Can fiber prevent colon cancer?
Technically, no. But eat it anyway. We’ll explain. Several years ago, a pair of studies suggested that dietary fiber could reduce the risk of colon cancer. But a new review of 13 studies encompassing 725,628 people in the Journal of the American Medical Association found no such connection. Researchers believe the discrepancy lies in the fact that people who eat fiber tend also to take multivitamins, limit red meats, and consume folate-rich foods, all of which have been shown to reduce the risk of cancer in the first 5 feet of the large intestine (i.e., your colon). Fiber alone, however, “won’t affect your colon-cancer risk one way or the other,” says John Baron, M.D., a professor of medicine at Dartmouth Medical School. What it will do is cut your risk of getting cancer in your rectum (the last 8 to 10 inches of said intestine). The same JAMA review found that eating 25 grams of fiber per day lowers rectal-cancer risk by 15 percent. Why the difference between the two ends of the intestine? Doctor’s aren’t sure. But what is clear is that there are many benefits to dietary fiber, from improving regularity to preventing heart disease. The best way to get 25 grams: Eat whole foods, like oatmeal (4 grams per cup), blackberries (7.6 grams), and split-pea soup (16.3 grams).
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