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Eating a diet rich in fruits and vegetables has been found to have a surprising link to lung cancer in young non-smokers, early research suggests.
The pilot study, led by Jorge Nieva, MD, of the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center at Keck Medicine, was presented this month at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) in San Diego. It has not been peer reviewed.
Researchers looked at dietary, smoking and demographic data on 187 patients who were diagnosed with lung cancer at age 50 or younger.
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They found that in non-smokers, there was a link between a healthier-than-usual diet – rich in fruit, vegetables and grains – and the risk of developing lung cancer.
Younger lung cancer patients ate more foods of dark green vegetables, whole grains and whole grains compared to the average US adult, researchers found.
Eating a diet rich in fruits and vegetables has been found to have a surprising link to lung cancer in young non-smokers, early research suggests. (Stock)
Researchers think that pesticides used in common products could be a possible factor in the disease association.
“Fruits, vegetables and commercially produced (non-organic) grains are likely to be associated with higher pesticide residues than milk, meat and most processed foods,” according to Nieva. He also noted that agricultural workers exposed to pesticides tend to have higher rates of lung cancer.
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“There is a large group of lung cancer patients whose disease is not caused by smoking,” Nieva told Fox News Digital.
The disease is becoming more common in non-smokers aged 50 and under, especially women – despite the fact that smoking rates have been falling for decades, the researcher notes.
Researchers think that pesticides used in common products could be a possible factor in the disease association. (Stock)
“These patients tend to eat a much healthier diet before their diagnosis than the average American,” he continued. “We need to support research to understand why Americans — especially women — who don’t smoke more still have lung cancer,” he said.
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The study had some limitations, Nieva acknowledged, primarily because it relied on survey data and was limited by the participants’ memories of their diet.
“Also, the survey participants were self-selected, and this could have biased the findings,” he told Fox News Digital.
“There are a lot of lung cancer patients who have disease that is not caused by smoking.”
The researchers did not test specific foods for pesticides, instead relying on average levels of pesticides in certain types of food. Looking ahead, they plan to test patients’ blood and urine samples to directly measure pesticide levels, Nieva said.
Although research only shows correlations and does not prove that pesticides cause lung cancer, Nieva recommends that people wash their produce before eating and choose organic foods whenever possible.
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“This work represents an important step in identifying environmental variables that may influence lung cancer in young people,” said Nieva. “Our hope is that this information can guide public health recommendations and future research on lung cancer prevention.”
“It is possible that the increase in the risk of lung cancer is due to exposure to pesticides in cultivated foods, but that is not at all certain,” said the doctor. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
Dr. Marc Siegel, senior medical analyst for Fox News, said the study is “interesting,” but “raises more questions than it answers.”
“It’s a small study (about 150) and it’s observational, so there’s no evidence,” the doctor, who was not involved in the study, told Fox News Digital.
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“It is possible that the increased risk of lung cancer is due to exposure to pesticides in farmed foods, but it is not certain,” Siegel continued. “How much exposure is needed? How much is found in food and in what places? This needs more research.”
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Kayla Nichols, director of communications for the Pesticide Action & Agroecology Network, which is a global network, said the organization agrees with the conclusion of this study that more research should be done on the increase in lung cancer, especially in people who eat more produce and fiber.
“There is a large group of lung cancer patients whose disease is not caused by smoking,” the researcher told Fox News Digital. (Stock)
“There is an abundance of research that has linked pesticide exposure to an increased risk of many types of cancer,” Nichols, who was not involved in the research, told Fox News Digital. He called for more research on chronic, low exposure to pesticides, and more effective policies to protect the public from pesticide residues in food.
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The research was supported by the National Institutes of Health and the National Cancer Institute, as well as industry partners including AstraZeneca and Genentech, among others.
Fox News Digital reached out to several pesticide companies and trade groups for comment.
