Yogurt is not only just part of a delicious breakfast.
A new study led by Mass General Brigham researchers found it may also have protective benefits against a certain type of aggressive colon cancer.
Study authors analyzed data totaling over 150,000 people who answered questionnaires about lifestyle factors and disease outcomes, including questions about their intake of plain and flavored yogurt, as well as other dairy products.
These participants were followed for at least three decades.
Researchers found people who ate two or more servings of yogurt a week had lower rates of proximal colon cancer that were positive for Bifidobacterium, according to the study published Wednesday in the peer-reviewed journal Gut Microbes.
Proximal colon cancer is a type of colorectal cancer that occurs on the right side of the colon and has been shown to have worse survival outcomes compared to patients with distal cancers, which occur more on the left side.
“It has long been believed that yogurt and other fermented milk products are beneficial for gastrointestinal health,” said co-senior author Dr. Tomotaka Ugai, a pathology investigator at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. “Our new findings suggest that this protective effect may be specific for Bifidobacterium-positive tumors.”
Colorectal cancer is the third-leading cause of cancer-related deaths in men and the fourth-leading cause in women, according to the American Cancer Society.
The organization estimates nearly 53,000 people will die from it in 2025.
While the death rates from colorectal cancer have been dropping in older adults, rates have been increasing by about 1% per year since the mid-2000s in people under 55.
The new yogurt study adds to a growing body of evidence that shows the connection between diet, the gut microbiome and the risk of colorectal cancer, said co-author Dr. Andrew T. Chan, chief of clinical and translational epidemiology at Massachusetts General Hospital.
“It provides an additional avenue for us to investigate the specific role of these factors in the risk of colorectal cancer among young people,” he said.