Mediterranean Diet clinical trial.

PeggySull

Mediterranean Diet clinical trial.

PeggySull

My doctor told me that there w a clinical trial of the Meditteranean diet that was supposed to help prevent cancer or recurrence. The diet was so successful that they felt it would be unethical at the four year mark not to release it to the public. My doc didn't have a description of the study on hand and I may call to ask and if I get it I'll post it.



If anyone knows where to get it in the meantime, please let me know! Others may be interested too.



Thanks,

Peggy

rozem

i dont know anything about the study but I grew up on a med diet and still got breast cancer!   (my parents are from southern italy) that being said the med diet has been shown to be a very healthy way of eating.  The cornerstones are are quite basic: a diet based largely on fresh veggies and fruits, fish and poultry, very little lean meat, primary fat source comes from olive oil.  Tomato sauce was a staple.  I didnt know what gravy was until my teens! We rarely used butter or other cooking oils growing up - actually those were introduced primarily because we "discovered" them and asked our parents for them.  After dinner treats were fresh fruits, cakes and sweets were for special occasions only.  Rarely had boxed (processed)treats etc...everything was homemade (and my mom worked so that was a challenge). I still follow most of this at home except with my kids they do want "junk" but i try to limit as much as possible

hopefour

Peggysull...thank you for your post and I would love to know the guide lines to the Meditteranean diet trial! I received guide lines from The Block center, MDAnderson and lots of research which all in ways support a Meditteranean diet. I very much look forward to hearing more about this trial and what it recommends.

leggo

It's my understanding that it's only nominally beneficial for post-menopausal women with triple neg status. I know I read this somewhere. I'm going to try  and find an article I know I have bookmarked somewhere with that info. For the record, like Rozem, I've been eating a mediterranean diet for most of my life and breast cancer found me at age 30. On the other hand, I had ten cancer-free years....maybe the diet had something to do with that.

Ed: Found it. Not much of an article, but a start.

http://www.cpmedical.net/newsletter/mediterranean-diet-associated-with-decreased-risk-of-breast-cancer

SpecialK

Here are several possibilities:

http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/92/3/620.abstract

http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT00120016

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/256860.php

SelenaWolf

I think that it is a more healthful way of eating with it's focus on whole, fresh, organic foods and smaller portions, which may impact overall health to a degree that breast cancer risk may be lower.  I don't think that it will prevent breast cancer, if other high risk factors are present, but I think that it would be an excellent way to help build good, overall health for the long-term.

Besides which... I love Mediterranean food!

rozem

selenawolf - i had zero high risk factors and ate a primarily med diet (excercised a lot) - i am the first and only woman in our family to get BC in at least 2 generations and we have a HUGE family ( my dad has 5 sisters and my mom is one of 4 sisters and I have a ton of female cousins).  I was so blindsided by my diagnosis because i thought i did everything right.  So yes, the takeaway message is that this is great for overall health and will help prevent other diseases/disorders (heart disease etc)

and i looooooove my pasta - not giving that up cancer be damned!

Momine

Peggy, as you can see in the links already posted, I think the most recent study looked at preventing heart disease, not cancer. That said, being in overall better health can't exactly hurt us.

We live in Greece, so that is about as mediterranean as it gets. Basically, we eat a lot of pulses and veggies. Protein is usually in the form of feta cheese made from sheep and goat milk, plain yogurt, nuts, fish, and the already mentioned pulses. 

Fat comes mainly from olive oil, with the remainder from nuts and feta/yogurt.

The Greeks have a lot of cooked dishes that have no meat, like different kinds of veggies cooked in some sort of tomato sauce, artichokes stewed with lemon and dill, endless variations on bean/lentil soups/salads as well as fritters made with either veggies or pulses. Even meat dishes often involve lots of veggies. Moussaka is a good example, but they also make stuffed cabbage with meat, stuffed zucchini and meat stews with lots of greens.

There is a fair amount of fried food, but it is usually fried in olive oil in a frying pan, sort of between sauteeing and deep-frying.

This weekend we had a lasagne made with roasted veggies and a pilaf of brown rice, veggies and mussels. Today we got some take-out sushi, lol, and made a salad on the side of shredded carrots and red cabbage dressed with olive oil and lemon and topped with chopped almonds. Tonight we will have sauteed brown mushrooms with garlic and broccoli.

SelenaWolf

What are "pulses"?

leggo

Seeds that grow in pods of legumes.

Momine

Pulses are beans and lentils basically. Some people call them pulses, others call them legumes.

Momine

Oh, and for dinner we went to one of the local restaurants that we like. I had a plate of cauliflower with spicy tomatosauce and a plate of grilled sardines, plus a glass of red wine and a small piece of wholewheat bread. That is the other thing, it is quite easy to low-carb in a traditional Greek place. 

SelenaWolf

Oh, lord, that sounds GOOD!

Momine

It was I often feel fortunate that I live in Greece, especially when I am eating.

Timbuktu

I adored Greece.  Luckily, in Chicago, there is a very big and active Greektown with the best food in the world!

Momine

Yes, Chicago has lots of Greeks. We ended up eating the mushrooms and broccoli yesterday instead. For lunch we had a salad of chickpeas, baby romas, peppers, scallions, avocado (yes, I know it says on that site not to eat it with ER+ BC, but once in a while has to be OK) and a dressing of cilantro, garlic, lemon and olive oil. I have told all my friends to bring me their homegrown (organic) lemons and olive oil. Right now, I have a giant pile of lemons and 10-gallon tin of Cretan olive oil.

BetNY22

Hi-Mormine, I'm wondering what you were referring to that our site says not to eat. Everything you said you ate sounded like all things acceptable. Thanks, Bet

Momine

Bet, it is this one: http://foodforbreastcancer.com/food-list.php I really don't know who put it together or how credible it is. But it is the only comprehensive list I have found that gives studies for whatever it says.

Momine

OK, last night another classic, Greek meal at a local taverna. We ordered and split between us:

A small plate of garlic dip (stale bread, garlic, olive oil, although if I make at home I use ww bread and walnuts); a salad of tomato and onion, parsley, lemon and olive oil; fritters made with zucchini and carrot held together with a bit of breadcrumbs and egg; baked, fresh sardines (we each had 6-7 small sardines); a piece of filo-pie made with mixed, wild greens and a little feta, light on the pastry, mostly greens.    

There are both carbs and proteins in the meal, but the bulk of it consists of different kinds of veggies and you get a variety of veggies in one meal.