Tea 'reduces ovarian cancer risk'

Keevan_Colton · Post by **Keevan_Colton** » 2005-12-14 11:18am

The risk of developing ovarian cancer can be reduced by drinking tea, a team of Swedish researchers says.

Karolinska Institute researchers found drinking at least two cups a day cut the risk by nearly 50%. Antioxidants in tea are thought to be the reason.

The team quizzed over 60,000 women, 301 of whom developed ovarian cancer.

The Archives of Internal Medicine study said more research was needed, and UK experts added there was still no proof of the benefits.

Previous research has shown tea helps to protect against several types of cancer, and boosts memory.

There is no clear evidence that diet affects the risk for this cancer, and although these new results sound interesting they do not provide firm evidence
Professor Tim Key, of Cancer Research UK

But the Swedish study is the first to specifically examine the relationship between tea consumption and ovarian cancer risk.

Each year about 6,900 women in the UK are diagnosed with ovarian cancer, with more than 4,600 deaths annually.

Ovarian cancer is also the fourth most common cause of cancer death in women in the UK.

Researchers questioned 61,057 women aged 40 to 76 about their eating and drinking habits between 1987 and 1990. The women were followed up until December 2004 to see if they got cancer.

The research revealed that 68% of women reported drinking tea - mainly black tea - at least once a month.

During the study a total of 301 women were diagnosed with ovarian cancer.

Cups

Researchers said they saw a 46% lower risk of ovarian cancer in women who drank two or more cups of tea per day compared with those who did not drink tea.

Women who drank one cup of tea a day had a 24% reduced risk, while those having less than one cup had 18% less risk.

Lead researcher Susanna Larsson said they had found no link between coffee consumption and the risk of ovarian cancer, but added more research was needed.

"In summary, our results from a large population-based cohort of Swedish women suggest that tea consumption may lower the risk of ovarian cancer.

"Because prospective data on this relationship are scarce, our findings need confirmation by future studies."

Professor Tim Key, professor of epidemiology at Cancer Research UK, said: "The risk for ovarian cancer is strongly related to hormonal factors - risk decreases with each child a women has, and risk also decreases the longer women take the oral contraceptive pill.

"As yet there is no clear evidence that diet affects the risk for this cancer, and although these new results sound interesting they do not provide firm evidence that tea drinking has any effect on the risk for ovarian cancer."

BBC

Molyneux · Post by **Molyneux** » 2005-12-14 12:58pm

Huzzah! Good thing I love tea!

...oh, wait.

Hotfoot · Post by **Hotfoot** » 2005-12-14 01:59pm

I predict that in two years another group will predict that Tea, in fact, CAUSES cancer.

Post by **LadyTevar** » 2005-12-14 03:43pm

Actually, you're a few years too late on the 'caffeine in tea causes cancer" boat.

Hotfoot · Post by **Hotfoot** » 2005-12-14 05:36pm

Okay, well, the next reason tea causes cancer. I assume they'll figure out water does it too by then. Maybe even the strings in the teabags. SILENT KILLER.

Seriously, the whole "Causes cancer/Prevents cancer" thing is seriously overplayed. It seems like the study was done in good faith, with a decent sample size over a reasonable period of time, but I suppose what grates on me the most is that no source is given to a peer-reviewed journal article. All we have is one guy saying "yes it does" and another guy saying "no it doesn't".

They both are apparently in their field, so who do you believe? I know it's a flaw of journalism, but it's always god damned annoying.

Bah, and an additional humbug.

By the way, you can get cancer from breathing. New study said so. No, I won't show you the study, just stop breathing.

wolveraptor · Post by **wolveraptor** » 2005-12-14 05:47pm

Actually, you can. Oxygen does, over long periods of time tend to cause damage to the lung. That's why anti-oxidants (yes there's a reason for that name) are always touted as great preventatives of cancer.[/b]

Hotfoot · Post by **Hotfoot** » 2005-12-14 05:57pm

It's a joke, but with some truth to it. Oxygen is a very dangerous chemical, highly reactive, so the idea that it can cause cancer comes as little surprise.

Still, the point of the joke was that as soon as these studies come out, people automatically go out and buy or avoid the food/substance/activity in question.

wolveraptor · Post by **wolveraptor** » 2005-12-14 06:15pm

I'm sure the necessary anti-oxidants can be obtained without having to injest caffeine-laden, bitter juices extracted from leaves. You stupid brits can have your goddamn tea.

