Asian-American women who ate higher amounts of soy during childhood had a 58 percent reduced risk of breast cancer, according to a study published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.

“Historically, breast cancer incidence rates have been four to seven times higher among white women in the U.S. than in women in China or Japan. However, when Asian women migrate to the U.S., their breast cancer risk rises over several generations and reaches that of U.S. white women, suggesting that modifiable factors, rather than genetics, are responsible for the international differences. These lifestyle or environmental factors remain elusive; our study was designed to identify them,” said Regina Ziegler, Ph.D., M.P.H., a senior investigator in the NCI Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics (DCEG).

The current study focused on women of Chinese, Japanese and Filipino descent who were living in San Francisco, Oakland, Los Angeles or Hawaii. Researchers interviewed 597 women with breast cancer and 966 healthy women. If the women had mothers living in the United States, researchers interviewed those mothers to determine the frequency of soy consumption in childhood.

Researchers divided soy intake into thirds and compared the highest and lowest groups. High intake of soy in childhood was associated with a 58 percent reduction in breast cancer. A high level of soy intake in the adolescent and adult years was associated with a 20 to 25 percent reduction. The childhood relationship held in all three races and all three study sites, and in women with and without a family history of breast cancer. “Since the effects of childhood soy intake could not be explained by measures other than Asian lifestyle during childhood or adult life, early soy intake might itself be protective,” said the study’s lead investigator, Larissa Korde, M.D., M.P.H., a staff clinician at the NCI’s Clinical Genetics Branch.

“Childhood soy intake was significantly associated with reduced breast cancer risk in our study, suggesting that the timing of soy intake may be especially critical,” said Korde. The underlying mechanism is not known. Korde said her study suggests that early soy intake may have a biological role in breast cancer prevention. “Soy isoflavones have estrogenic properties that may cause changes in breast tissue. Animal models suggest that ingestion of soy may result in earlier maturation of breast tissue and increased resistance to carcinogens.”

As provocative as the findings are, Ziegler cautioned that it would be premature to recommend changes in childhood diet. “This is the first study to evaluate childhood soy intake and subsequent breast cancer risk, and this one result is not enough for a public health recommendation,” she said. “The findings need to be replicated through additional research.”

Sourse: American Association for Cancer Research i

Catering to a child who is a picky-eater is like being a short-order cook: chaotic. Dinnertime becomes a war zone, with hopeless battles fought over vegetables and macaroni and cheese.

Picky-eating is as normal as potty-training, a right of passage in childhood development. Taste-buds evolve and food preferences expand in these early years. Even the best of parents can have a difficult time getting their child to eat. In fact, picky-eating is one of the most common occurrences in children, often outgrown as the child reaches adolescence. But if eating behavior inhibits normal developmental and physical growth processes, it could be something much more severe – a pediatric feeding disorder.

“The difference between a fussy eater and a child with a feeding disorder is the impact the eating behavior has on a child’s physical and mental health,” says Peter Girolami, Ph.D., Assistant Director of the Pediatric Feeding Disorders Program at the Kennedy Krieger Institute in Baltimore, Maryland – one the first programs of its kind in the United States and the largest in the world to treat pediatric feeding disorders.

Pediatric feeding disorders are more common than most think, afflicting up to 10 percent of all infants and children, according to published literature. Children classified as having a feeding disorder do not consume enough calories and nutrients to promote healthy growth and development. It is important to differentiate between a picky eater, who may consume a restricted but still nourishing diet, from a child who consumes, for example, only three to four types of foods, eliminating entire food groups and compromising healthy growth.

