There was a time as a physician when I was less interested in diet.  After taking my board exams three years ago, I decided to confront diet once and for all.  I embarked on an educational journey to determine specific instructions for patients with certain medical conditions.  Though I was already aware of the effect of food on the treatment of high blood pressure and diabetes, I was uninformed about its effect on cancer risk. I touched on this a bit in my last post.  This post will dig into this topic a bit more.    The China study fully informed me of the relationship between food and cancer.

In the 1980s, the China study looking into death rates and cause of death in China spanning 20 years.  These rates were mapped and grouped into geographical areas.  The study concluded that coastal provinces were noted to have the highest incidence of cancer; whereas, cancer rates were nonexistent in the rural provinces.  Incidentally, the coastal areas included wealthy big cities like Shanghai and Beijing and their eating habits were different.  They consumed much more meat, eggs, and dairy than those in the rural provinces.  Meanwhile those in the rural areas were not vegan or vegetarian, but they ate significantly less meat protein due to cost.  For example, they would split one chicken breast  in a rice dish 30 ways to feed 30 people.

Of course the China Study analyzed several variables in order to accurately isolate and capture the effect of multiple lifestyle factors.  And naturally, a diet low  in meat protein was most highly correlated with prolonged life span.

The China Study was a powerful analysis with very interesting results.  It was something that was omitted from my education.  I suggest looking at the documentary entitled Forks Over Knives, and then checking out the book to further flesh out the details.