS Prostate Cancer Resource Center.
US TOO International Inc. Prostate Cancer Support Groups

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