General Zod · Post by **General Zod** » 2005-12-14 06:19pm

wolveraptor wrote:I'm sure the necessary anti-oxidants can be obtained without having to injest caffeine-laden, bitter juices extracted from leaves. You stupid brits can have your goddamn tea.

I take it you've never tried Chai before?

NoXion · Post by **NoXion** » 2005-12-14 07:03pm

wolveraptor wrote:I'm sure the necessary anti-oxidants can be obtained without having to injest caffeine-laden, bitter juices extracted from leaves. You stupid brits can have your goddamn tea.

Are you a coffee drinker?

Post by **Broomstick** » 2005-12-14 08:08pm

Hotfoot wrote:but I suppose what grates on me the most is that no source is given to a peer-reviewed journal article. All we have is one guy saying "yes it does" and another guy saying "no it doesn't".

I'm pretty sure I saw the original article in the New England Journal of Medicine, but since it's not in front of me I could be wrong (it happens once in awhile). If have time, and I remember to do so, I'll see if I can find it at work tomorrow.

Hotfoot · Post by **Hotfoot** » 2005-12-14 08:12pm

That'd be nice if you could find it. I'd really like to see what sort of protocols they used. It does seem legit so far, but the way the regular media portrays these things is infuriating.

There was some fiasco a few years back where some group came out with something saying that cookies, crackers, and chips all caused cancer, but never bothered to publish their results in a peer-review journal, but rather called a press conferance instead. Man that irritated me to no end.

arigo · Post by **arigo** » 2005-12-14 08:13pm

Hotfoot wrote:I predict that in two years another group will predict that Tea, in fact, CAUSES cancer.

I was thinking something along those lines. Don't you just love all the contradictory studies that come out all the time? *shakes his fellow skeptics hand*

Post by **Broomstick** » 2005-12-14 08:15pm

Actually, the main purpose of the unit I work at is to evaluate the published studies around a given topic and determine which ones are well done and useful vs. which are total bullshit.

arigo · Post by **arigo** » 2005-12-14 08:17pm

wolveraptor wrote:I'm sure the necessary anti-oxidants can be obtained without having to injest caffeine-laden, bitter juices extracted from leaves. You stupid brits can have your goddamn tea.

How about some caffeine-laden beans instead? Coffee has more antioxidants anyway.

Hotfoot · Post by **Hotfoot** » 2005-12-14 08:20pm

Broomstick wrote:Actually, the main purpose of the unit I work at is to evaluate the published studies around a given topic and determine which ones are well done and useful vs. which are total bullshit.

This piques my curiousity. If you don't mind my asking, who do you work for/what exactly do you do?

wolveraptor · Post by **wolveraptor** » 2005-12-14 08:40pm

NoXion wrote:Are you a coffee drinker?

No; I drink juice, water, and the occasional soda. Coffee sucks ass. It yellows your teeth, has caffeine and deceptively smells good while tasting like shit.

Trytostaydead · Post by **Trytostaydead** » 2005-12-14 11:54pm

Green tea, one of the best anti-oxidants out there.

Admiral Valdemar · Post by **Admiral Valdemar** » 2005-12-15 08:05am

Or, just eat healthy fruit or drink fresh, not-from-concentrate juice. Apples are full of anti-oxidants and soaking up those free radicals means less crap is eroding your genome, though you'll still have to deal with UV and the like causing nasty thymine dimers and other crap.

Hopefully, in the future we can use gene therapy to reverse cancer damage rather than rely solely on a good diet. Fortunately, as bad as cancer is and as big as the number of cases there are globally, it is amazingly rare to get the several mutations needed for a tumour. Considering the number of times your DNA is replicated, the impact of radiation and chemicals and so forth and you'll see our cells have very advanced proof-reading machinery. Time to make them even better.

wolveraptor · Post by **wolveraptor** » 2005-12-15 08:10am

Does having brown skin also protect against melanomas and such, or is it just sunburn that it helps?

Admiral Valdemar · Post by **Admiral Valdemar** » 2005-12-15 08:20am

wolveraptor wrote:Does having brown skin also protect against melanomas and such, or is it just sunburn that it helps?

Yes, since the higher melanin content of the skin "soaks up" the excess radiation usually found in the tropics where the natives are darker toned. Consequently, Caucasians are more susceptible to all forms of skin cancer, though there are studies that show certain ethnicities can be prone to various types of cancer more than others (Japanese immigrants to Hawaii being very likely to get bowel cancer compared to others, I think it was bowel anyway).