Cancer Prevention in North East Asia Breast cancer prevention by soy isoflavones.

Watanabe, Shaw

In Asia, people are moving away from rural areas into urban agglomerations. Cancer and other chronic diseases follow urbanization. Major changes in disease patterns are reported in developing countries. Reporting in 1997, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimated an increase in the global incidence of cancer from 10.3 million cases in 1996 to 14.7 million in 2020. Breast cancer is still less among Asians than Caucasian, but it steadily increases in Asian countries, Non nutrient food chemicals (factors) are recently noticed due to various pharmacological activities in the human body. Antioxidant property of flavonoids, such as quercetin and kaempferol, is considered to be attributable to the low risk of coronary heart disease. Japanese consume a lot of soy bean products containing phytoestrogens, such as daidzein and genistein, which may lead to the low incidence of estrogen-related cancers. More than 600 food factors in vegetables are considered to influence the various metabolic stages in the body. Antioxidant effects of isoflavonoid rich soya-hypocotyl tea were shown to lower hydroperoxides in the tissues with resultant low 8ohdG, which is a biomarker of DNA damage. Animal experiment coincided well with our hypothesis. Combination of soy hypocotyls and matured garlic powder suppressed nearly 80% of PHIP induced rat mammary cancer. The high consumption of isoflavones by Japanese would be one of factors to contribute to the longest life expectancy among the world. Similar pharmacological activity is expected in soyabean derived food like tempee in Indonesia. National programs should design to protect both public health and economic stability and sustainability, using appropriate agriculture and food policies, combining the benefits of traditional diets and Lifestyles with the benefits of current science and technology.

ASIA; ISOFLAVONES; SOYBEAN; BREAST cancer; CANCER prevention; SOYFOODS; JAPANESE people; DISEASES

Asia Pacific Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2002, Vol 11, pS32

0964-7058

Academic Journal