Eating White Bread Linked to Cancer

Alcohol use was also linked to the devastating disease

Eating white bread every day could increase a person’s risk of developing colorectal cancer , according to a new study.

Chinese researchers linked the lunchroom staple to the devastating diagnosis in a new study published last week in the journal Nutrients . They also found that drinking alcohol increases the risk of colorectal cancer , while diets high in fiber, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus and manganese drop a person’s risk of the disease.

White bread has long been derided by dieticians, who instead recommend a whole wheat bread. The flour used in white bread is highly processed and high in carbs, which the body breaks down into sugar. Previous research has linked white bread consumption to increased risk of obesity and diabetes . Both conditions are strongly linked to colorectal cancer.

For the research, the Chinese team gathered data from the UK Biobank, a repository of data on the habits and medical status of thousands of Britons. They gathered data from 118,210 people, 1,466 of whom were diagnosed with colorectal cancer when followed up with the UK Biobank an average of 13 years later.

They evaluated each of these people based on 139 different dietary criteria, considering foods they ate and whether their diet was rich in key nutrients.

Researchers found that people who reported that they regularly ate white bread were 10% more likely to develop colon cancer than their peers who did not. People who regularly consumed alcohol were also at an 8% increased risk of colon cancer.

On the other hand, a diet high in fiber — found in fruits and vegetables — was very effective at dropping the risk of cancer.

“Dietary fiber can accelerate intestinal motility, dilute carcinogens in the colon, and ferment fiber into short-chain fatty acids by gut bacteria, all mechanisms that suggest dietary fiber intake may reduce the risk of malignancy and improve colon health,” researchers wrote.

Researchers estimate that 25% of colorectal cancer cases could be prevented with the right diet.

Colorectal cancer is the fourth most common type of cancer in America, with more than 153,000 cases expected to be diagnosed in 2023, according to the National Cancer Institute . It causes the second most number of cancer deaths, only trailing lung cancer with more than 50,000 projected deaths this year.

While once considered to be a disease that only affected the elderly, doctors are reporting increases in the number of cases being diagnosed in Americans under the age of 50 .