Scientists at the University of Oxford are exploring the complicated relationship between plant-rich diets and developing common cancers.
Vegetarianism has come a long way since veggie sausages were invented during the first world war as a way of rationing meat!
Plant-based, vegan, flexitarian and vegetarian diets are now increasingly popular, with around 3 million people in the UK who don’t eat meat.
The reasons for choosing to limit meat consumption, or cut meat entirely from your diet, are varied:
Many studies have shown that people who eat a vegetarian diet have a lower overall risk of cancer. However, it’s also important to find out whether specific cancers have a stronger link with a vegetarian diet as this could help provide guidance for people more at risk of those cancers.
That’s why World Cancer Research Fund is funding an exciting study at the University of Oxford led by Associate Prof Aurora Pérez-Cornago to find out whether vegetarians have a lower risk of developing specific cancers, and whether the different nutrients in a vegetarian diet affect cancer risk.
This research is an epidemiological study, which means it looks at masses of data about populations – the researchers are looking at data from nearly 2 million people – to see what patterns emerge.
Awarded in 2019, this research grant is ongoing, yet already the scientists have made 3 important discoveries:
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