Common symptoms of a pediatric feeding disorder are:
• An abrupt change in eating habits lasting longer than 30 days
• Delayed development of skill set necessary to self feed or consume higher textures
• Weight-loss or failure to gain appropriate weight
• Choking/coughing during meals
• Unexplained fatigue, loss of energy
• Disruptive behavior during mealtime

Feeding disorders are not all created equal. Some children can have aversions to food groups or certain textures and colors, while others lack the skills to self-feed or refuse to eat any food at all. The assortment of behaviors that constitute a feeding problem vary from child to child and include food refusal (e.g., crying, head turning, spitting out food, throwing utensils, packing or holding food in mouth, aggression, and getting out of the seat), coughing/gagging, and vomiting. Many children with feeding disorders also suffer from a serious medical, behavioral or psychological condition that can contribute to the onset of the feeding disorder – 30 percent of children with development delays have difficulty feeding at some point during their childhood. Other common medical conditions that are associated with feeding disorders include gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), food allergies, cancer, and complications from premature birth. Children that undergo surgeries unrelated to food may also develop feeding problems, as feeding tubes can throw them off track.

Early diagnosis and treatment is extremely important when it comes to feeding disorders. The longer it is left untreated, the more complex it can become—in extreme cases, children can even require feeding tube assistance. Children with feeding disorders can also have serious complications from nutritional deficiencies such as anemia. Undernourished children are also at risk for developmental delays including the inability to crawl, walk and talk, which could lead to oral, motor and sensory problems.

Since there is no common cause or symptom that is characteristic of all pediatric feeding disorders, each case is unique with varying challenges to effective treatment. Both biological and social interactions need to be individually addressed for each child during diagnosis and when developing an appropriate treatment program. Kennedy Krieger’s Pediatric Feeding Disorders Program takes an interdisciplinary approach. A team of professionals with expertise in many specialties – from gastroenterology to behavioral psychology and speech pathology– work together to help each child modify behavior, build motor skills and treat associated medical conditions.

“It’s not a one-size fits all model,” insists Dr. Girolami. “Our team addresses the many causes of feeding disorders and their associated complications so we can give the child and family the best care available.”

For more information on feeding disorders and treatment options, visit http://feedingdisorders.kennedykrieger.org/ .

Source: Newswise

Newswise — The largest study of its kind to evaluate the effect of red versus white wine on breast-cancer risk concludes that both are equal offenders when it comes to increasing breast-cancer risk. The results of the study, led by researchers at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, were published in the March issue of Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention.

“We were interested in teasing out red wine’s effects on breast-cancer risk. There is reason to suspect that red wine might have beneficial effects based on previous studies of heart disease and prostate cancer,” said lead author Polly Newcomb, Ph.D., M.P.H., head of the Cancer Prevention Program in the Public Health Sciences Division at the Hutchinson Center. “The general evidence is that alcohol consumption overall increases breast-cancer risk, but the other studies made us wonder whether red wine might in fact have some positive value.”

Instead, Newcomb and colleagues found no compelling reason to choose Chianti over Chardonnay.

“We found no difference between red or white wine in relation to breast-cancer risk. Neither appears to have any benefits,” Newcomb said. “If a woman drinks, she should do so in moderation – no more than one drink a day. And if a woman chooses red wine, she should do so because she likes the taste, not because she thinks it may reduce her risk of breast cancer,” she said.

The researchers found that women who consumed 14 or more drinks per week, regardless of the type (wine, liquor or beer), faced a 24 percent increase in breast cancer compared with non-drinkers.

For the study, the researchers interviewed 6,327 women with breast cancer and 7,558 age-matched controls about their frequency of alcohol consumption (red wine, white wine, liquor and beer) and other breast-cancer risk factors, such as age at first pregnancy, family history of breast cancer and postmenopausal hormone use. The study participants, ages 20 to 69, were from Wisconsin, Massachusetts and New Hampshire. The frequency of alcohol consumption was similar in both groups, and equal proportions of women in both groups reported consuming red and white wine.

The National Cancer Institute, a branch of the National Institutes of Health, funded this research, which also involved investigators from Group Health Cooperative, Seattle; the University of Wisconsin; H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute; and Dartmouth Medical School.

At Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, our interdisciplinary teams of world-renowned scientists and humanitarians work together to prevent, diagnose and treat cancer, HIV/AIDS and other diseases. Our researchers, including three Nobel laureates, bring a relentless pursuit and passion for health, knowledge and hope to their work and to the world. For more information, visit fhcrc.org.

Source: Newswise