Word: low-fat
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...many of us are overweight, ill-nourished and just plain frustrated about how to shape up: every day brings more conflicting medical advice. Here's what experts are reporting now: IS FAT THAT BAD? Everyone knows that a diet low in fat helps the heart and prevents cancer. But what if it doesn't? A $415 million, 12-year U.S. study of 49,000 older women found that a low-fat diet did not significantly reduce breast cancer, colorectal cancer or heart disease. But low-fat advocates say the study didn't distinguish between good fats such as those...
...Women in the low-fat group suffered 9% fewer breast cancers than those in the control group. Although that difference was not statistically significant, it is very suggestive. Given how long it takes for most tumors to grow, it may simply be that the study has not lasted long enough to show a significant effect. In addition, there was a clear benefit for one sub-group of women-those who began the study with the highest total fat consumption and who were able to make and maintain the greatest reduction in the number of fat calories in their diet. This...
...Women in the low-fat group did not see a significant drop in their rates of colorectal cancer, but here again, it may mean that the study simply hasn?t lasted long enough. The low-fat group did have 9% fewer polyps and other precancerous lesions in their lower gastrointestinal tract-and that is a statistically significant finding. Given how long it takes colorectal cancer to develop, it?s reasonable to be heartened by those results...
...statistics. After looking at the variation in the data with various mathematical tools, research statisticians determined that they couldn't rule out the possibility that the 9% difference in breast cancer results was due to chance alone. (It could be chance; it could also be due to the low-fat diet.) On the other hand, after applying those same mathematical tools to the data in the colorectal cancer study, they determined that the 9% difference in the number of polyps was unlikely to be due to chance alone...
...protect women?s hearts after menopause. There are plenty of doctors, and quite a few patients, who are still trying to figure what that actually means.) Strictly speaking, the results do not apply to men, who tend to get heart disease earlier than women do and for whom a low-fat diet might be particularly beneficial. But this study has set the gold standard for diet studies in the future. Fortunately, there are enough research funds to continue following the WHI participants for another five years. Here?s hoping that is long enough to get more answers that are statistically...